Wine Tasting/Dinner Party

[Mallet]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to organize a wine-tasting/dinner party and need some help. The crowd is basically people that enjoy wine, but don't really know much about it (myself included). I'd like to put together a menu with pairings that will allow us to sample a variety of different wines and have the food accentuate specific notes in the wine (which we might otherwise miss). Here's some ideas I've had so far:

-olivade and baguette

-cherry and homemade tuscan salami skewers (sicilian cab?)

-fennel stuffed rabbit wrapped in pancetta

-some sort of braised dish (lamb shanks or shortribs)

-cheese course (I was thinking 2-3 blue cheeses that would interact with 1 wine in various ways)

-trio of sorbets (some sort of tropical flavours) (NZ sauvignon blanc?)

Am I being to literal (I basically just looked at some tasting notes and chose dishes that contained those flavours )? General wine suggestions (keeping in mind that I'm limited to the Kingston LCBO)? Thanks, and I apologize for the generality of this post, it's still a bit fuzzy in my brain.

[Brad Ballinger]

Oky, all of you out there in eG land who've been blustering about being "too matchy" (or not) or about challenging food and wine pairing lore, tradition, or conventional wisdom, here's your opportunity to put your philosophies into action. . .

Keep in mind two points Martin mentions -- 1) his guests are people who enjoy wine but don't know much about it, and 2) he's limited to whatever the Kingston, Ontario, LCBO decides to stock.

[Craig Camp]

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to organize a wine-tasting/dinner party and need some help. The crowd is basically people that enjoy wine, but don't really know much about it (myself included). I'd like to put together a menu with pairings that will allow us to sample a variety of different wines and have the food accentuate specific notes in the wine (which we might otherwise miss). Here's some ideas I've had so far:

-olivade and baguette

-cherry and homemade tuscan salami skewers (sicilian cab?)

-fennel stuffed rabbit wrapped in pancetta

-some sort of braised dish (lamb shanks or shortribs)

-cheese course (I was thinking 2-3 blue cheeses that would interact with 1 wine in various ways)

-trio of sorbets (some sort of tropical flavours)  (NZ sauvignon blanc?)

Am I being to literal (I basically just looked at some tasting notes and chose dishes that contained those flavours  )? General wine suggestions (keeping in mind that I'm limited to the Kingston LCBO)? Thanks, and I apologize for the generality of this post, it's still a bit fuzzy in my brain.

←

Please, please no Sicilian cab. Not now, not ever.

You would want a natural flow from the starting wine to the finish, so serving a NZ sauvignon at the end would be jarring.

Start with a Prosecco with and then go to a flight of several Tuscan reds to go with both the Salami and Rabbit. Nothing spoils a good red like blue cheese, so go to something sweet - a Vin Santo if you want to keep the Tuscan theme. I would enjoy the sorbetti on their own merits sans wine.

[DTBarton]

I'm at a disadvantage with respect to knowing what's available at the store in Kingston Ontario. I always like, when having a wine tasting party with folks who are interested, but not big time winos, to stick with varietal wines so people get to taste the different grapes. Here's a few ideas if you don't want to do the all Tuscan route.

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to organize a wine-tasting/dinner party and need some help. The crowd is basically people that enjoy wine, but don't really know much about it (myself included). I'd like to put together a menu with pairings that will allow us to sample a variety of different wines and have the food accentuate specific notes in the wine (which we might otherwise miss). Here's some ideas I've had so far:

-olivade and baguette

A light bodied Rioja from Spain, to taste the Tempranillo grape.

-cherry and homemade tuscan salami skewers (sicilian cab?)

Either a Sangiovese or a mostly Sangiovese based Chianti (most of them are).

-fennel stuffed rabbit wrapped in pancetta

That sounds really good. Pinot Noir (American or a French Burgundy)

-some sort of braised dish (lamb shanks or shortribs)

Cabernet Sauvignon, but stay away from tomatoes in the braising mixture.

-cheese course (I was thinking 2-3 blue cheeses that would interact with 1 wine in various ways)

Tough match. Maybe a nice medium sweet Vouvray to try the Chenin Blanc grape?

-trio of sorbets (some sort of tropical flavours) (NZ sauvignon blanc?)

Agree with maybe no wine here. Folks might be ready for coffee! Have fun!

Am I being to literal (I basically just looked at some tasting notes and chose dishes that contained those flavours )? General wine suggestions (keeping in mind that I'm limited to the Kingston LCBO)? Thanks, and I apologize for the generality of this post, it's still a bit fuzzy in my brain.

