Wine and Food Pairings

Oregon Pinot Noir with seafood a great match

By in Oregon Wine, Wine and Food Pairings

One of the best combinations for a meal is seafood and wine specifically red Pinot Noir; Oregon Pinot Noir.
There are many white great grapes that go with seafood. Chardonnay of course; but also Pinot Gris, Chenin Blanc, Albarino, Chablis and Gruner Veltliner, Bordeaux Blanc’s to name others. But this article is about Oregon Pinot Noir and it’s good seafood pairings such as Cod or Salmon, Trout or Shrimp Scampi. The kind of seafood one can grill on a cedar plank, cook in a clay pot or sear in pan.
A good Oregon Pinot Noir for example; Domain Serene, Rex Hill, Chehalem, Archery Summit, Elk Cove( they have a smashing Pinot Gris as well), Benton Lane and another great one Domaine Drouhin(of the French Joseph Drouhin family); are just truly scrumptious.
The bulk Oregon Pinot Noir wine production takes place in Willamette Valley and stretches from the Columbia River in the North of the state down through the middle of the state. Like the growers in Burgundy France; Oregon’s top wine makers can produce quality crops even in marginal years. Oregon is not only about Pinot Noir but as in French Burgundy and French Alsace; it has key grapes like Chardonnay or as the latter, Pinot Gris. Oregon has the right microclimates for Pinot Noir which is few and far between throughout the world(Australia and New Zealand are others to take nore of). It has taken 30 or 40 years but Oregon USA is truly matching the quality of the French Burgundy wines.
A good thing to remember is to serve your Pinot Noir at room temperature. Just like your Zinfandel and Petite Sirah; Pinot Noir is best at room temperature. When you do this the supple earthy flavors have the chance to caress the palate.
Moreover, herbs and seasoning such as Rosemary, Thyme, citrus rind and dill often complement good seafood along with some fresh greens or steamed Spinach or Kale. An infusion of these can be a very tasty experience as well. Combining the herbs with the veggies in a pot and grating some orange peel along with a handful of cranberries, pour in a bottle of wine and simmer it down. Grill or pan fry your fish with salt and pepper and when done place the stewed veggie mash on top of your fish or seafood by the side of some white rice or scalloped potatoes makes for a top notch meal with you Pinot. By the way bring a dollop of Oregon Blue or Triple Crème cheese along for the ride.
Another tasty treat is to take a bunch of mushroom and chop it up and grill it with just drizzle of grapeseed oil and throw in some bacon; while it simmers and the bacon is done to your liking, pour about a quarter of a cup of heavy cream and fold it in and cook it down in low heat.
Alternatively grilled or poached Wild Salmon with salt, pepper and thyme to taste; sauté shrimp or wild sea scallops come together with a squeeze of lemon making an unyielding companion to Oregon Pinor Noir.
It’s not hard to compliment delicious Oregon Pinot Noir.

Jefferson 4th of July barbecue and wine pairing

By in Cheese, Wine and Food Pairings

Thomas Jefferson once famously said, “No nation is drunken where wine is cheap and none sober where the dearness of wine substitutes arden sprits as the common beverage…” He cared about the social pace of fine wine dining but he wanted to make a less formal atmosphere at his parties. He was determined that a mellow atmosphere with good wines added up to a more cordial acceptance of his suggestions for running the country.

As we gear up for the 4th of July holiday, barbecue and good friends come to mind as well as great wine. Grilling requires mature, full reds with tannins and heavy dark fruit. While grilling, use intense heat to seal all the juices in the meat and form a crusty outside whether it red meat, sausages or chicken. Since grilling uses high heat it’s fast. Think Red Zinfandel or a young Bordeaux from Cotes de Castillon. Since BBQ is is genarally heavy it matches well with heavier rustic wines. Think Oaky rich and fruity whites as well, like a Washington Reisling. The intense smokey flavors bounce on the palate. Put out some figs, strawberries, blueberries, watermelon and seedless grapes along a healthy serving of Camambert, Stilton, Spanish Manchego and Irish Cheddar and you have the makings of a great holiday spread.

Yes, cheeses are great too at the barbecue! Try the Camambert with the Bordeaux and watch your eyes roll back. Then try it with the cheddar and so on. Induldge! Invite your friends and family over and make sure you talk about the wine and how it all works because it does. Your holiday gang will appreciate it and to think this thought bubble all started with musing about Thomas Jefferson and a great real old book from the past called Jefferson and Wine by the Vineferas Wine Growers Association; nevertheless have great fourth!

