help with wine pairing

[kastle]

Hello this is my first post on egullet I am a Private Chef in Manhattan and I need assistance with wine pairings for a dinner that I'm doing soon. Here is my menu:

Celeriac Veloute

butter poached lobster, tarragon creme fraiche

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Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras

toasted brioche, walnut-mache salad, riesling gelee, blackberry gastrique

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Scottish Salmon wrapped in Apple Smoked Bacon

creamy leeks, tomato concasee, cassis vinegar jus

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Roasted Australian Loin of Lamb

port roasted shallots, potato-gruyere croquettes, black truffle jus, shaved black truffles

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A Tasting of Pear

pear-almond ice cream, vanilla-port poached, fried skin salad with golden raisins

I would appreciate any tips for wine pairing,

Thanks.

[Rebel Rose]

Welcome to eGullet, kastle! Are you looking for a specific wine for each course, or one or more wines that might do double-duty? Do you have an approximate cost in mind?

(The menu is mouth-watering, by the way.)

[Brad Ballinger]

First of all, Yum.

Second, my two cents. . .

Celeriac Veloute

butter poached lobster, tarragon creme fraiche

Meursault -- That lobster seems like it will be rich.

Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras

toasted brioche, walnut-mache salad, riesling gelee, blackberry gastrique

Vouvray Moelleux -- Sweetness to go well with foie gras with enough acid to be good with the rest.

Scottish Salmon wrapped in Apple Smoked Bacon

creamy leeks, tomato concasee, cassis vinegar jus

Riesling Spatlese -- From the Pfalz. It just seems right, but your guest may want you to move to red, so a northern Burgundy like a Marsannay or Fixin also seems right.

Roasted Australian Loin of Lamb

port roasted shallots, potato-gruyere croquettes, black truffle jus, shaved black truffles

Bordeaux -- Some are going to say Australian Shiraz, but with the perfume of the truffles, I think you need something less in your face. Alternatively, a 2003 Barbera.

A Tasting of Pear

pear-almond ice cream, vanilla-port poached, fried skin salad with golden raisins

Moscato -- not the fizzy stuff, though.

[kastle]

Brad, thanks for you're help and your pairings are great, Rebel as for a budget, Luckily its very high and my clients don't care about cost they just want to have a remarkable evening. Thanks for the reply's.

[Cook456]

I need a recommendation for a recipe in this month's Cooking Light. It's a pork tenderlion stew with tomatoes, white wine, fennel, onions, and nicoise olives. Seasoning is fresh thyme.

[KatieLoeb]

As a couple of alternatives to Brad's excellent suggestions to go with your really lovely menu, I'll suggest:

Celeriac Veloute

butter poached lobster, tarragon creme fraiche

Savennieres - Clos de Coulee de Serrant if you can find it. It'll be delicious and pick up the earthiness of the celeriac and the herbal qualities of the tarragon in addition to having enough acidity to stand up to the richness of the butter and creme fraiche.

Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras

toasted brioche, walnut-mache salad, riesling gelee, blackberry gastrique

Riesling Auslese -- I'd want to stick with riesling just because of the gelee. I'd hate to overwhelm that flavor with a different wine, but that's just me. I guess it depends on how large a component of the dish that gelee really is.

Scottish Salmon wrapped in Apple Smoked Bacon

creamy leeks, tomato concasee, cassis vinegar jus

Oregon Pinot Noir - I prefer a lighter red wine with my salmon, and in this progression, it's time to move to red after two very sumptuous whites. If you can find a nice Burgundian-style Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley it should match well with this course. I think the more fruit forward style of the New World wine should compliment the cassis in the sauce. Brad's suggestion of a Northern Burgundy is an excellent one as well.

I don't even want to touch the other two courses. I think Brad's suggestions are perfect.

[Brad Ballinger]

I like Katie's suggestions just as well. If you get an auslese, go with a hot year like 1998, 2002, or 2003.

[Rebel Rose]

A Tasting of Pear

pear-almond ice cream, vanilla-port poached, fried skin salad with golden raisins

Definitely seconding the suggestions made so far. I think I'd also like to suggest a dessert viognier or late harvest chardonnay or pinot blanc, if you can find one, for the pear course. Late harvest whites often have a distinctive nutty character that would match the dish, and I see that the pears are poached in port, so a more exotic and layered dessert white would help keep the dessert lively by making it seem lighter and more ephemeral in comparison.

[JohnL]

As a couple of alternatives to Brad's excellent suggestions to go with your really lovely menu, I'll suggest:

Celeriac Veloute

butter poached lobster, tarragon creme fraiche

Savennieres -  Clos de Coulee de Serrant if you can find it.  It'll be delicious and pick up the earthiness of the celeriac and the herbal qualities of the tarragon in addition to having enough acidity to stand up to the richness of the butter and creme fraiche.

Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras

toasted brioche, walnut-mache salad, riesling gelee, blackberry gastrique

Riesling Auslese -- I'd want to stick with riesling just because of the gelee.  I'd hate to overwhelm that flavor with a different wine, but that's just me.  I guess it depends on how large a component of the dish that gelee really is.

