Impressing the boss

[silverbrow]

Although no stranger to eG, this is my first venture into the wine forum, largely due to a woeful lack of knowledge.

However, I need to call on your expertise for a little bit of help. I've got my new boss coming over for dinner in a few weeks time. He's not the biggest wine pro but knows his stuff and is a keen amateur. So, obviously, I'd like to impress him.

Ideally I'd like different wines for each course, I'm currently thinking that my menu is going to look something like this:

#1 - tuna tartare on onion marmalade or fish ceviche

#2 - chicken soup

#3 - roast lamb w/autumn root veg

#4 - chocolate tart

So your challenge, should you choose to accept it is - what on earth should I be serving? I don't necessarily think that there needs to be different wines between #2 & #3, although am happy to take advice. And obviously, I'm happy with both reds and whites from anywhere.

Now for a quick summary of what I like to drink/don't drink and therefore what I might think about serving here goes:

Reds:

Paulliac

St Julien

Barolo

Whites:

Chenin Blanc - Vouvrays

Pouilly Fuisse

NOT oaky Chardonnays

As you will see, not overly adventurous (that's not to say I'm not willing to be), but I know when I look at a wine list what I like.

I'd really appreciate help in pairing up my meal with wines. My budget is for bottles up to £20 each, ideally I'd like to spend less.

What I'd really appreciate as well as your recommendations is an explanation of why you're recommending them - what is it about that wine/grape that makes it the right choice. I'm trying to improve my wine knoweldge so all and any advice is really helpful.

Also, as an aside, apart from scouring here, are there any particularly good books to buy. I've heard that Jancis Robinson's Wine Courseis supposed to be good, but I'd appreciate your views.

Many thanks

[Florida Jim]

The quick answer to your question is serve any of the whites you like with the first two courses and any of the reds you like with the second two.

But if your new boss fancies himself a bit of a wine geek, why not buy four or five bottles of things you like and then let him choose. You both win that way and, anything you don't drink will serve you well another day.

Best, Jim

[Carolyn Tillie]

Instead of a Vouvray, consider throwing a Roussanne into the mix. The oillyness of the tuna against the rich viscosity of the Roussanne is stunning -- the whites you have chosen tend to be much thinner and when paired with rich tuna and caramelized onions, will become strident and acidic. The whites you named would go better with a ceviche, if you go that route.

And like Jim mentioned, you could make it quite a fun evening if you make it a food/wine pairing game -- go ahead and open two or three wines for each course so that you can talk about which ones work. If your boss is really a wine geek, than it could make for an engaging evening to 'bow to his knowledge' as well as learn some stuff along the way. Fess up in the beginning that you weren't sure which wines would work and opted to try some with each course.

[jsolomon]

Champagne goes with anything.

I suggest trying: Piper Sonoma or Bellefon. I came across a very charming Spanish sparkling Brut a month ago that escapes my memory.

Remember: drink champagne (or any reasonable bubbly) for no reason.

Edit to add: Cava Brut! That was the Spanish sparkler.

Edited September 16, 2005 by jsolomon (log)

[ludja]

...

Also, as an aside, apart from scouring here, are there any particularly good books to buy.  I've heard that Jancis Robinson's Wine Courseis supposed to be good, but I'd appreciate your views.

Many thanks

←

This article from the San Francisco Chromicle should be available for free for the next week or two. It's just an article, but has a discussion of overcoming potentially difficult food-wine pairings and also has a small discussion of some general principles in pairing food and wine. click

The menu sounds delicious. (a personal vote for the tuna tatare...).

A roussane based wine sounds interesting with its crisp, racy flavors as a pairing with the first two courses. The ones I've had tend to have a voluptuos mouthfeel while still retaining a nice acidity. I can't help with French suggestions, although I think one option might be a Chateau Neuf du Pape, but one nice Californian example is Bonny Doon's, "Cigare Blanc" (inspired by white Chateau Neuf du Pape, but ususally with a higher percentage of Roussane). Have no idea about price and availability in the UK; in the US it is ~ $18, making it just within your range. Along the same lines, a nice chardonnay (not oaky) would seem to also bring a certain matching richness and contrasting sprightlliness.

Seems like there are a bunch of options for the lamb, including the ones you mentioned. I'm particularly partial to Pinot Noir with lamb--the cherry flavors and earthiness in the Pinot Noir and the less forceful backbone seem just perfect with the slightly 'gamey' taste of lamb.

If you remember, it would be fun to hear what you end up choosing and how the pairings went over for you and your boss. Have a nice dinner!

Edited September 16, 2005 by ludja (log)

[JohnL]

I think Jim's suggestion that you serve wines you like is perhaps the best.

