Got scotch?

Recently I was invited to taste the line of decadent Aberlour single malts at an intimate dinner at Odd Duck. The menu has changed almost completely since I’ve last written about Odd Duck and I was just as pleased with the new dishes as I was with the opening menu. But first, the scotch.

We smelled, sipped, and discussed a range of scotches aged 12 to 18 years, finishing up with the powerful A’Bunadh. They were all smooth with characteristics of sherry and fruity notes, but were distinctly different and we all had our favorites. I found the 16 year old to be the most drinkable, while Mr. Betty preferred the intense punch of the cask strength A’Bunadh.

All that scotch helped us work up an appetite and we tucked in to Odd Duck’s bread program. The pig head stuffed Parker house rolls are as good as they say!

As we worked our way through a significant portion of the menu, I particularly enjoyed the mustard theme, finding seeds in the aforementioned rolls, the tater tots with pimento cheese, and the pinto beans with lamb sausage.

Colorful salads with beets, greens, charred broccoli, and pea hummus had us tasting the rainbow.

From the ocean, we enjoyed an exquisite crab French toast (!) and perfectly cooked redfish. My previous favorite, the pickled shrimp and grits with chicharones remains one of the very best executions of the dish that I’ve experienced.

We were already nearing full when the most substantial dishes arrived. The black olive pasta with braised goat was pure pleasure and Mr. Betty raved about it for a couple days. The stuffed roasted chicken was beautifully presented and we dragged each bite through the savory gravy, picking up brussels sprouts along the way.

To cap off a spectacular night, we tried two desserts. The bread pudding had toasted marshmallow, beer caramel and malted ice cream. The buttermilk pie was elevated by celery micro-greens and dollops of sweet tea gel. Both were sophisticated and interesting, just like the scotch.

It was a night to remember and the symphony of flavors had us warm and giddy. Or maybe it was the scotch…