Bonta Goes Local

The newest restaurant to carry Jewell Towne wine is Bonta, on Route 27 in Hampton.  It is a beautiful facility with a revitalized menu of creative and fresh northern Italian fare.  Kevin Riley, the Executive Chef,  put together an incredible menu for the “Glocal” wine dinner featuring local wines from Jewell Towne, Zorvino and Sweet Baby Vineyards.

Creamy fontina polenta, slow braised veal 

breast, broccolini and grana padano with

Jewell Towne's Leon Millot

While I was there pouring wine with representatives of the other vineyards, we also got to sample some of Kevin's pairings and I have to say that his food and our wine made for a pretty special combination.  The whole was greater than the sum of the parts, as the saying goes.

He started the dinner with our Frose, typically served with dessert, as it is a sweet ice wine-style wine, but his pairing with a Chicken Liver Mousse topped with caramelized cipolllini onions was a fresh take on the classic Sauterne/ Foie Gras match.  The Polenta con Vitello matched beautifully with our Pinot Noir-style Leon Millot as well.  If Kevin gives me the recipe for this dish, the secret won’t be safe.  I will post the recipe here and I highly recommend drinking it with our light, fruit-forward Leon Millot, available at Jewell Towne or Bonta restaurant.

The dinner was hosted by the Exeter Rotary and the wineries gave 10% of retail sales that evening to the local charities sponsored by the Club.  Local wine, local restaurants and locally sourced food are all good for the community.  Bravo Bonta!

To see Bonta's full menu or to make reservations go to www.Bonta.net .