The
Barrel Room
Restaurant, Wine Bar, Retail Wine Sales
Dining
Detectives
By Carol & Joe Davis
We
are Wine Lovers but must admit that we haven't been to
a Wine Bar since our favorite, Rick's Wine Cellar, in Marin was
sold about a year ago. We really enjoy learning about and finding
new wines to enjoy, so we ventured to The Barrel Room.
They have a location in San Francisco and just opened on College
Avenue in Oakland and offer 50 wines by the Glass and over 200
by the Bottle. They feature educational Wine Tasting Flights to
pair with excellent California cuisine and they sell wine retail
as well. You can select one of their ever changing flights or
ask for help, tell them what you generally like and let them select
wines to fit your preferences. We enjoyed chatting with one of
the Proprietors/Sommeliers Carolyn Johnson who has a tremendous
love of wine and enjoys helping you find new small production
wines that are a little adventurous!
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The
rustic yet modern décor features stylish old growth Redwood
topped tables, an inviting Bar, and atmospheric library walls
of their wine selections. A candle placed on each table adds romantic
ambience to your evening and there are large windows facing College
Avenue giving the room an open feeling. Jazz vocals in background
also added to the civilized mood. In warm weather, you can enjoy
Sidewalk Bistro seating in front.
We
enjoyed a White Flight and a Red Flight and appreciated that each
wine glass was labeled with all the details about the wines. That
always helps.... as you can taste each wine and easily keep track
of what you've tasted! Our favorite white wines were the 2011
Oro en Paz Lake County Sauvignon Blanc which was perfectly
balanced, lively and slightly tart and the 2009 Crazin "le
Petit Chambord" Loire Valley Cour - Cheverny Romoratin
which was a bit more aromatic. They paired well with our starters
from their wine friendly seasonal California/French cuisine menu.
The
Small Plates were all delicious and everything is so reasonably
priced. We loved the Roasted Dates which were stuffed
with Blue Cheese and walnuts then wrapped in pancetta. The
Brandade of True Cod made with cream and potato and served
with toasts was also excellent. We also enjoyed the Chicory
Greens with apple, blue cheese and walnuts which was quite
refreshing. These three starters really paired well together.
As
our evening progressed, our favorite red wine was the 2011
Domaine Combier Rhone Crozes-Hermitage Syrah which was richer
than most Syrahs and paired well with our Large Plates. We enjoyed
the Boeuf Bourguignon Croustade which was very flavorful and the
pastry was flakey and not too rich. We also loved the Porc aux
Pruneaux which was juicy and extremely tender baked with luscious
prunes. The Desserts were both perfect. We loved both their freshest
creamiest Crème Brule and the Chocolate Mousse which was
just rich enough and delicious. An Uncommon Café Mocha
Java coffee went well with our desserts.
The
Barrel Room exceeded our expectations! We enjoyed
excellent cuisine, visited with other wine lovers and found some
new small production wines that we enjoyed. We purchased a few
bottles of the 2011 Oro en Paz to take home.... and look
forward to returning soon to chat with the Owners/ Sommeliers
Carolyn and Sara who will introduce us to some other new selections
from various countries!
The
Barrel Room
5330 College Avenue
Oakland, CA. 94618
510-655-1700
www.BarrelRoomOak.com