Borne of Fire is a Washington based Cabernet Sauvignon created by Chateau St. Michelle. Borne of Fire is unique because the 10% Malbec that they use in the blend is from a new AVA in South Central Washington. The term AVA refers to when early settlers would burn the fields to essentially restart the soil for the Fall. The reason why Borne of Fire wine is so special is because it is the only wine on the retail market from the Washington AVA ‘The Burn’. Myself and other writers were invited to a very delicious wine dinner to give those in the space a chance to try their Cabernet as well as try their Chardonnay before it releases in 2020.
The wine dinner was held at Bavel which is one of LA’s hottest restaurants and the sister restaurant to Bestia, so it was pretty much a big deal that my first time at the restaurant was for something curated and exclusive and that never gets old on this journey as a creator. We were provided with Uber codes to and from the event which made travel easy especially because where Bavel is, unless you’re valet parking the parking is wild and not worth the hassle.
I was invited by the brand directly after they came across my 20 Must Try Rose’s Blog Post; that post was written back in May/June so never underestimate the power of your content and the keywords surrounding it because somebody, somewhere is looking for it. So I naturally said yes and at that time I had no idea how big of a deal Bavel was, but when one of my girlfriends who is a travel blogger was excited for me, I knew it was a big deal; now on to the experience.
Upon arrival I’m instantly familiar with the area and definitely feel super boss walking in and immediately getting seated, given the buzz. We were seated family style directly adjacent to the kitchen, grill/the heart which is the area where they cook and prepare the meat. I’m glad I opted for the side that was closer to the door because it was HOT. Not only was it hot, we were drinking and that for sure makes you warm as well, but it all added to the vibe.
We started our first 2 courses with the unreleased Chardonnay which was very velvety and silky in texture, it wasn’t hard to drink, it was crisp and light and literally perfect for summer. The first course was Chicken Liver Pate which was very good and also interesting because I make my dogs food and we use Chicken Liver so essentially I was eating a fancier made version of what I feed my dog, so that was pretty “comical” to me. It had a delicious pomegranate honey, the pickled blueberries were really good, I’ve never had pickled fruit before and the black sesame buckwheat loaf. I LOVE bread so I ate both pieces; this probably contributed to the reason I was so full by course 3-4.
The second course was consisted of two items; the first was hummus with a green and red chilli paste served with the fluffiest pita I’ve ever had. The second was marinated tomatoes with smoked harissa and whipped feta and wow! The flavor in each dish was SO bold AND so rich. If you are into heavy flavor profiles Bavel is for sure the spot for you. The way they make everything and the smokey flavors of each dish are just truly one of a kind. I cannot compare the taste of the food to any other place I’ve been to, very unique and I understand why it’s such a big fuss to go there.
Once it was time for the third course we were actually out of the Borne of Fire Chardonnay, so we switched over to the Cabernet which was perfect because the next couple of courses were more on the heavy side. The cab was also very silky and smooth to drink. The third was course complete with 3 items; the first was roasted cauliflower that was tossed in this delicious hawaii chile sauce, it had a refreshing and cooling creme friache serrano dip. The second was grilled prawns, marinated in harissa, which gave it amazing spice and flavor; the prawns were also served with a fresh cured zucchini tzatziki, topped off with lime. Hands down my favorite thing of the night, the flavor, the spice, the presentation everything was outstanding. The third thing which I really enjoyed as well was Lamb Flatbread. I’m not going to lie, by this time, I was extremely full, from eating and from drinking and I really had to just stop myself. The courses are family style so it was great to be able to share everything, but it still ended up being a lot for me even with the size of our group. DISCLAIMER: If you are not into spicy food or food with a spice that is noticeable, Bavel may or may not be the place for you.
Lastly the fourth course which was complete with another 3 items. The first was Oyster Mushroom Kebab, I honestly cannot remember if I tried this, I might have tried the puree, but didn’t actually dive in to the kebab itself. The second was slow roasted lamb neck shwarma; I had every intention on eating this and again could not, so unfortunately though it smelled good, I cannot tell you at all how it tasted. The lamb neck came with a bowl of pickled vegetables and fermented cabbage (additional food basically).
Lastly, another dish I unfortunately did not try, the grilled tomahawk ribeye. That ALSO came with marinated cucumbers and artichokes. Ya’ll the food was endless, is basically the sum of it.The Cabernet went well with the heavier courses and really helped bring out the flavor profile of the food and the wine. I did not make it to dinner, instead I went home because I was getting sleepy and all of the food was becoming overwhelming, not in a bad way, but I can’t sit with food in front of me, if I’m not eating it, it’s a weird thing.
All in all, the experience was wonderful, the food was wonderful, the wine was wonderful, I’m so happy that I had a chance to experience both Borne of Fire and Bavel. I can’t thank the Borne of Fire team enough for selecting me to partake.Have any of you had Borne of Fire or been to Bavel? Tell me about it in the comments.
