Wine for Pecan-Crusted Tilapia?

[tammylc]

I'm making Pecan Crusted Tilapia with Brown Butter sauce for dinner at my community tomorrow. A few people have asked me for a wine pairing suggestion, and I'm curious what others would suggest. The sides are steamed asparagus and cajun rice (not hot-spicy, just flavorful). The brown butter sauce will have lemon juice and probably a fresh herb - parsley or tarragon are what I'm thinking about.

Any suggestions?

[jayt90]

Chardonnay (Ca. or Aus.) or Pinot Blanc (Alscace) should work well. Do you have a price range in mind?

[tammylc]

Chardonnay  (Ca.  or Aus.) or Pinot  Blanc  (Alscace) should work well.  Do you have a price range in mind?

←

I expect most of the people asking the question would be interested in something in the $15 and under category.

[jayt90]

Chardonnay  (Ca.  or Aus.) or Pinot  Blanc  (Alscace) should work well.  Do you have a price range in mind?

←

I expect most of the people asking the question would be interested in something in the $15 and under category.

←

Good Alsatians will start at $15, but there is excellent Chardonnay for less, including Chile, and some indiginous whites from Calabria and Sicily are another possibility.

[Jason Perlow]

I'll second the Alsatian/Germanic reccomendation. You want a wine with a high acid content for that sauce. Riesling or Gewurtztraminer would be ideal but a Pinot Gris or Pinot Blanc would be nice as well. I'm not so sure Chardonnay would be as good a match, its too boozy and oaky (unless you get one that was aged in stainless steel) and most of them have too much heat on the palate as well.

Edited April 26, 2006 by Jason Perlow (log)

[SBonner]

Good rich Gewuztraminer, Australian Riesling, or Pinot Gris are on my list of recommendations.

Cheers,

Stephen Bonner

Vancouver

[jayt90]

I agree completely with Jason and Steve, but I was too conservative to reccommend riesling, traminer or even un-oaked chardonnay as I perceived a large "community" event, with many untrained or uncritical palates.

What choice was made, Tammy?

[JohnL]

I agree completely with Jason and Steve, but I was too conservative to reccommend riesling, traminer or even un-oaked chardonnay as I perceived  a large "community" event, with many untrained or uncritical palates.

What choice was made, Tammy?

←

jayt90

I have to jump in--you suggestions IMOP were right on.

The dish in question has two elements--butter and lemon.

Chardonnay is a fine match given its propensity for richness and lemon notes.

A classic example--of a similar pairing is a good white Burgundy with Dover Sole

and beurre blanc sauce.

Chardonnay is available in many different styles--

Oak seems to be misunderstood--if a wine is too oaky then it is not balanced.

(some folks like oaky wines some don't).

Oak and Chardonnay have a special affinity--see most fine white Burgundy.

In fact in this case--one would do well with a chardonnay that was fermented in Barrel

not an "unoaked" version. The wine should have a richness and buttery quality to match the sauce and the crust. Wines lacking in richness and body would be overpowered and taste thin and watery. Also it was noted that the sauce would be flavored with herbs (parsley and possibly tarragon)--again chardonnay is more likely to have herbal notes. So with a nicely made barrel fermented chardonnay you have body and richness, lemon notes, and herbal notes--you should also have enough acidity and complexity. The only problem (for any wine) are the asparagus.

On a side note:

I am a bit put off by your comment that you use the terms "untrained" and "uncritical" palates.

This is pure snobbery.

(I am sure you didn't mean to imply that Riesling and Gewurtz and "unoaked chardonnay" are only appreciated by a "select" few).

While a nice pinot blanc or a riesling (no one seemed to note what type of riesling would work with the dish) are fine recommendations--a very good case can be made that a well made white Burgundy or a New World Chardonnay that is barrel fermented would be optimal.

as for the oakphobes--one can certainly "prefer" wines made in stainless steele (most aromatic varietals seem to do best unoaked) but to suggest that one's preference for unoaked wines indicates a level of sophistication well.....really!

conversely, those who seem to enjoy complaining about wines that see barrel time--we are talking most all of Burgundy, and Bordeaux let alone Spain a large part of Italy and the New World--have some splainen to do.

