Gala Dinner at La Festa del Barolo
at The Pool Restaurant, NYC (1/31/2020)

This was the Friday evening gala dinner at Antonio Galloni's Vinous Media's La Festa del Barolo 2020.

I sat at the Giacomo Conterno table with Roberto Conterno, the winemaker and owner at the Giacomo Conterno Winery. You can find a lot information on this winery at my Giacomo Conterno page.

Here is Roberto Conterno with the first bottle poured at our table:


Part 2 of La Festa del Barolo 2020 was a Morning Tasting of the New Release of 2015 Barolos the next day in the The Grill Restaurant. The Grill Restaurant and The Pool Restaurant together occupy the space that was home to the iconic and historic Four Seasons Restaurant from 1959 until 2016.

I went to the first five Gala dinners, then skipped the next two. Here are my notes and photos for those that I attended:

Click on any photo for a larger view of that photo. Many larger photos contain more image as well as much higher resolution and are typically 3-4 MB.


The Reception and the Venue

Arriving at the venue which used to be the historic Four Seasons Restaurant in the Seagram Building.
It is now two separate restaurants: The Pool and The Grill, under the managment of the Major Food Group.
The entrance is on 52nd Street:


Champagne
With passed Canapés:


The Red Wines and the Food

As far as I know, all the red wines were double decanted around 5:30pm, except where noted. Dinner started about 7:30pm. The last wines were served around 11pm.

The food at dinner was truly outstanding. Kudos to Executive Chef Will Cox.

Course 1
Prosciutto and Mustard Fruits. Superb!



Course 2
Mushroom Risotto. Not the prettiest dish, but delicious, especially with the older wines.


Course 3
Spicy Rigatoni Vodka. Quite tasty, but too spicey for the wines.


Charity Auction
To benefit The Zone and the Blau Center for Children's Cancer and Blood Disease at Kravis Children's Hospital in The Mount Sinai Hospital. James Forsyth and Antonio Galloni lead the auction:
In those cases where I heard the winning bid, I've noted it in parentheses:
Lot 1 - Magnum Of 2004 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Le Vigne ($3600).
Lot 2 - Double Magnum Of 2008 Elio Grasso Barolo Rüncot.
Lot 3 - One Double Magnum And Three Magnums Of 2017 Antonio Galloni Cabernet Sauvignon.
Lot 4 - Raid Antonio Galloni's Cellar At Saison ($40,000).
Lot 5 - A Stunning Selection Of Vietti's Barbaresco Rabajá ($6000).
Lot 6 - 2015 Giacomo Conterno Nebbiolo D'alba Arione, One Double Magnum And Three Magnums In Original Wooden Cases, Embossed With The Successful Bidder's Name (Two lots at $50,000 each).

Our table:
Roberto Conterno's personal assistant Stephanie Flou on the left. His son Gabriele on the right:
Roberto Conterno's son Gabriele in the middle:


Course 4
Filet Mignon Florentine. So good. Perfect with the Monfortinos.

Side Dishes
Sesame Spinach and Brussels Sprouts:



Course 5
Robiola Cheese with Sea Salt Crackers & Gooseberry Jam.


Conclusion

Another great evening of great wines, excellent food, and good people. It was a special treat to sit with Roberto Conterno.


Tasting notes posted from CellarTracker.


Video

Roberto Conterno with James Forsyth's son Alex, taken the next morning:
Video by James Forsyth.

 

 

 


All original content © Ken Vastola