My boyfriend lives across the street, so we ducked in to Juicy Wine Company Thursday night to sample the wares.
Rodney, the owner, has yet to open the upstairs, so we grabbed the last of about 8 tables in the downstairs dining area just beyond the counter.
Rodney bounded up and asked what sort of wine we were looking for. After a long day of office holiday party shennanigans, we could barely get out the words "something light" before he was off and running. Rodney quickly returned with a bottle of Stadt Krems from Austria, which somehow was exactly what I needed.
On to the food. The menu really just consists of ten cheese flights and several meat accompaniment options. Rodney clearly had some fun in describing each of the flights, but not in a way that crossed over into cutesy. I for one never knew that Humboldt Fog was a pot reference.
At his urging, we went with the American Artisanal cheeses: the aforementioned Humboldt Fog, a favorite of ours, along with a Roth Kase Surchoix Gruyere and Old Chatham's Nancy's Camembert.
While I might not be the most knowledgeable person on the block, I do love cheese. The Gruyere was by far my favorite, with a barely discernable grit and all the pungency of the good European cheeses, but without the accompanying taste of feet. The camembert was also a hit, with a more layered, complex flavor than the average wedge you'd grab at the grocery store. In short--cheese, elevated. This was exactly the sort of experience I was seeking from Juicy.
On to the aptly named "Mega Meat" menu item.
The Prosciutto di Parma topped the list, but the Jamon Serranno and Salchichon Merico di Bellota were nothing to sneeze at.
The Rillettes du Canard was a pleasing version of duck liver pate and the chicken liver mousse was a surprise hit, full of raisins and other unexpected flavors. It was truly not like anything else I have eaten.
The one unappealing note was also the most gimmicky. Rodney serves up the meat platter with a flourish and then whips out his miniature blow torch to cook the bacon (speck Alto-Adige to be precise). The result was a greasy slip of meat that tasted like the fuel used to power the torch. Eh. But everything else was such a treat that it was easy to overlook.
I'm eager to see the upstairs once it opens, but the downstairs had a properly lit, pleasing ambience, especially considering its close proximity to the cash register and a giant refrigerator filled with meat and cheese. The blonde wood wrapped around the walls is a bit reminiscent of Avec, but not nearly as stark.
Our bottle of wine clocked in at $43, I believe, and our bill came out to about $75 with the cheese and meat orders. We opted for the smaller size of each, but it's nice to know there is a larger order option, especially since so many groups seemed to be filling the place already.
I was also impressed by how few kinks Juicy seemed to have so soon after it opened. Between Rodney's sheer enthusiasm and the high quality of the offerings, I hope Juicy thrives.
Juicy Wine Company
694 N. Milwaukee