Dessert was a wonderful Chocolate Pot de Creme, served with a 1966 Krohn Colheita Port, aged in wood for 7 years, which my niece had selected in Portugal a few years ago with this birthday in mind. She has a good idea: buy a birth-year wine for your kids, for a wedding anniversary or for other meaningful date.

This meal was created by Feast Catering in Santa Rosa and particularly by Executive Chef Jesse McQuarrie. Their selections were an excellent fit for this special evening. Happy Birthday Whitney!!

Joel M. Fisher Ph.D writes a monthly column for the Chefs de Cuisine Association of California and has been the wine instructor for the Culinary Arts Department, Art Institute of California-Los Angeles. He is Director of Public Affairs for Avalon Hollywood, and as a partner in WineVineandDine conducts wine tastings, wine dinners, and wine-and-food pairings throughout Southern California. His email address is joel@winevineanddine.com