Holiday Table Tastings – 12/02/25

Featured

Posted on by

Unsure what to serve at your holiday celebrations?   

Wouldn’t it be great if you could attend a casual, walk-around tasting of sparklers, whites and reds?   

You CAN!  It’ll be fun and you can wear a holiday sweater if you want.

OTG curated great-for-holiday-celebration wines that fit a wide variety of culinary occasions from aperitivo, to turkey, to roast beast.

In the spirit of the season $15 of your entry price is a donation to the Pediatric Palliative Care Coalition. This Pittsburgh-based organization provides support to caregivers and clinicians for children with life-limiting conditions.  Please explore their website to learn about their important work.

EVENT DETAILS

LOGISTICS: Arrive anytime between 5:30-7:00pm (event closes at 7:30pm) to casually taste through 8+ wines with accompanying snacks. All of these wines (and others) will be available to purchase that evening.

LOCATION: Barsotti Wines in the Strip District – details will be sent with confirmation a week before the tasting.

PRICE: $50 per person – includes tasting through 8+ wines, snacks and support for the Pediatric Palliative Care Coalition (and certainly some words of wine wisdom from Jack!)

Space is limited – sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

cards
Powered by paypal

Wednesday Wine Flight – Tavern Style 10/22/25

Posted on by

Let’s celebrate Highland Park’s newest addition. Bryant Street Tavern bills itself as a “New England Style” escape right here in Pittsburgh. Many of you already know the owner, Angela Earley, co-owner of Penn Avenue Fish Company, so we are stoked about the fish quality! Angela would love for us to experience BST-style eats at the new restaurant, and in true OTG style, Jack is bringing the wine!

FOUR COURSES / FOUR WINES

Bubbly (sort-of Cava from Spain)

Oysters and Hush Puppies

White Chardonnay from California (highly regarded 93pt Chardonnay)

Lobster Roll-ette – chilled lobster, scallion, celery, dash of mayo

Red Pinot Noir from Oregon (#1 top value 2024 Wine Enthusiast, hard to find!)

Pan Seared Salmon – glazed bok choy, romesco, malt vinegar fingerling chips

Red Cabernet Sauvignon from California (92pts and professionals call it a ‘crowd-pleaser’)

Bryant Street Tavern’s Signature Black-n-Blue Burger (slider style) 

EVENT DETAILS

Event starts at 6:30pm at Bryant Street Tavern (5801 Bryant St, Pittsburgh, PA 15206). Free street parking.

Space is limited – so sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

Can you taste value? 7/23/25

Posted on by

We know what we like – but can we taste value?

Let’s explore the notion of value in wine (at several price points ranging from $15 to $100 a bottle) with a tasting that includes TWO BLIND tastings followed by a reveal and two “high-value” (you be the judge) wine tastings from globally respected wine makers. 

Jason Sicher of Barsotti Wines will provide charcuterie and a summer pasta to nourish us and keep us wine-focused. Please join us at Barsotti Wines for an interesting evening of value judgements!

What you get – 6 wines, summer bites, Jack’s wine wisdom and a test of your palate.

We hope you can join us on Wednesday, July 23 at 6:00pm.

Wednesday Wine Flight 5/21/25

Posted on by

Earlier this year Kate and Jack enjoyed a quick vacation to Northern Italy where they visited Venice, Bologna and Florence – all three are well-documented fantastic food and wine destinations. Now you are invited to enjoy these culinary destinations through four wines (chosen by Jack) and some tasty food (created and served by Sprezzatura).

What you can expect: Two whites, two reds and tasty Sprezzatura food. For those who like numbers – one of the wines scored 96 points from the Wine Spectator.

Please join us for this budget-friendly tour to Italy that will be easier/faster/cheaper than traveling to Europe.

Event starts at 6pm and will be held at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (616 N Highland Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206). Location and parking information will be sent with confirmation the week of the event.

Please note that all sales are final. If you find you are unable to use your seats, please contact Kate and Jack and they will see if there is someone on the wait list who can use them (although this is not guaranteed).  Thank you.

