In search of a wine pairing

[carswell]

A couple of food and wine loving friends have back-to-back birthdays coming up and I've begun thinking about their joint B-day dinner. Always on the lookout for something unusual and seasonally appropriate, I'd had my eye on a recipe in Paula Wolfert's latest tome, The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen: a large chunk of skinless salmon filet slow-poached in garlic- and thyme-infused olive oil and accompanied by a salad of arugula, fresh mint, cucumber and raw rhubarb (!) dressed with a few drops of lemon juice. Last night I prepared the dish as a trial run and was pleased with the results: the salmon was moist and mellow, subtly flavoured and not at all oily while the salad was its perfect foil, cool, acid bright and lovely to look at.

From the outset, I knew the dish was going to present a wine-matching challenge. What could handle the salmon's richness, which is only amplifed by the preparation; the subtle Mediterranean flavours of the olive oil and garlic; the herby green flavours of the rocket and mint; and the acidic bite of the rhubarb and lemon? My first thought was something from the southern Rhone—a white Côtes-du-Rhône for the trial run and a Châteauneuf-du-Pape for the Big Night. I also briefly flirted with the idea of a white from Spain (e.g. albarino) or Italy (e.g. pinot grigio), a rosé and a white or pink sparkler.

In the end, I allowed myself to be swayed by the top wine guy at my neighbourhood SAQ outlet, who suggested Jaboulet's 2001 Mule Blanche Crozes-Hermitage, a marsanne-rousanne blend. Not a bad wine but not a particularly good match with the salmon. The fish made the wine seem bitter, the salad's acid made it seem fat and heavy. The only bright note was the wine's surprising synergy with the mint.

So, back to the drawing board. I'm now leaning toward a sauvignon-heavy, oak-light Graves/Pessac-Léognan. (It'd be great if it worked, because the reds I'm considering for the main course include Gruaud-Larose and Pichon-Lalande.) And looking over my wine list, a probably too young '93 Corton-Charlemagne from Bonneau de Martray catches my eye. But I'm certainly open to suggestions. Got any?

Edited April 24, 2005 by carswell (log)

[catdaddy]

Of the wines you mentioned I would select the Corton.

Reading about the poached salmon I immediately thought of SavBlanc. Cakebread perhaps. Also there has got to be a SavBlanc from New Zealand that wouldn't punch you with too much citrus. Alas I cannot suggest one.

The menu sounds great----the salad especially. Cheers.

[Busboy]

Appears you're headed much higher-end that this but I think a serious pink -- Domaine Tempier or some other Bandol or Cote de Nimes -- would make a swell paring. Talk about classic Mediterranean flavor.

I'm thinking that the Corton Charlemagne is a little too dressy for the recipe though, I'm sure, a lovely sip in its own right. I think of Med cooking as a little more "open collar" than that.

Maybe if we cross our fingers Paula will pop in her own suggestion.

[chefzadi]

I'd go with a Blush like Busboy already mentiond.

OR

A Pinot Gris/Grigio.

A White Burgundy from the Macon.

Pinot Blanc/Bianco

[jackal10]

An Alsace Pinot Gris (or even a red Pinot d'Alsace) from 2003.

Enough fullness to match the salmon...

or a Mosel Spatlese (say Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling) 1996

[ademello]

My bet for this one is Mumm's Napa rosé sparkler - $30 and change at the SAQ. Bubbles are perfect for the bday celebration, and the wine has been a perfect match for salmon and crab cakes on a bed of frisée with mint-parsley-coriader tabouleh. Almost like what you plan to serve with it.

If you can find it, Geoff Merril's grenache rosé would also be excellent and a steal at under $20. I would also try Terre Rouge's viognier-marsanne blend, a little pricey at $34 but sure to please.

I also find that it helps to chill the wine to a slightly lower temperature than is recommended, it helps cut through the fattiness of the fish.

Edited April 24, 2005 by ademello (log)

[Wolfert]

I remember I served a Paz Senorans Albarino - from Rias Baixas (Galicia, Spain) with the salmon.

[Capaneus]

A couple of food and wine loving friends have back-to-back birthdays coming up and I've begun thinking about their joint B-day dinner. Always on the lookout for something unusual and seasonally appropriate, I'd had my eye on a recipe in Paula Wolfert's latest tome, The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen: a large chunk of skinless salmon filet slow-poached in garlic- and thyme-infused olive oil and accompanied by a salad of arugula, fresh mint, cucumber and raw rhubarb (!) dressed with a few drops of lemon juice. Last night I prepared the dish as a trial run and was pleased with the results: the salmon was moist and mellow, subtly flavoured and not at all oily while the salad was its perfect foil, cool, acid bright and lovely to look at.

From the outset, I knew the dish was going to present a wine-matching challenge. What could handle the salmon's richness, which is only amplifed by the preparation; the subtle Mediterranean flavours of the olive oil and garlic; the herby green flavours of the rocket and mint; and the acidic bite of the rhubarb and lemon? My first thought was something from the southern Rhone—a white Côtes-du-Rhône for the trial run and a Châteauneuf-du-Pape for the Big Night. I also briefly flirted with the idea of a white from Spain (e.g. albarino) or Italy (e.g. pinot grigio), a rosé and a white or pink sparkler.