Edited April 27, 2006 by JohnL (log)

[jayt90]

John, I was being more timid than snobbish (at least in my mind). I envisioned a large-table, community event.

[JohnL]

John, I was being more timid than snobbish (at least in my mind). I envisioned a large-table, community event.

←

I thought so.

I just believe you were right on with your initial recommendation.

Basically there are so many of styles of wines available that food and wine pairing recommendations are difficult at best.

You really have to note what specific type of any given wine you are talking about.

Riesling and Gewurtz and Pinot Blanc are all fine wines (again, there are different types of these wines available).

There are some nice pairing possibilities they would work very well with the fish.

I just believe that for the dish in question there is a better option.

Now if we were talking about choucroute or roast loin of pork with sauteed apples well......

[tammylc]

Thanks all for the interesting commentary. Just to clarify, while I'm cooking this for a community dinner, we're not providing wine for everyone. I just had a few of my more wine-interested neighbors who had asked for suggestions on what to bring to drink.

So I think we're going to end up with several thigns to choose from. I'll endeavor to taste them all and let you know what I think! I thought I had an Alsatian Riesling in the rack, but it turned out to be the Bas-Kuentz Alsace 2004, which is a blend, and the one review I found on line didn't make it sound like what I wanted for this meal. Feel free to chime in if you think otherwise.

I ended up buying something from Italy - can't remember the details off the top of my head, I'll post about it later. The asparagus side is something of a spoiler for many potential pairings, unfortunately.

I like JohnL's thoughts about the potential of an oaked chardonnay working with the brown butter sauce. All I have on hand is the cheap Bear's Lair Chardonnay from Trader's Joes (bought it for a party this past weekend, and it didn't get opened). Perhaps I'll open it too - it should definitely provide a good contrast!

[KatieLoeb]

A Rhone white could be tasty too - like a nice Marsanne/Roussanne blend.

If you're worried about the asparagus side dish then serve Gruner Veltliner.

[Jason Perlow]

Gruner. Yup. Maybe Chenin Blanc? Vouvray perhaps.

Edited April 27, 2006 by Jason Perlow (log)

[tammylc]

I said I'd report back, so here I am. I think I've misplaced the sheet of paper that I wrote down all the wines on, so I'm going from memory.

I didn't have the wine I thought I did, so I asked my wine seller for a recommendation while I was out picking up fish. He suggested an Italian white I wasn't familiar with - Vernaccia di san Gimignano? Nice wine, right up my alley - citrusly, mineraly, crisp - but not a particularly good match. I made the mistake of uttering the words asparagus re. the side dishes, so he immediately had to start thinking of things that wouldn't be ruined by the three spears of asparagus on my plate. Note to self - don't mention asparagus to people unless it's a main component of the meal.

M brought a 2001 Willm Pinot Gris from Alsace. Off-dry. It wasn't chilled, so it was a little flabby, but tasty, and better then mine. A little too sweet to work well, I thought, although my opinion might have changed if it were at a better temperature.

J brought a Alsatian Pinot Blanc, but I just got one sip of it, so wasn't able to give it much attention.

D was the winner though. He grabbed a random Italian Pinot Grigio that was on sale somewhere, and I thought it was a stellar match. It was the richest and fullest of the bunch, and I thought that played really well against the pecans and the brown butter.

Of course, this is all just my opinion. D though M's wine was the best match, and T, upon tasting all three, though mine was the best. So obviously none of them were bad...

I never did open the Chardonnay, but judging from this time's experience, I think it could work really well. The meal went well and I expect to make it again, so I'll definitely try that next time, maybe a nice white Burgundy.

Thanks all for the ideas!