I think that making the "event" into a wine tasting may be a bit much. However, you know what you would be comfortable with better than we do.

Might be an interesting touch if you served wine from one area or region.

For eg--you could select Bordeaux: white graves for the first courses then a red you like then a sauternes with desert.

Or the Loire: maybe try a vouvray in two styles a dry and an off dry-- open both and see which one goes best with which of the first two courses. (the off dry will have more body/mouthfeel --I agree with Carolyn re: the tune match).

This might be a fun start to the meal.

Move on to an earthy Chinon for the Lamb and then a sweet Quarts de Chaume with the pudding.

The Rhone--whites: Condrieu, plenty of Rousanne options (white Chatauneuf), reds: from a good Cote du Rhone to Cote Rotie's or Chateuneuf's--sweet: Muscat de Beaumes.

Italy and Spain can provide really wonderful wines at good prices for all your courses as well.

or you can mix and match of course--but might be fun to open with two different whites trying each one with both the Tuna and the soup. (doing this with each course would risk turning dinner into a wine tasting (not a bad thing mind you but this may not be desirable at this time).

Another suggestion would be to establish a good relationship with a local wine shop.

It is difficult to provide more specific recommendations as your options are limited by what is available in your area.

as for books, The Robinson "course" is good. I have also found "Pairing wine and Food by Linda Johnson Bell to be the best on this topic--published in the US by Buford Books and probably available via Amazon in paperback. Incidently, Ms Johnson Bell resides in London according to the jacket info. For tasting I recommend "Winetaster's Secrets" by Andrew Sharp, also in paperback and probably available via Amazon.

I have a pretty extensive library of wine related books and these two stick out as particularly good and helpful.

Good Luck with your evening!

(of course, you must post a recap of your dinner with the wines etc. --I am sure I am not the only one here who is interested in how it goes for you).

Edited September 16, 2005 by JohnL (log)

[silverbrow]

Fantastic, many thanks one and all (and feel free to keep the suggestions coming). The dinner's not for a couple of weeks but I want to plan everything, so I will post about it, but don't hold your breath.

The wine tasting element is interesting but probably not right for this format. I'm going to shmooz my local vintners and try to get some further ideas there for what I can get my hands on locally. I shall report back and ask for further suggestions sometime next week.

[Brad Ballinger]

Letting your boss choose is also a good way of playing the sycophant (when it is appropriate to do so). If you wish to run the show, however, here are some suggestions...

Course one: Rose Champagne if tuna tartare, Cremant de Loire if ceviche.

Course two: Water. Rarely is wine paired with soup.

Course three: Any of the reds you've listed depending on which is most ready to drink (here you may ask you boss for an opinion).

Course four: Coffee. I prefer it to any wine when it comes to chocolate. If you must serve wine with dessert, though, then look for a Banyuls, Maury, or Late Bottled Vintage Port.

[Marlene]

Why not also offer a cheese plate paired with a great port? LBV and Tawny ports are good choices here and within a moderate price range.

[Florida Jim]

Course two: Water.  Rarely is wine paired with soup.

Brad is a prude.

Best, Jim

[Busboy]

I'm no Brad Ballinger, but I might look beyond the relatively small group of reds you lay out here. Even given that the euro likely goes further than the dollar on fine wine, I suspect you're going to have a hard time getting a top Bordeaux or Barolo within the budget you've set -- especially if, as sometimes happens with "afficianados", your boss is actually more impressed by labels than by taste ("what, no Gaja?"). Have you considered a mid-priced Chateauneuf-du-Pape, a California syrah or an Aussie Cabernet-Shiraz or straight Shiraz (Marquis-Phillips does some excellent work at very reasonable rates) ?

Otherwise:

Chateau Gloria St. Julien, though no longer the steal it once was, remains well priced, delivering (some say) a very close approximation of Grand Cru quality for Cru Borgeoise price. Interesting story and some tasting notes here.

This thread has some good suggestions for Italian reds that may deliver more bang for the buck than Barolo.

And this column "when your dinner guest is an expert" might prove useful.

[Brad Ballinger]

Brad is a prude.

←

I'm no Brad Ballinger.

←

One may, then, attempt to logically deduce that you are not a prude. But if you look at the two phrases syllogistically, you could still be a prude.

Silverbrow, I assumed you had the Bordeaux and Barolo in your cellar already. That may not be the case, and then Busboy is accurate about what 20 pounds will buy. In that event, I'd look for a Rioja, which generally makes a terrific lamb pairing, may be more "ready" to drink, and could be something with which your boss isn't entirely familiar. Many use American oak, which you may not have a taste for. But Finca Valpiedra, if available, is one Rioja producer that uses French oak.

