Domaine Serene at Council Oak: Oysters, a 2013 Pinot, and Pot de Crème

Domaine Serene sat down at Council Oak on Thursday, September 17, 2026, for a one-night wine dinner inside Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento at Fire Mountain. Four courses, a Dundee Hills flight, and a $100 ticket on the winery's event page. Council Oak keeps these guest-winery nights on the calendar.

The butcher window on the way in: Himalayan salt, dry-aged beef, and the Council Oak sign on the glass.

The wine wall off the dining room. This night's bottles were Domaine Serene, not a pull from the regular list.

The table was already a flight before anyone ate. Water, a flute, and a row of stems, with the printed card at the elbow. Service is a 5. The glasses were set for every pour, and the kitchen sent the courses in order across the evening, from the first oysters through chocolate about two hours later.

The card for this dinner only: coal-fired Shigoku oysters, cold-smoked sturgeon, confit duck, and dark chocolate pot de crème.

Course 1 — coal-fired Shigoku oysters and Brut Evenstad Reserve

First plate: coal-fired Shigoku oysters with Grana Padano, brown butter, and Calabrian bread crumbs, poured with Domaine Serene Brut Evenstad Reserve M.V. 4 from the Dundee Hills. Two oysters landed on a wide plate over a scatter of salt, the crumb toasted and flecked with herbs. The retail card's note on the brut calls out fresh mint, a burst of graham cracker and pie crust, then almond, soft acidity, and Meyer lemon on the finish.

Coal-fired Shigoku oysters with Grana Padano, brown butter, and Calabrian bread crumbs.

Brut Evenstad Reserve in the flute. Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay in the wider glass, ready for the sturgeon.

Course 2 — cold-smoked sturgeon and Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay

Cold-smoked local sturgeon came on organic greens with green apple, pecans, Pecorino Romano, and a champagne vinaigrette. The pour was Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay. The card describes lively citrus, lemon and lime, a chalky mineral line, and a creamy texture with a touch of sweetness. On the plate the sturgeon was a thick pale piece over apple matchsticks and shaved cheese, pecans at the rim.

Cold-smoked local sturgeon with green apple, pecans, Pecorino Romano, and champagne vinaigrette.

Course 3 — confit duck and two Pinot Noirs

The main was confit duck on a cannellini bean cassoulet with gypsy peppers and herbes de Provence. The card poured Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir and a 2013 Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir from a 1.5-liter bottle. The leg arrived crisp-skinned, beans and red pepper underneath, microgreens on top. Two reds went into the glasses. The 2013 bottle on the table is Willamette Valley Evenstad Reserve. The card's note on that magnum runs through rose petal, wild strawberry, leather, hibiscus, maraschino cherry, blueberry compote, and a velvety finish.

Confit duck with cannellini bean cassoulet, gypsy peppers, and herbes de Provence.

The 2013 Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir, poured from the 1.5-liter bottle listed on the card.

The two reds with the duck: Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir and the 2013.

Course 4 — pot de crème and Grand Cheval

Last was dark chocolate pot de crème with berry compote and toasted coconut, and a glass of Grand Cheval. That bottle is Domaine Serene's blend of Walla Walla Valley Syrah and Dundee Hills Pinot Noir, the cuvée the winery built as a steakhouse wine. On this menu it closed the chocolate. The picture is the glass and the bowl on the table, coconut over the berry and chocolate.

Dark chocolate pot de crème with berry compote, toasted coconut, and Grand Cheval.

The score

The wine is a 4.5. Service is a 5. The dinner is a 4.25. The wine was good across the flight, from the brut and the Chardonnay through both Pinots and Grand Cheval with the chocolate. The card was honored, the 2013 Pinot was a real library pour, and the room ran the night like a seated dinner. The wine-dinner retail card on the table listed bottle prices separate from the ticket: Brut Evenstad Reserve M.V. 4 at $75, Evenstad Reserve Chardonnay at $40, the 2013 Evenstad Reserve Pinot Noir 1.5L at $120, and Grand Cheval at $75.

Where: Council Oak Steaks & Seafood, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento at Fire Mountain, 3317 Forty Mile Road, Wheatland. When: Thursday, September 17, 2026, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Ticket: $100 a person on the Domaine Serene event page. Photos: SaccoNews guest dinner.