Wine For Novices

Wine and Chocolate

by Dan Perkins

When you think of having a nice glass of wine outside of the context of a meal, what’s the first thing that comes to mind in the food category as something to munch on? Cheese, right?  Wine and cheese, wine and cheese... everybody loves wine and cheese. Well, not everyone. I like cheese but given the opportunity to have a chunk of cheddar with my Zinfandel or a piece of bittersweet chocolate; I’ll go with the chocolate every time! In fact I love chocolate chip cookies with my wine and at this time of year I utilize several good bottles to help polish off all those boxes of See’s Chocolates I got at Christmas.

Now for years we’ve been hearing about the wonderful antioxidant properties of both red wine and dark chocolate, that in itself should be good enough reason to experiment with the combination but truly it is the flavor profiles of both that actually work. Mind you, I do prefer dark chocolate over milk chocolate but the combination of sweet and bitter, fat and acidic makes for a hand in glove fit. The other thing is for those who are already on the chocolate bandwagon, with glass in hand, is to not over look the benefits of chocolate with white wines. Most people tend to think chocolate is a partner to red wines only because chocolate can be part of a red wine flavor profile (just read any notes on a well made cabernet sauvignon and you’ll often see chocolate as a descriptor). But look at what often is found as part of the flavor profiles of white wines, vanilla caramel, honey and butter just to name a few(because vanilla ice cream is white and chocolate ice cream is brown we subliminally think they’re opposites... let me be clear; vanilla is not the opposite of chocolate!). All of these descriptions used for white wines are flavors that either directly compliment or are ingredients for chocolate.

So let’s talk chocolate!

Christmas Meals

Ours...

Creme de Tomate Soup
Roasted Cornish Hens stuffed with wild rice and mandarin oranges glazed with orange marmalade
Cranberry orange baby steamed carrots sauteed in a Marsala wine reduction
Creamed Peas
Biltmore Estates Christmas White wine

Dans...

For me Christmas is the day I yank out my finest bottles and choose. This year I’ll choose from a 2000 Whitehall Lane Leonardini Cabernet, a 1998 Shafer Hillside Select or an 2001 Turley Petite Sirah. The food will determine the final choice... I cook... so, I already have a inkling I’ll go with the Whitehall Lane (monster wine!!!) paired with a roast tenderloin with a pan reduction of cognac, shallots and demiglace, along with crème fraish potatoes and something really chocolaty like a molten chocolate cake to finish. Starters will be my signature cream of carrot soup paired with  Lazy Creek Gewrtz. I still have more planning to do but this is a beginning.

Hey, from Joy and Dan;  Chris and I and the girls, Have a wonderful Christmas!!

Honig, Miner, ZD and others

A great Christmas meal last evening of Creme de Tomate en Croute, Beef Tenderloin, Russian Fingerling Potatoes, Salad and Dessert combined with...

In order,
CONVERSATION BY JOHN ALBAN & YVES GANGLOFF, 2003 VIOGNIER , EDNA VALLEY $64.99 - A VERY LIMITED PRODUCTION WINE JOINTLY MADE BY ALBAN AND GANGLOFF BY WAY OF CONVERSATIONS ON THE TELEPHONE. YVES ALSO CONTRIBUTED SOME LOVELY FRENCH BARRELS. STRONG AROMAS OF SPICY, CREAMY WHITE STONE FRUITS, TURN TO VISCOUS, LEESY, SPICY AND PEPPERY FLAVORS ON THE PALATE. I give this a 9 out of 10. Golden and delicious.

Honig Wines, Napa Valley,  Sauvignon Blanc, 2006$13.99 Bright and lively, a Loire style Sauvignon Blanc with fresh aromas of ruby grapefruit, mango, papaya, and peach. The vibrant citrus and tropical flavors linger on the finish and the texture is crisp and minerally. I give this a 7 out of 10. A wonderful white for the money. Paired very well with the soup.

ZD Wines, Carneros, Pinot Noir, 2006 $40.00 Dark ruby in color, with aromas of ripe cherries, plum and rhubarb, this wine is classic Carneros Pinot Noir. Hints of cedar, vanilla and toasted nuts lead into a full, rich palate of flavors and silky tannins. 7 out of 10. A great complement to the Beef Tenderloin.