[silverbrow]

Unfortunately they are neither in my cellar or anywhere else in my ownership.

Ok, so the weekend and a bit of digging through recipes has resulted in a total lack of faith in my original menu. I think I might now go for a starter of truffled eggs with liver, rather than the tartare, followed by a light veg soup and then either the lamb or a boeuf bourguignon.

So, following the recs up-thread I went into my local Oddbins over the weekend (my independent was shut) and they recommended the following, I'd be interested in any feedback:

Wakefield Riesling 2004

Inferi Montelpuciano d'Abruzzo 2000

Chateau des Laurets 2000

[Brad Ballinger]

So, following the recs up-thread I went into my local Oddbins over the weekend (my independent was shut) and they recommended the following, I'd be interested in any feedback:

Wakefield Riesling 2004

Inferi Montelpuciano d'Abruzzo 2000

Chateau des Laurets 2000

←

The wines would all be fine with your revised menu. Of course, though, if you serve boeuf bourguignone, your really should have a Burgundy -- and your boss will expect one. And you should be able to find one as good as the Oddbins wines in your price range.

[Carolyn Tillie]

No comment on the wine, but if you serve bourguignone, I would stay away from a second course soup as they texturely similar (soupy). A bourguignone traditionally has some simply-dressed greens to accompany it. Consider starting with the eggs, then moving to the bourguignone with a salad, and then have a cheese course before your dessert. Any wines that are still open will be great to taste with the cheeses...

[primowino]

Just a quick comment on the dessert. As has been mentioned chocolate is not great to match with wine. If wine is a major part of the evening I would suggest changing your dessert choice. I too am a Vouvray fan and I think your boss would love a nice Moelloux Vouvray with Tarte Tatin or Pear and Almond Tart. The other advantage is that any left over Vouvray would match perfectly with some goats cheese such as Valencay, if you haven't given up at that stage.

If you drink Vouvray you'll know the good producers, but my favourites are Huet and Chateau Gaudrelle. The latter usually produces one style each vintage and doesn't indicate on the bottle whether it is sec, demi-sec or moelloux so you may need to do some research. I had their 1995 a while ago and that would be perfect if you could find any.

On your recommendations from Oddbins. They are OK, but I can't help thinking you would be moving downmarket (and quality) from the original objective of spending up to £20 a bottle and impressing the boss. They don't stock good Vouvray but they do have a good range of burgundy and rhone. If you do the bourguignone and want something delicious with it, spend £18.50 on the Peregrine Pinot Noir from new Zealand. I promise you would struggle to find a burgundy of the quality for the price and it is very burgundian in style. The wine geek boss might appreciate your take on always serving burgundy with this dish.

I haven't tried the Laurets but if I wanted a definite result I wouldn't chance a claret that I hadn't tried already especially in the £10 a bottle range (too hit and miss).

Hope you have a great meal.

Edited September 27, 2005 by primowino (log)

[silverbrow]

Thanks to everyone for the recs and primowino for prompting me to post. Since the somewhat muted response to my wines I bought, I reconsidered and saw this as an opportunity to buy something different and hopefully a little bit special.

I decided to eschew Oddbins and headed to my local independent which always looks impressive and I appreciate the advice I've been given in the past. His recommendations which I purchased were:

2003 Willm Pinot Gris for the starter

2001 Louis Latour Aloxe-Corton Domaine Latour for main

I won't be serving wine with dessert, given the difficulty of the pairing wine with chocolate.

Dinner's this Saturday night, so I'll let you know how it goes afterwards.

[chefboy24]

#1 - tuna tartare on onion marmalade or fish ceviche

#2 - chicken soup

#3 - roast lamb w/autumn root veg

#4 - chocolate tart

with tuna tartare and onion marmalade..... i like gewurtztraminer or rieslings from alsace (you can go with the big boys... willm, hugel, humbrecht, albrecht, trimbach, etc)

with ceviche i like sauvignon blanc...... you can try new zealand or loire valley

or even vovray (Chenin blanc) or a nice savveniers (joly does the great biodynamic ones)

chicken soup.... you can try the italian white route..... tocai friulano, falanghina, fiano.......or a "super white" from friuli... vespa from bastianich is great stuff.

roast lamb (rack? leg?)&root vege ...... napa merlot or aglianico (taurasi or aglianico del vulture)

choc tart..... sauternes? chatteau rissec is nice. a barsac? maybe even a moscato d'asti

Edited September 27, 2005 by chefboy24 (log)

[Peter Gatti]

Moscato, Banyuls, or Maury all work fairly well with chocolate, but Moscato perhaps the best of them, as well as the least expensive for equivalent quality.