Spanish Wines and Chorizo Sausages are a great pairing

By in Cheese, Tampa Bay Wine Pairing, Wine and Food Pairings

Spanish wines are all the rage these days. They are well liked not only because they are rich in tradition but their value to quality ratio is just out of sight! All over the Spanish countryside there are all kinds of terrific red wines that stand up to the greatest wines of Bordeaux and the Rhone of France and of course Napa Valley, California.

We all know that Spanish food is very tasty, colorful and very diverse and so are the wines. Sausages are a major staple. There’s lots of good ones especially all those flavorsome Chorizos.

One killer is Sobrasada; a soft semi soft Chorizo with pork, garlic, vinegars, sea salt and paprika. It’s usually spread on crunchy bread and toasted until it melts. Grilled onions only add to this incredible sausage. Sobrasada has a smooth texture and smoky flavor that is hard to match.

Another great one is Butifarra. It looks a little like Bratwurst but Oh boy! It sure has a lot more flavor, probably the most popular sausage. Any restaurant in the countryside, usually serves Butifarra in one form or another.

Often you will find these sausages grilled, accompanied with white beans, mushrooms, onions, apples or sliced into hearty soups or yellow rice dishes. It’s great with eggs and Swiss cheese for breakfast.
Speaking of Cheese; these Chorizo and Spanish sausages pair well with Manchego cheese and blue Roquefort. There’s also a goat cheese called the ‘Drunken Goat’ which is regularly available that is dunked in red wine that is a perfect compliment.

When you serve these sausages some of that great Spanish wine is a must. Rioja has its Tempranillo. It’s sort of the national wine, arguably their greatest grape. It’s juicy, dusty, spicy with loads of strawberry, leather and tobacco notes. Ribera del Duero and Toro have their versions that are concentrated with bigger cherry, spicy and earthy flavors.

Priorat also has excellent wines that are Garnacha based that go well with the sausages that are incredibly rich, rustic, full bodied with fruit cake, licorice and plum flavors that compare to France’s Chateauneuf-du-Pape or even Pomerol wines.


Try to seek out these great Spanish wines to serve with the sausages and cheese that are among the best in quality and value. They are high scoring on many best of lists and give a great representation of what is awesome about Spanish wines these days. Las Rocas Vinas Viejas (from San Alejandro), Marge(from Priorat) and Termes by Bodegas Numanthia (from Toro). Another really good one is Lan, a Rioja Tempranillo in a classic style old world style. So dig in and enjoy!
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2009 Holiday Tasting brings out the classics, A special Report by Ralph Del Rio, Wine Correspondent

By in 2009 Top Wines, Tastings, Wine and Food Pairings, Wine Chatter and Blather

 By Ralph Del Rio, Wine Correspondent

Some quick tasting notes on a classic night of tasting wines in December 2009 over my good friend and fellow wine buff’s home. Wil put together quite a spread a brought out some excellent wines that were ready for some serious drinking.
These are in the order we tasted. Among many things; we had ribs, Iberico ham and eel from Spain and great cheeses, sausages and cakes.

**These can essentially viewed as re-tasting of great wines on a great night!

1995 Silver Oak – sweet deep blackberries, crisp, fragrant, good fruit

1996 Hertz Cellars Martha’s Vinyard – Firm and fleshy, fullish body Licorice with a citrusy twist, good tannins surprising

1997 Justin Isoceles – Vert balanced, very supple, black fruits, currants soft entry with rounded mid palate and nice landing on finish

1996 Schafer Hillside Select – Nice nose, solid backberry core, rich and balanced wine chewy and beautiful

1996 Mouton Rothchild – Barnyard, black fruits, peppery mocha, pretty intense seems like it can go a while longer

1996 Opus One – lots of blackberries and earthy aromas, still plenty of oak, full body and clean

1997 Insignia Joseph Phelps – lean, black plums, black fruits and bit of smoke and sweetness

1996 Penfolds 707 – Eucalyptus, bright, dusty, blackfruits and intense

2005 Torre Muga – rich flavors great acidity, firm and rich

Who is really the best judge of wine?

By in Tastings, Wine and Food Pairings, Wine Chatter and Blather

Who is really the best judge of wine? Is it Robert Parker? Is it Janice Robinson?  Is it the Wine Spectator or Wine Enthusiast magazines? Is it the wine experts at the 5 star restaurants?

Probably none of them!

The reason why is that when you look at them… most all of them disagree with each other.

One recent year there was this big wine tasting and with 40 wines and 2 of the world’s most heralded wine tasters. They were rating on a 100 point scale.  When it was all said and done they disagreed on 90 percent of the 40 wines. Some of the disagreements were minor but 25 percent of them, they disagreed by more than 5 points.