Wednesday Wine Flight 12/11/24

Posted on by

Do points matter?

Retailers and Reviewers care a lot about points – retailers sell with points, reviewers earn by awarding points. This warrants a discussion don’t you think?

Let’s gather and celebrate our opinions! We’ll have four wines with impressive point/scores (all between 94 and 97 points) and Jack will share the scores AFTER we taste – see if you agree with globally recognized reviewers.

Jen Saffron and her Sprezzatura Team will provide bites – Jack will provide the presentation and “try” to avoid verbosity.

  • White 1 – French Chardonnay
  • White 2 – Argentine Chardonnay
  • Red 1 – Tuscan Red
  • Red 2 – Spanish Red

Event starts at 6pm and will be held at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (616 N Highland Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206). Location and parking information will be sent with confirmation the week of the event.

Space is limited – so sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

Please note that all sales are final. If you find you are unable to use your seats, please contact Kate and Jack and they will see if there is someone on the wait list who can use them (although this is not guaranteed).  Thank you.

Return of the Wednesday Wine Flight 11/20/24

Posted on by

Question: How can we lighten up a month that is growing darker?

Answer: A mid-week wine flight with bites provided by SPREZZATURA!!! 

Join us for FOUR wines with Sprezz bites and the usual OTG-style description and discussion led by Jack Brice.

This tasting precedes the North American holiday of Thanksgiving (Canada already celebrated), so we will feature two American whites and two American reds.

  • Oak Farm Vineyards Albarino 2023
  • The Verge Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2021
  • Chris James Yamhill Carlton Pinot Noir 2022
  • Peachy Canyon Cirque du Vin 2020

Event starts at 6pm and will be held at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (616 N Highland Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206). Location and parking information will be sent with confirmation the week of the event.

Space is limited – so sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

Night of Firsts 6/16/24

Posted on by

Have you ever wanted to try wines never before imported to the USA?

How about a dinner/tasting in a space we’ve never before had an event?

How about wines imported by a brand-new Pittsburgh-based wine importer?

Well – here we go! 

Here’s the longer story:

The landscape in and near what is today’s Northeast Italy has for centuries provided fertile wine grape-growing conditions (for the Roman Empire, Napoleon, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy, Yugoslavia, and now Slovenia). Pittsburgher Sharon Semenza discovered these wines while traveling in Italy – she learned that (in addition to traditional regional varietals) the estate’s owners researched their soils to determine similarity with Burgundy, which obviated a need to produce Chardonnay – all of this together compelled Sharon Semenza to create Semenza Wine Imports in order to import and share these wines with America.

A recent Wine Spectator article suggested that these wines are produced in “The Next Great Wine Country” so let’s not miss out. Please join us and Sharon Semenza for the American Debut of these wines with fabulous food to match by fan-favorite Jen Saffron of Sprezzatura at a new location – the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in Highland Park.

Space is limited – so sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

Aperitivo with Rosé
taleggio and cherry crostini + antipasti

Erigone Cuvee Rose Vipavska Dolina 2019 Brda Slovenia

White Course
orecchiette with sage brown butter cream sauce with lemon zest

anchovy focaccia

Jakot, Marinic Anne Goriska Brda 2019 Brda Slovenia

Chardonnay, Domaine Vicomte de Noue-Marinic, Groblja Vedrigano II Cru Classificazione 2020 Brda Slovenia

Red Course

lamb ragout with parmesan toast points

beets oregano with arugula

Refosco, Marinic Vipavska Dolina 2019 Brda Slovenia

Cabernet Sauvignon, Marinic Rosso Vipavska Dolina 2019 Brda Slovenia 

Dolce
chocolate espresso mini tarts 

The Art of Food (and Actual Art!) on 5/19/24

Posted on by

Pairing wine and food can be interesting and thought provoking (and taste good!) Adding contemporary art to the mix makes for an even more compelling experience. If a broad, thought-provoking blend of food, wine and art sounds interesting to you, please join us for an evening starting at the Alma Lewis gallery and proceed to dinner next door at Black Radish Kitchen.

