Berserkers,
The Toronto Wine Elitist Cabal ™ paid our first ever visit to 12 Tables restaurant in the North York region of Toronto (www.12tables.ca). Owner and Chef Chef Piotr Przykaza plied his trade in Europe before leaving for, ah, tropical Toronto, Ontario, Canada. 
Fellow TWEC ™ members Jay Shampur, Mike Grammer, Michael Wright, our friends Brad and Marnie, and board member Nick Christie and his wife and son Lan and Alexander joined us this evening. Brad and Marnie actually found the restaurant and made the reservation, so this was a first for TWEC ™ as for once we took a back seat and let someone else make the arrangements.
Our hostess and waitress Amber and her bar manager John took very good care of the large group. Because of the snowstorm that left the city buried in a foot of show this past weekend, few people ventured out into the city and that meant we pretty much had the whole restaurant to ourselves except for a few stragglers. This allowed us to establish a rapport with Amber and John which I took the initiative on by introducing myself. This would pay dividends for both sides as the evening wore on. 
ERIC LEGRANDE 2010 BLANC DE NOIRS BRUT CHAMPAGNE – 80% Pinot Noir, 20% Chardonnay. This was crisp and lean, tending towards classic red apple fruit flavor but with lots of fresh lemon and grapefruit in there as well with gently toasty lees flavor. Very good stuff and a great way to start.
LOUIS JADOT 2023 CHABLIS – This was actually quite grassy and but for the telltale green apple flavors, I would swear this was Sauvignon Blanc and not a Chardonnay based Chablis. Fascinating for a basic Chablis.
F. COSSY 2013 SOPHISTIQUE EXTRA BRUT CHAMPAGNE – This a crisp, tart and chalky Champagne, very dry and highly acidic. The age has softened the phenolics and this is a great palate cleanser. Lots of lemon, green apple, and wet stone.
With the aperitifs opened and enjoyed, it was time for the appetizers. We started off with a complementary amuse-bouche of a butternut squash chip topped with Ricotta cheese and fruit compote. We were also very happy to share Champagne with Amber and John.
We ordered a wide range of appetizers to start. Here’s the Truffle Tagliatelle:
Here’s a classic Pasta Carbonara:
Here are the Wagyu Meatballs in homemade basil tomato sauce:
Here’s a classic Caesar Salad:
Here’s a Butternut and Kabocha Squash soup dressed with crispy leek chips and candied pumpkin seeds:
Here’s a Fig and Prosciutto Salad with goat cheese:
Here’s their take on a classic Burrata Salad. Easily the best presentation I’ve ever had of this salad:
For the next wines, we opened a slew of reds to go with our mains:
L’ECOLE 2016 No 41 APOGEE – A Meritage from the Walla Walla Valley in Washington. 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 8% Malbec, 3% Cabernet Franc. This is very fragrant on the nose and has a very smooth texture. However, I also found that it had low fruit and a fair amount of tannin. This was more umami than fruit but given the Italian food we were having, this actually worked well as a match. Not something I would drink on its own, however.
TENUA LA FUGA 2010 BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO – Similar to the Apogee above, this is another umami bomb. However, this was also quite rich in texture and had both saline and phenolic notes that make it more complex. I really enjoyed this with the food, especially my Wagyu meatballs.
CALAGGIO 2016 CHIANTI CLASSICO RISERVA – Perception of sweetness riding a creamy backbone but with an insane amount of salinity. Like, a lot. This goes better with food which cuts down that salinity but I really did not enjoy this on its own and didn’t have any more beyond my first glass.
LA MADONNINA 2016 CHIANTI CLASSICO – In contrast to the above, this was gorgeous despite also being quite tannic and saline. The difference here was a great stewed red fruit compote flavor. Great wine.
We then received a complementary berry sorbet to cleanse our palates:
This was followed by another complementary amuse-bouche, a classic Parmesan crisp:
And then it was time for our main courses:
Here’s a classic Penne Arabiatta:
Here’s a house made classic Gnocchi in Truffle Cream Sauce:
Here was one of the evening’s nightly specials, a Gnocchi with Beef Ragout:
Here’s the Oven Slow-Roasted Duck with figs, oranges, apples, and potatoes:
And here’s the Miso Glazed Black Cod with potatoes and grilled vegetables:
With our bellies sated with savory courses and red wine, we gifted the remaining wine to the restaurant and moved on to dessert. Our last wine of the evening was my sweet wine contribution:
GIESEN 2013 LATE HARVEST SAUVIGNON BLANC – This was just great. This late harvest from New Zealand actually came across as more of an icewine. Amber actually called it one out loud after I gave her a sample. Clearly the effect of some botrytis. Full-bodied and sweet but full of fresh banana, dragonfruit and lime with very high acidity. Fantastic wine at a great price.
Here’s a classic Strawberry Pavlova:
Here’s their take on a classic Key Lime Pie:
And then Amber unexpectedly gifted us with a couple of extra desserts. First up was their version of a Basque Burnt Cheesecake:
And here’s a classic Chocolate Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream:
This was a fantastic evening all around. Amber and John took great care of us and we had great chemistry both bantering with them and as a group on our own bantering with each other. The food was sensational as well. So much so that it took a great deal of willpower for me not to order more dishes for myself to take home so that I would be forced to return. I highly recommend a visit to 12 Tables if you are in Toronto. TWEC ™ will definitely be returning in the future. 
That’s perfectly fine, as respectful debate is the soul of civility, no?
WE WILL MOST DEFINITELY BE BACK!!!