←

[/quote

[LOS]

Oky, all of you out there in eG land who've been blustering about being "too matchy" (or not) or about challenging food and wine pairing lore, tradition, or conventional wisdom, here's your opportunity to put your philosophies into action. . .

Actually, the requirements spec ("sample a variety of different wines") pretty much biases this against the one-wine-fits-all side. In any case, having some idea of the budget would help as well. In any case, here goes:

With the olivade + baguette: the assertiveness of the ingredients will run over a finesse wine and calls for a fresh, palate-cleansing wine, like a Falanghina or Fiano di Avellino or other white wine from Campania. Or Prosecco. Txakolina from the Basque region, with its little bit of fizz, would be perfect.

Cherry + salami skewers: the sugar in the cherries can create problems with many wines. With very sweet cherries, a Ripasso di Valpolicella. With any other cherries, a Chianti. With the Ripasso, you'll want a palate cleanser before the next course, maybe a small serving of one of the sorbets.

Fennel stuffed rabbit: again a very assertive dish with the fennel. I'd do a Barbera from Piedmont, or an Aglianico from Campania or a Portugese red from the Dao/Douro.

Braised Lamb: The classic with lamb is Bordeaux, but a heavy sauce will kill a classically styled Bordeaux. In that case, a modernish Bordeaux or Rioja -- or a Rhone from St Joseph, Cote-Rotie, or Hermitage --- even Cornas or Gigondas or Chateauneuf-du-Pape if the sauce is quite heavy. For a lighter sauce, a traditional Rioja is a good alternative to Bordeaux.

Braised Short Ribs: A gutsy wine, like a Rhone from the south (Cotes du Rhone, Gigondas, Chateauneuf) or another wine from the south of France (Minervois etc) or a Spanish Ribero del Duero.

Cheese course: I love doing Cambazola, Gorgonzola, Roquefort drizzled with a *small* touch of honey and a Coteaux du Layon or similar desert wine (like a lighter Vin Santo).

Sorbets: I agree with Craig here, no wine at all.

Edited January 9, 2007 by LOS (log)

[Craig Camp]

Txakolina from the Basque region, with its little bit of fizz, would be perfect. 

Yes!!

Edited January 9, 2007 by Craig Camp (log)

[Mallet]

Thanks for the suggestions, I appreciate the help! I've bought three wines so far, based on the advice here and elsewhere. Prices in canadian dollars

Montalto 2003 Nero D'Avolo and Cabernet blend (Sicily) $8.95

I was thinking as serving this with the tuscan salami and cherries skewers. I've had this wine before and really enjoyed it, and I could readily discern cherry/blackcurrant notes. It also had a really nice and long finish.

Ricasoli Brolio 2004 Chianti Classico (Tuscany) $23.90

This will likely be served with the lamb shanks (the recipe itself calls for some chianti)

Amalia Brut Sparkling Wine (Greece) $24.95

This wine, made from moscophilero grapes, is described as being floral and muscat-like. Although most people on this thread suggested not serving wine with the sorbets, I thought this might be light and refreshing enough to make a good match.

I think a white wine would be nice to start off, is there anything that would go with the olivade?

LOS, I was hoping to keep the average price per bottle to about $20-25 per bottle. Having the Montalto there means I can splurge on a more expensive wine (bordeaux, amarone, barolo, barbera ?), probably for the rabbit.

Reading my fennel/bacon/rabbit recipe more closely, I see that it calls for 3/4 cup white wine in the pot-roasting liquid. Will this cause problems with pairing with a red wine? If not, it would be convenient if the same white as the first course could be used here as well.

Edited January 9, 2007 by Mallet (log)

[Mallet]

Txakolina from the Basque region, with its little bit of fizz, would be perfect. 

Yes!!

←

unfortunately, I was unable to find this wine.

[Mallet]

LOS, I did some more research and both

MONTESOLAE FIANO DI AVELLINO 2005 (16.95)

ATTORIA LA RIVOLTA FALANGHINA 2004 ($14.45)

are available at my local LCBO, so they are definitely an option

[Mallet]

Ok, so here's what I'm thinking: how does this look?

olivade and baguette

Attoria La Rivolta Falanghina 2004 ($14.45)

cherry and homemade tuscan salami skewers

Montalto 2003 Nero D'Avolo and Cabernet blend ($8.95)

fennel stuffed rabbit wrapped in pancetta

Fontanafredda 2000 Barolo ($29.90)

chianti-braised lamb shanks

Ricasoli Brolio 2004 Chianti Classico ($23.90)

cheese course (gorgonzola, reggiano, pecorino toscano)

Masi 2001 Costasera Amarone ($35.05)

sorbet trio

Amalia Brut Sparkling Wine ($24.95)

[LOS]

LOS, I did some more research and both

MONTESOLAE FIANO DI AVELLINO 2005 (16.95)

ATTORIA LA RIVOLTA FALANGHINA 2004 ($14.45)

are available at my local LCBO, so they are definitely an option

←

I don't recall having had either of those in particular, so I'm no help there.