In the end, I allowed myself to be swayed by the top wine guy at my neighbourhood SAQ outlet, who suggested Jaboulet's 2001 Mule Blanche Crozes-Hermitage, a marsanne-rousanne blend. Not a bad wine but not a particularly good match with the salmon. The fish made the wine seem bitter, the salad's acid made it seem fat and heavy. The only bright note was the wine's surprising synergy with the mint.

So, back to the drawing board. I'm now leaning toward a sauvignon-heavy, oak-light Graves/Pessac-Léognan. (It'd be great if it worked, because the reds I'm considering for the main course include Gruaud-Larose and Pichon-Lalande.) And looking over my wine list, a probably too young '93 Corton-Charlemagne from Bonneau de Martray catches my eye. But I'm certainly open to suggestions. Got any?

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Personally, I would stay away from the Corton: at a minimum it would be an overmatch, at worst you might encounter the same problem you had with the Jaboulet. I like the rose suggestion, maybe a Tavel, but I like the NZ Sauvignon Blanc even better - in fact, I like it *because* of the citrus acidity: it will pick up the acidity of the salad, and it will cut nicely through the fatty richness of the salmon. As would the Riesling, come to think of it, but somehow I thing the slightly grassy flavor profile of the SB would be a better match. Here in Pennsylvania I've been getting Kim Crawford's 2003. I don't know what's available in your neck of the woods.

[chefzadi]

I remember  I served a Paz Senorans Albarino - from Rias Baixas (Galicia, Spain) with the salmon.

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Excellent choice. I don't know much about Spanish wines. But Albarino remind me of Condrieu in France’s northern Rhône Valley made from the Viognier varietal. They both have peach and floral bouquets

[wattacetti]

Personally, I would stay away from the Corton: at a minimum it would be an overmatch, at worst you might encounter the same problem you had with the Jaboulet. I like the rose suggestion, maybe a Tavel, but I like the NZ Sauvignon Blanc even better - in fact, I like it *because* of the citrus acidity: it will pick up the acidity of the salad, and it will cut nicely through the fatty richness of the salmon. As would the Riesling, come to think of it, but somehow I thing the slightly grassy flavor profile of the SB would be a better match. Here in Pennsylvania I've been getting Kim Crawford's 2003. I don't know what's available in your neck of the woods.

←

Kim Crawford is not available in Quebec; it is in Alberta, Ontario and BC (where there are cases of it because no one knows what it is). The best we can match for now is the Oyster Bay.

A top-end Sancerre if we're going along the lines of a crisp Sauvignon Blanc?

[carswell]

Kim Crawford is not available in Quebec.

←

No longer true. It's a recent arrival and not widely distributed for the time being. (Except for the Rockland and Verdun outlets, all the inventory on the island is in deepest, darkest East End. Go figure.) But it's there. Surf on over to www.saq.com and enter product code 10327701. C$16.95 a bottle vs. C$19.95 in Ontario, too (!).

[jbonne]

i'll toss in another non-bubbly option (though a nice bubby would certainly work): gruner veltliner, though i'm blanking on a good one right now.

i think you need a big mineral component to match the arugula, cucumber, mint and infused olive oil, acid (and citrus) to match the lemon, and something bright enough to cut the fat of the salmon. the SBs mentioned would all do the trick quite well, but i think you may want some additional minerality and herb notes, and for whatever reason i translate that to gruner. the albarino seems like it might work for similar reasons, and so would Chablis.

i'd stay away from anything with too many non-citrus fruit notes. with so many herbs in the recipe, too many peach or tropical notes might be jarring. but that's just me ...

[jrufusj]

i'll toss in another non-bubbly option (though a nice bubby would certainly work): gruner veltliner, though i'm blanking on a good one right now.

i think you need a big mineral component to match the arugula, cucumber, mint and infused olive oil, acid (and citrus) to match the lemon, and something bright enough to cut the fat of the salmon. the SBs mentioned would all do the trick quite well, but i think you may want some additional minerality and herb notes, and for whatever reason i translate that to gruner.  the albarino seems like it might work for similar reasons, and so would Chablis.

i'd stay away from anything with too many non-citrus fruit notes.  with so many herbs in the recipe, too many peach or tropical notes might be jarring. but that's just me ...

←

Great suggestion! For a good discussion of Austrian wine, wine regions, varieties, and some excellent growers, you could do worse than to look over Terry Theise's catalogs at this link. In addition to being packed with great information, they're beautifully written and fun to read.

A number of people have mentioned sauvignon blanc, but no one has suggested Styrian sauvignon blanc. You might seriously consider a Styrian SB with the dish. Even if you don't do that, take an opportunity to taste one. Theise's 2001 Austria catalog (available at link above) has a good short discussion of Styria and of one of the top producers (Polz). It also has Theise's tasting notes of a number of vintage 2000 Polz wines.

In any case, please let us know what you try and how it works.

Take care,

Jim