What to make of this…

I say there can be only one true wine expert…and that is you!

Even if you think that you do not know enough about wines…Sure there are a lot of folks that know a lot more about tasting wines.

…and remember nobody has ‘your’ preference for certain flavors.  

Look…all your life you’ve smelled all kinds of fruits, vegetables, flowers so it’s feasible that you may have developed a knack. Think about quality…. Is it balanced? Is there acidity? Is it dry? How does it finish? Is it a clean finish? Is it a bitter finish? Is it intense? Do you want to drink some more? Think of these while considering the overall ‘profile’ of the wine. So these are some of the relevant questions that you might encounter.

Remember this too, a wine buff can help you find wines; educate you on why things are acclaimed or particularly attractive.  Heck!  Some wines are so delicious; it’s a no-brainer. The wine buff may surely help you enjoy a wine and fill you with all the nuances and details about what you are tasting.

….but they can’t tell you what you should enjoy. You are the expert!

Willamette Valley, Oregon Growing!…A Great and Interesting wine region to visit; Envious Terroir!…makes for some beautiful wines!

By in French Wine, Oregon Wine, Wine and Food Pairings, Wine Chatter and Blather

A great and interesting wine region to visit is the Willamette Valley, Oregon. The focus is the farming. It’s less glamourous than Napa. Just as good though…In a way it really echoes Burgundy, France. Great Terroir! I have had the opportunity to tour the area in some detail.

Here are some of my insights…

The Willamette Valley was Oregon’s first official American Viticultural Area (AVA). It was created in 1984. Unofficially, it is cut into north and south halves along the 45th parallel (Burgundy, France and Piedmont, Italy are in range of that parallel) and covers from Portland up north all the way down to Eugene in the south.

The Willamette Valley has grown to 15 AVAs in Oregon and 6 sub-AVAs in the Willamette Valley. The latest AVA is Chehalem Mountains. These sub-AVA designations have started to show up on the wine labels. They Willamette Valley to give more specifics on the wine.

The soils in Willamette is what’s getting everybody motivated. There are two main types: (1) red volcanic basalt soils known as ’Jory’ from 13 million year-old lava flows, and (2) brown marine sedimentary soils known as “Willakenzie’ laid down under the ocean 20 million years ago. The hillsides with vineyards are situated in places from 200-1000 ft. in elevation.

The valley floor is exciting too. It’s composed of rich, alluvial soils which are appropriate for crops such as grain, grass seed, and fruit trees. This is just a big plus for local foods and restaurants as well. Along with the area seafood and the cheeses. Wow!

Anyways, all this soil action makes for some nuances wines!

I am going to give a synopses about flavor and style of Pinot Noir that can be made for the appellations based on the differences in soil type.

The AVAs with Jory soils like Dundee Hills, Eola-Amity Hills and parts of Chehalem Mountains and McMinnville tend to produce Pinot Noirs with bright red fruits including cherry and raspberry, and are softly textured.

The Pinot Noirs from AVAs with Willakenzie soils like Yamhill-Carlton, Ribbon Ridge, and some parts of Chehalem Mountains and McMinnville seem to offer much more darker fruit, spice (cola, five spice, anise), and forrest floor, musty flavors and have bigger tannins and structure. (this is where you can find similar to California…but not so much… 😉 )

The best way to get a feel for the Willamette Valley terrain is to visit.

All of the appellations are can be easily explored by car over the course of a few days, and only a 45 to 90 minute drive from Portland!

Vintages in Oregon are, like Burgundy, at the mercy of climatic conditions during the growing season. Then there was a run of good vintages from 1998 until 2002.

In 2003 the weather was the hottest and driest year on record in the Willamette Valley. The Pinot Noirs had elevated sugar levels, high extraction, high alcohol, and raisiny flavors. The 2004 and the 2005 are of great quality.

 

I have barrel tasted the 2006. It’s boundless. I really liked them. Which may sounds frivolous; but they hit the spot for me. Beautiful nose and palate. I have tasted Archery Summit, Domaine Drouhin, Domaine Serene, Rex Hill, Chehalem , Sokkel Blosser Elk Cove, Ponzi, Benton Lane, and Argyle and several more.

…According to the the Oregon Wine Press the 2006 Vintage is superb

…According to winegeeks.com, the following vintages were “great”: 1998, 2000, 2001, and 2003, and the remaining ones “outstanding”: 1999, 2002, and 2004.
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