Moving your rabbit course in front of the salami course and serving a white with it is certainly an option, given the sauce. The spicy fennel is still an issue; a german gewurztraminer might work nicely if the sauce is not too rich.

I looked at the LCBO Vintages catalog online and none of the Barberas there struck me, other than the very expensive ones from Spinetta, but I wasn't familiar with all of them. I really like the Barberas from Giacomo Conterno, G.D. Vajra, Bruno Giacosa, if you can find one of those.

[Brad Ballinger]

Ok, so here's what I'm thinking: how does this look?

olivade and baguette

Attoria La Rivolta Falanghina 2004 ($14.45)

cherry and homemade tuscan salami skewers

Montalto 2003 Nero D'Avolo and Cabernet blend ($8.95)

fennel stuffed rabbit wrapped in pancetta

Fontanafredda 2000 Barolo ($29.90)

chianti-braised lamb shanks

Ricasoli Brolio 2004 Chianti Classico ($23.90)

cheese course (gorgonzola, reggiano, pecorino toscano)

Masi 2001 Costasera Amarone ($35.05)

sorbet trio

Amalia Brut Sparkling Wine ($24.95)

←

Looks fine. But I'd do a Moscato d'Asti with the sorbets instead.

[Mallet]

Looks fine.  But I'd do a Moscato d'Asti with the sorbets instead.

I couldn't find one in Kingston, but I am hoping the moscophilero will come pretty close.

[Mallet]

We (finally) found the time to have people over yesterday, it was a great success. I unfortunately didn't take any pictures but I thought I would comment on some of the dishes. Keep in mind that most of us were total wine beginners, so some of the comments might not go beyond 'tasty' .

Attoria La Rivolta Falanghina 2004

olivade (greek yogurt, chopped olives, shallots, capers, herbs) and toasted baguette

This wine had refreshing (and obvious) apple and citrus flavors that worked really well with the dish.

Orvieto Classico 2006

salt cod fritters with tomato confit and fried sage (from Bouchon)

This one was really different from the Falanghina, with a more mineral flavour that matched the saltiness of the cod quite well. Overall I thought this was one of the better pairings.

Montalto 2003 Nero D'Avolo and Cabernet blend

tuscan salami and grape skewers

I was supposed to serve this with cherries but they were nowhere to be found in Kingston (I guess they're ridiculously out of season). Still worked well though, the salami was quite strong and both the grapes and the wine rounded out the flavours without clashing.

Ricasoli Brolio 2004 Chianti Classico

pork trotters with sauce gribiche (also from Bouchon)

This was probably my favourite wine of the evening: really strong blackberry/cassis nose (maybe even leather?) and incredibly rich, with a long finish. I'd love to see what a few extra years would do. Nothing particularly stood out about the pairing, but both dishes were excellent and I suppose non-interference counts!

Fontanafredda 2000 Barolo

confit lamb shanks with warm lentil salad

A bit of a disapointment after the chianti, it didn't seem to hold up to the earthy flavours of the dish. I'm glad I stayed away from tomatoes with the lamb (thanks for the suggestion!), because it would have wreaked havoc. In retrospect, this may have paired better with the previous dish. This was the first wine we decanted, maybe we didn't leave it in long enough (~45 min)?

Masi 2003 Costasera Amarone

gorgonzola, pecorino pepato, asiago

One of the best noses of the night, with cherry being the most obvious note. Good sweetness and alcohol balance, also this wine taught be about tannins (the other ones were not very tannic at all). I couldn't help but think it needed a few more years.

Amalia Brut Moscophilero

apricot, raspberry, and blackberry sorbets

Honestly, I was kind of satiated by this point, so I was happy to end on a refreshing note. I made the sorbets with liquid nitrogen beforehand because I don't have an icecream maker. I made all three sorbets in under 30min!

Overall a great learning experience, and everybody had fun. Thanks to everyone who offered advice!

Edited March 12, 2007 by Mallet (log)

[Rebel Rose]

Great notes, mallet. Thanks for posting.