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Sauce Madeira

msacuisine

By msacuisine
in France: Cooking & Baking

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msacuisine

msacuisine

Posted
Posted

What type of Madeira is used for a classical Sauce Madeira? All of the references I find just call for x amount of "Madeira wine". This includes French references I have on the sauce making. After doing a little research, I have discovered that Madeira is made with a wide variety of different grapes and comes in styles from dry to rich to sweet. So I am confused about which one to use.

I got a 5 yo Malmsey to go in the sauce I am making for tomorrow night. I am spending a lot of time and effort to make a real, classical demi-glace to make it with, so I don't want to ruin it by using the wrong fortified wine. Does anyone have any experience with this or know the answer?

The sauce will be for aged prime beef rib eyes accompanied by pommes de terre anna; the course will be paired with a nice Chateau Neuf du Pape. if any of that makes any difference.

Thanks,

Michael

(My apologies in advance if some think this belongs in the beverages forum, but since it is primarily a sauce making question, I thought I would get the quickest and best responses in the cooking forum.)

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TheSwede

TheSwede

Posted
Posted

I think the Malmsey will work fine. You want sweet madeira for the madeira sauce.

If madeira sauce is the optimal choice for aged prime beef is of course another question altogether. Even it might not be optimal (depending on your taste etc), I think it will work extremely well.

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Dave the Cook

Dave the Cook

Posted
Posted

The issue isn't really the age of the wine, it's the fortification. The Malmsey will be fine, though you really don't need to go that fancy. Just as with red or white used in cooking, you don't want to use anything undrinkable. I've gotten fine results with $10 bottles.

Dave Scantland
Executive director
dscantland@eGstaff.org
eG Ethics signatory

Eat more chicken skin.

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msacuisine

msacuisine

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So the consensus I getting both here and at foodieforums.com is that the Malmsey should be fine, though perhaps a bit extravagant, and that I might do just as well with a cheaper choice next time. I am okay with a little extravagance. But really at $25 a bottle, the Malmsey doesn't seem over the top--the day and a half's work the demi itself takes--now that's extravagant!

So I am now feeling more confident I haven't made a big mistake here.

My next question is, if the Malmsey would be better served as an afterdinner drink, what sorts of things would it marry best with? Desserts? Nuts? Cheeses? Any ideas?

Thanks everyone for your responses,

Michael

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TheSwede

TheSwede

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Posted
...

My next question is, if the Malmsey would be better served as an afterdinner drink, what sorts of things would it marry best with? Desserts? Nuts? Cheeses? Any ideas?

...

Michael

Yes, yes, and yes! :biggrin:

I think it would work excellently with most kinds of desserts/cheese - even chocolate, which is hard for most kinds of wine.

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JimmyWu

JimmyWu

Posted
Posted

I like the way the dry red matches with prime rib (i.e. Bordelaise) :wink:

A platter of cheese and fresh cut fruit would be nice...

Camembert, Roquefort, & Goat

Pears & Apples

Maybe a 2nd drink like Port ???

-Jimmy

Typos are Copyrighted @

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msacuisine

msacuisine

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Yes, yes, and yes!  :biggrin:

I think it would work excellently with most kinds of desserts/cheese - even chocolate, which is hard for most kinds of wine.

Great!!!

I like dark chocolate desserts--thought we are having creme brulee for dessert tonight. The only thing that I have ever found that marries beautifully with dark chocolate is ruby port. It is nice to have another option! :D

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jackal10

jackal10

Posted
Posted (edited)

Malmsey is excellent in sauce or in or with soup.

I use it as a substitute for Mirin, and conversely a little soy will enhance its flavour and umani properties in savoury dishes

As an after dinner drink serve like port - nuts, cheeses etc.

Traditionally, it is served at 11am, with Madeira cake (http://www.waitrose.com/recipe/Madeira_Cake.aspx) , that contains no Madeira but goes with it. It fills that awkward gap between breakfast and lunch. I know of only a few old fashioned institutions where this is still practiced, and a meeting at 11am will be accompanied with a decanter of Madeira and a tray of cake slices instead of or as an alternative to coffee. Very civilised.

$25 seems high for a 5 year old Malmsey. You should be able to source that for under $15, and I've seen it online for under $10.

Edited by jackal10 (log)
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msacuisine

msacuisine

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Post-Game Report

Just thought I would wrap up this thread with a report on how it went.

The sauce was wonderful--you just can't beat the quality of a sauce made form a proper demi-glace; jus reductions are just never the same. The sauce was a little sweeter than I had intended and I think next time I will try using one of the drier Madeiras suggested or just go the Bordelaise route. But it was something out of the ordinary and the complexity of the Chateau Neuf I served with it still made for a nice pairing.

The Sancerre I served with the first course of Shrimp Remoulade on a bed of baby heirloom lettuce was also somewhat sweeter than anticipated, so sweeter-than-expected was almost a theme. LOL.

I also served sherry glasses of the Malmsey with the creme brulee, which married very nicely.

All in all the dinner was a big success; one of my guests said, "This is as good as food gets!" :D

I had another glass of the Madeira with the leftover dried apricots, almonds, and triple cream brie (served to after the main course, to finish off the wine) while I was cleaning up and it was wonderful.

Thanks everyone for your input. I really appreciate everyone taking their time to help educate me about Madeira and make my dinner a success.

Michael

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msacuisine

msacuisine

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Oh, btw, Jackel10, despite that fact that I live in a major metro area (Phoenix) I have trouble finding a wide selection of wine at reasonable prices. So we usually end up paying a premium to get a decent selection. Arizona is one of those fascist states that will not allow out of state shipments of wine, so the internet is out as a source. Do you have any suggestions as how I might source more competitively priced wines?

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jackal10

jackal10

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Posted

Glad it went well.

I'm sorry you live in such an unenlightened place. Maybe take up politics. If you feel the law is bad, perhaps a lot of other people do as well. I can see the campaign to be able to drink as your forefathers could, with free samples of Madeira and Madeira cake..."Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities." (1 Timothy 5:23)

What it means is that by imposing the prohibition, the state is creating an unfair monopoly, increasing local prices and corruptly joining in the profiteering.

Move? Buy out of state?

http://www.winesearcher.com is a useful resource.

I just checked and our local (UK) wine shop sells a 5 year old Malmsey fo £9.99, say $20, inlcuding taxes, so your price was not that far out.

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