Benedetto (Miner Wines) Cabernet Sauvignon, 2003 $100 SOLD OUT One of the best Cabernets of my life. Wow! 10 out of 10. Luscious, earthy and full-bodied.

Pierre Moncuit Cuvee de Reserve, Brut Grand Cru, Blanc de Blancs $56.99 A  decent pale golden hue on inspection, with an appealing fine bead. Lovely nose, fresh and lively, but with praline notes to suggest a little richness too. Broad, expansive palate, buoyed up by a gently foaming and very persistent mousse. Lovely, biting acidity. Again just little notes of bread and nuts in the background; predominantly this is a freshly flavoured, herbal white fruit style.  A phenomenal Champagne. 9 out of 10.

Wine Pairing Notes

Dinner at our home last night featured our friends, Charles, Siouxsan, Ken and Diane, wonderful food and extraordinary new discoveries in wine and food pairings.

First, A Miner Vineyards 2005 Viogner (Charles and I will be staying with David Miner at his vineyard in Napa Valley for a few days the first of December-I have been invited to photograph winemakers and vineyards in Napa for Charles' new book about wine and spirituality) paired with Bleu Cheese. Perfect start.

Then, a 1995 Willamette Valley Founders Reserve Oregon Pinot Noir paired with Conversation.

Next, a 1995 Nuits St Georges Les Fleurieres Confuron, Jean-Jacques Burgundy paired with Filet Mignon, New Potatoes and Salad.

Followed by a 1997 Miner Pisoni Vineyard Pinot Noir.

Dessert featured Cheescake with Raspberries topped with frozen 2003 Domaine de Coyeux Muscat de Beaumes De Venise. Oh My!!!!

A wonderful pre-thanksgiving feast!!

Thanksgiving: The Great Pairing Challenge

Turkey is poultry, so the go-to pairing selection is a white wine. But the hitch is that a whole roaster yields both white and dark meat, so the racy sauvignon blanc you chose for the breast meat may not play well with that rich, savory drumstick.

Also, turkey is the great imposter of meats. It takes on the flavors of whatever it’s cooked with; that’s why we like to stuff it, baste it, roast it with veggies, and serve it with showy sauces. The result? You’ve chosen a rich California chardonnay to complement the Butterball and cornbread stuffing, but it clashes with the cranberry preserves. Or, you recommend a red Burgundy to go with the dark meat, but your guests reach for a dry riesling to cut through their mashed potatoes.

Here are my recommendations for your turkey-based spread:

1. Zinfandel
Here we’re going for ideology over substance. Zin is perhaps the only “American” variety, that is, the only grape that we didn’t borrow from the French and that we seem to bottle exclusively. So drinking zinfandel, like celebrating Thanksgiving for that matter, is patriotic, maybe even nationalistic. Especially if you can find a single-vineyard bottling — Ridge and Rosenblum specialize in these, and you can tell it’s made from the grapes of a single vineyard because the name of the plot will be prominent on the label – you will find that its less jammy, more spicy flavors will go great with turkey and all its dressings.

2. Old Cabernet
A California cab or a French Bordeaux with more than 20 years under its belt will have enough fruit to enliven the dark meat of the turkey. But it will also have the grace to complement the white meat. The only drawback is that you need to have a good cold cellar (or you have to invite someone who does, or pay a lot of money to a merchant or auctioneer who bought hers from someone who does). In my case, I’m bringing to my mother’s traditional dinner a Dunn Howell Mountain 1988, which I bought from the winery directly in 1997 and have lovingly cellared since.

3. Champagne
People think of Champagne as a wine you drink only to celebrate New Year’s or a promotion. But they’re missing the fact that Champagne (and sparkling wines made with the same process but from areas other than Champagne) are super versatile with food. I spotted J. Lasalle Impérial Préférence at a local wine shop for $29.25, which is a great price for a real, artisinal French Champagne. Or, if your budget is more limited, reach for Gloria Ferrer’s brut sparkler – I often see it on sale for $12.99. Finally, if you’re really trying to get the most fiscal mileage out of your holiday wine pairing, think Spanish cava: I love Jaume Serra’s Cristalino, a Spanish Cava for $6.99 a bottle.

HT: Wine Girl Online