The Art: Alma Lewis founder and chief curator Kilolo Luckett will start the evening with comments about the gallery’s founding (along with bubbly and passed bites). Be among the first to see the new solo exhibition titled, My Memory is a Machine by Ambrose Rhapsody Murray and meet resident artists (Maria de los Angeles Rodríguez Jiménez and Stephen Towns).

The Food: Black Radish Kitchen, now a Pittsburgh institution, we cannot say enough about the BR Team, will artfully craft a memorable menu.

The Wine: Jack curated a group of high-quality wines, ALL produced by women with diverse backstories in Spain, USA, Italy and Chile.

We hope you can join us for a memorable meal and very special evening. Space is limited – so sign up soon if you’d like to attend.

Art Bites
crostini with white bean and sardine & prosciutto rolls

Campo Viejo Cava Rose NV, Spain

First Course
grilled scampi bruschetta

CVNE ‘Monopole’ Blanco Rioja DOCa 2021, Spain

Oak Farm Vineyards Chardonnay Lodi 2022, USA

Second Course

arugula salad with pancetta, goat cheese, crispy shallots, chive and fried crouton 

Third & Fourth Courses

mushroom cavatappi with ramp and black pepper mascarpone cream 

roasted chicken leg with roasted tomato and olive ragu

I Fabbri Chianti Classico Red Label Lamole 2020, Italy

Casa Lapostolle Cabernet Sauvignon Grand Selection 2020, Chile

Fifth Course
macaroons dipped in sea salt chocolate 

Aussie Day 1/28/24

Posted on by

January in Pittsburgh is cold – so let’s celebrate a summer holiday along with Jack’s heritage. Jack grew up mostly in the USA, but also spent time in his mother’s hometown of Hobart, Tasmania, where he played cricket for his primary school and solidified his love of meat pies.

Australia Day is a middle-of-summer national holiday commemorating the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet (a trip that took 7 months!). Much like the 4th of July in the United States, Australia Day traditionally is a barbecue at the beach and hang out with family and friends sort of holiday.

No beach hang out for us, but Jack has two 93 point wines to share along with a fantastic Australian style meal.

We will have a Zoom gathering at 6:30pm.

Dinner for Two 
Whitefish: Cod whipped into a savory, creamy dip

Artichoke Parmesan: Artichokes churned with nutty parmesan cheese, olive oil, and peppers

Rocket Salad (Aussie term for arugula) with Pears and Shaved Cheese with a lemon Dijon vinaigrette

Meat Pies: Two individual steak and ale meat pies in pastry

Apple Walnut Cake: Fresh apples baked into a bundt pan with quality olive oil, walnuts and spices

  • White Wine – Devil’s Corner Chardonnay from Tasmania, Australia 2021 (93 points James Suckling) 
  • Red Wine – Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon “Filius” from Margaret River, West Australia 2020 (93 points Wine Spectator)

Tuscan Takeout 11/19/23

Posted on by

Tuscany… known for beautiful landscapes, incredible art museums, eight World Heritage designated sights, AND incredibly tasty food and wine.

We recently met the owner of Buonamico Winery when he visited Pittsburgh and loved the wines – SO, we thought it would be fun to share a Tuscan style takeout dinner and introduce you to the wine.

Exuberantly enthusiastic chef Jen Saffron and her Sprezzatura team have created a tantilyzing Tuscan dinner and you’ll have two Tuscan Buonamico wines – Fun right???

We will have a Zoom gathering at 6:30pm.

Dinner for Two 
Frantoiana – flavorful, herbaceous bean and vegetable soup from the Tuscan region

Tuscan herb crusted pork 

Homemade ricotta gnocchi finished in sage butter

Grilled local radicchio with pistachios and citrus balsamic glaze, shaved cheese

Handmade rosemary and olive focaccia

Mini tiramisu

BOTTLES – yep – TWO BOTTLES – of wine 

  • White Wine – VIVI VERMENTINO IGT TUSCANY 2022 IGT (100% Vermentino)
  • Red Wine – ETICHETTA BLU 2019 DOC (Blend of Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Syrah, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon)