Finding its Niche: Taste hard-to-find pours during Buffalo Trace bourbon pairing dinner

When it comes to whiskey dinners, Niche Restaurant in Geneva is literally filling a niche.

“Not a lot of people do these dinners,” partner Vince Balistreri said. “It’s kind of special to us.”

They’ll continue what has become an annual tradition of Buffalo Trace Distillery-themed dinners on Wednesday, Feb. 26.

Niche, which opened in 2006 at 14 S. Third St., has long hosted themed dinners. While they still hold wine events, which are pretty common at suburban restaurants, they’ve added bourbon dinners as they’ve become more well-known for their vast whiskey selection — they have over 600 from which to choose.

And even with that many choices, Balistreri said a whopping 87% of their bourbon pours come from Buffalo Trace distillery offerings.

“We don’t even push it, but that’s all that people want,” he said.

Part of the appeal is the scarcity of certain bottles in the Buffalo Trace lineup.

“We try to have everything that you can’t get,” he said. “That’s how I am as a buyer. I pretty much want what I can’t have.”

Balistreri leverages their long relationship with distilleries and distributors to get hard-to-find bottles, including various Pappy Van Winkle offerings and unicorns like Double Eagle Very Rare.

The fact that they sell bottles helps since the more you sell, the more allocated whiskey you get.

The bourbon dinners usually involve single pours or flights to go with courses. The Buffalo Trace dinner will feature pours from popular bottles in the Sazerac Company lineup such as Weller Antique, E.H. Taylor Barrel Proof and a Niche barrel pick of 1792 Full Proof.

Balistreri said they’ve partnered with Buffalo Trace for six or seven years to host dinners and they always sell out. He’s also made annual trips to Buffalo Trace and to other distilleries in Kentucky for the past dozen years to do barrel picks, where he chooses individual barrels of a bourbon that is bottled specifically for Niche.

“We have such a good relationship with them, and they have a great portfolio of bourbons,” he said.

Past Buffalo Trace events included appearances by their master distiller Harlen Wheatley. Balistreri said they always try to include an education component to the events, both about the pairings and the history of the companies involved.

Discounted pours and bottles will be available following the dinner. A 1.5-ounce pour of the Double Eagle Very Rare will set you back $240 after the discount.

For the event, the Buffalo Trace menu starts with a maple-brined pork cheek with bourbon- and tamari-glazed carrots paired with Sazerac rye and E.H. Taylor rye. That’s followed by smoked salmon belly tostada with blue corn, charred salsa verde, fried half-sour pickled tomatillos, blood orange and piquillo paired with Weller Antique.

The entrée course features grilled hanger steak with bone marrow, pomme puree, roasted pearl onion, sherry-pickled mustard seed, bay scallop Marsala and pea tendrils served with E.H. Taylor Barrel Proof and 1792 “Full Proof” Niche Single Barrel.

Dessert features caramelized chocolate pecan babka with brown sugar rosemary, sweet potato mousseline, poached cherries and toasted oak ice cream. That’s served with a cocktail that combines Freddie’s root beer with Buffalo Trace Cream that Balistreri says tastes just like a root beer float.

The $125 per person dinner starts at 6 p.m., with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. Reservations can be made by calling the restaurant at (630) 262-1000.

Niche holds themed dinners about once a month, with some being paired dinners featuring wineries or distilleries and others based on cuisine types.

The next event will be a dinner featuring dishes inspired by the cuisine of Spain on March 26. Other themed dinners to follow include the cuisines of Sicily (June 25) and Mexico (Oct. 30) and a “nose to tail” dinner on Aug. 27. The cuisine dinners frequently feature additional special cocktail offerings created to complement the food.

Pairing events this year include dinners featuring the Bledsoe Family Winery on April 30 and a Moët & Chandon Champagne dinner on July 30.

Knowing not everyone is interested in drinking, Niche offers discounted prices for those who want to skip the wine or liquor during a pairing dinner.

Balistreri said he loves the way the specialty dinners allow him to dive deep into food and drink.

“I wish we could do them every day,” he said. “For me, it’s the knowledge that comes with it. If I get into something, I’ll spend the next three months learning every single aspect possible. I get obsessed.”

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