Scottish Salmon wrapped in Apple Smoked Bacon

creamy leeks, tomato concasee, cassis vinegar jus

Oregon Pinot Noir - I prefer a lighter red wine with my salmon, and in this progression, it's time to move to red after two very sumptuous whites.  If you can find a nice Burgundian-style Pinot Noir from Willamette Valley it should match well with this course.  I think the more fruit forward style of the New World wine should compliment the cassis in the sauce.  Brad's suggestion of a Northern Burgundy is an excellent one as well.

I don't even want to touch the other two courses.  I think Brad's suggestions are perfect.

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Great picks especially the pinot with the salmon.

I would have some potential problems with the Coulee though. This is a wine that needs some time/age IMOP-many younger versions are ok to drink but really do not reveal a lot of the wine's real pleasures. It may work really well or maybe not so well with the lobster dish in question. To my palate Brad's Meursault is close to perfect for this.

The Coulee is a really interesting thought--it does have the herbal thing--this wine can be very complex--and the acidity but I think it might not "stand up" to the richness of the dish-- I would think that it would be more recommendable with a simple steamed or grilled lobster (and a bit extravagant--I saw the wonderful '02 on sale for eighty bucks a bottle).

I just had the 1990 and all I can say is--wow--absolutely magnificent.

[SBonner]

Here's my suggestions as well.

Celeriac Veloute

butter poached lobster, tarragon creme fraiche

Burgundian styled Chardonnay from Western Australia. These big boys are rich, nutty, complex, and have the stamina for the butter and lobster.

-

Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras

toasted brioche, walnut-mache salad, riesling gelee, blackberry gastrique

A minimum of an Auslese Riesling or TBA from Austria both will meld with the Riesling gelee and create some great acidity balances with the blackberry

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Scottish Salmon wrapped in Apple Smoked Bacon

creamy leeks, tomato concasee, cassis vinegar jus

I'm all for Pinot Noir as well. Tori Mor from Oregon would be a nice match

-

Roasted Australian Loin of Lamb

port roasted shallots, potato-gruyere croquettes, black truffle jus, shaved black truffles

Something different...Reserva or Gran Reserva Rioja from a vintage like 1998 or if you can find some 1994. You've got power, elegance, and complexity of flavour that will work with this dish.

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A Tasting of Pear

pear-almond ice cream, vanilla-port poached, fried skin salad with golden raisins

A very tasty Muscat de Baume-de-Venise.

Cheers,

Stephen Bonner

Vancouver

Edited March 9, 2006 by SBonner (log)

[KatieLoeb]

My suggestion for the Clos de Coulee de Serrant came after kastle said money was no object.

I agree it's a risky choice, but has the potential to be utterly transcendant and brilliant if it works. There are few dishes short of a butter poached lobster that I'd consider a spot on match for such an unusual wine. But it's just soooooo delicious and inspiring I thought it would be worth a shot. If nothing else, it will certainly leave an impression with the clients. It remains the most interesting and unusual wine I've certainly ever tasted.

Sadly, I don't have enough Clos de Coulee de Serrant cross my path to suggest a specific vintage (), but a bit of research of online tasting notes for whichever vintages might be available to kastle locally ought to reveal enough information to take the plunge, if so desired. Any of the biodynamically grown wines from Nicholas Joly would be a safe bet for quality.

[JohnL]

My suggestion for the Clos de Coulee de Serrant came after kastle said money was no object. 

I agree it's a risky choice, but has the potential to be utterly transcendant and brilliant if it works.  There are few dishes short of a butter poached lobster that I'd consider a spot on match for such an unusual wine.  But it's just soooooo delicious and inspiring I thought it would be worth a shot.  If nothing else, it will certainly leave an impression with the clients.  It remains the most interesting and unusual wine I've certainly ever tasted.

Sadly, I don't have enough Clos de Coulee de Serrant cross my path to suggest a specific vintage (), but a bit of research of online tasting notes for whichever vintages might be available to kastle locally ought to reveal enough information to take the plunge, if so desired.  Any of the biodynamically grown wines from  Nicholas Joly would be a safe bet for quality.

←

I guess I find Coulee from good vintages and aged well so beguiling an experience that maybe I would prefer to drink it alone--just savoring it.

this is one wine that has the potential to draw one's attention away from the lobster!

as with most wines--Coulee is not always on point (nor Joly) the wines have been a bit erratic in quality over the years--recently mostly on form though.

it is nice to take a risk once in a while--as you point out the payoff could be really wonderful!

[kastle]

thanks for the reply's It was very helpful.

[KatieLoeb]

thanks for the reply's It was very helpful.

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kastle:

I'm certain I speak for all of us when I say it was a pleasure to help. But now, of course, you are obligated to report back after this meal and let us know which wines you served and how they were received by the guests. Our curiosity will kill us (or at least mine will!) otherwise.

[SBonner]

thanks for the reply's It was very helpful.

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kastle:

I'm certain I speak for all of us when I say it was a pleasure to help. But now, of course, you are obligated to report back after this meal and let us know which wines you served and how they were received by the guests. Our curiosity will kill us (or at least mine will!) otherwise.

←

I'd like to hear what wines you went with as well.

Cheers,

Stephen

Vancouver

[SBonner]

I need a recommendation for a recipe in this month's Cooking Light.  It's a pork tenderlion stew with tomatoes, white wine, fennel, onions, and nicoise olives.  Seasoning is fresh thyme.

←

Try a lighter bodied Cannonau from Sardina it should compliment the tomatoes and herbal elements in your dish.

Stephen

Vancouver