I honestly didn’t think it was possible, but my intense love for The Salty Donut has grown once again.  This time it’s because last week they paired up with another fabulous local spot, Uvaggio Wine Bar on Miracle Mile, to host a donut and wine pairing dinner.  Yes, you read that correctly DONUTS AND WINE.  Cue The Sound Of Music and Julie Andrews – My Favorite Things lyrics, please. 

The dinner included four amazing donuts from our friend and recent Cooking Channel Sugar Showdown winner, Max Santiago that were perfectly paired with wines by my favorite wine experts, Craig DeWald and Heath Porter.  Tickets to the event were limited, as Uvaggio’s intimate setting only allows for a 25 person occupancy.  I’m glad I bought my $40 ticket immediately because it sold out within an hour of being announced.  Donuts for dinner sounded like the best idea ever for this sweet lover, even though I’ll admit I had no idea what I was getting myself into. 

These donuts weren’t just sweet but they were savory, too!  The dinner started light and fresh, worked its way into a little bit heavier courses, and found itself back into a sticky sweet heavenly end.  When we arrived the tables were set with handy placemats marked with the courses and the wine glasses already filled and ready to go. 

Each course was brought out individually and throughout the night, Uvaggio’s Head Wine-O, Heath Porter was there to narrate, teach about the wines and help guide us along by asking questions about what we were tasting and how it was pairing and changing flavors as we devoured our donuts.

Course 1 – French Toast, Apples, Caviar paired with Voirin-Jumel, Grand Cru, “Blanc de Blanc,” NV – Champagne, France

The pairing was such a great start to the meal.  The donut was one of their more dense donuts, but was exactly what would be expected in a French Toast dish.  The sweetness of the apples and the syrup on top of the donut highlighted the apple-y notes in the champagne.  I would happily start my mornings with this course for breakfast any day!

Course 2 – Pork Belly “Buns,” Sweet Corn, Jicama, Green Tomato Gastrique paired with Schloss Hallburg, Silvaner 2012 – Franken, Germany

I know this is Saturday Sweets, but pork belly is always a yes.  This donut was the best of both worlds.  Course two was prepared in a way that you could pick it up and eat it like a sandwich.  The Green Tomato Gastrique played very well with the citrus notes in the wine and I loved all of the different textures stuffed inside the very light and fluffy donut.  I was truly upset when this one was gone.

Course 3 – Holy “Duck” Mole, Cotija, Blueberry, Chicharron paired with Frederic Brouca, Champs-Pentus 2014 – Faugeres, France

The third course is where I almost forgot I was at a donut dinner – this Duck Mole was pretty serious.  For this one the donut was hollowed out and used as a bowl for the dish itself.  The blueberry was a fun addition to the thick mole that paired well with our only red wine of the evening.  This one wasn’t nearly as sweet as the others, but then again not everyone can handle pure dessert for dinner like I can!

Course 4 – Fig, Honeycomb, Goat Cheese, Sea Salt paired with Domaine Philippe Delesvuax, Coteaux du Layon 1997 – Loire Valley, France

Any sweetness that was absent in the third course was made up for in our final course.  This course was everything I dreamt it would be.  Chef Max mixed it up by making donut holes and not just any donut holes, but CAKE donut holes.  Cake donuts are my kryptonite.  This was also the prettiest plate of the night, during this course Chef Max finally got a moment to breathe and came out to talk to us about it. 

He said it reminded him of his dessert days in hotels.  The drizzle was made with the aged dessert wine that was being expertly paired with it.  The goat cheese mousse sat in a perfect mound that happily carried the orange slice chip.  Add the fig and honeycomb and you’ve got yourself a masterpiece.  The Salty Donut has even posted a few teasers asking if this donut should be put on the menu – obviously I vote YES a million times over. 

The event was such a hit, I think it’s safe to say we can expect a few more of them to appear in the future.  If you’re interested make sure you buy your ticket immediately, as they are sure to sell out fast. 

In the meantime, you know where to find The Salty Donut and if you’d like to learn a little more about wine, Uvaggio has wine tastings every Saturday from 5-6pm.  For $30 guests can learn about 6 different wines (3 white and 3 red) at these topic themed tastings, where past topics have included global wines of a specific grape varietal, exploring wines of a particular region, or more fun with topics like “great picnic wines.”  Guests are encouraged to ask any and all questions without feeling silly.  I’m a big fan of wine but admittedly don’t know much when it comes to the technicality of it.  At this dinner I asked Heath to help me differentiate light, medium, and full-bodied and he told me to compare it to water, whole milk, and heavy cream respectively.  Since then I’ve noticed the difference and feel like a better wine drinker because of it!

Be on the lookout for more fun Dessert for Dinner events coming soon!  Until then, you’ll probably run into me in line at The Salty Donut, the never-ending love affair continues!

The Salty Donut                                                                 Uvaggio Wine Bar

50 NW 24th St #103, Miami, FL                                       70 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables, FL

 (305) 925-8126                                                                  (305) 448-2400