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Wines featured in today’s show:

• Helfrich Riesling 2007  (~$13)
• Helfrich Pinot Gris 2007  (~$13)
• Helfrich Gewurztraminer 2007  (~$13)

Show notes from the Producer:

• Special thanks to the people at Helfrich and their PR firm of Folsom & Associates (cheers Sam!) for providing the Riesling and Gewurztraminer for the show.
• To find out more about the Alsace region of France, you can watch our previous episode called “Alsace My Love“, or read about it here on Wikipedia.
• And to explore the wonders of Gewurztraminer, check out our “The Magic of the Lychee” episode.

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

• What to pair with these intensely flavored and fruity whites?  Let’s start with the Riesling.    Asian foods usually work well.  Red curry with shrimp would be STELLAR.
• For the Pinot Gris, you should try it with grilled pork tenderloin.  Take note of the weight of the dish and the smokiness that comes out of the wine.
• And finally, the Gewurztraminer.   Oh…here you go: Chilean sea bass.   I dig this recipe.  Way easy to make, and I like that they mention the role of the fish oils and dense flakiness.  Combine those attributes with the Cajun seasoning and the whole deal served with an Alsace Gewurztraminer, and you got yourself a Helfrich of a dish!

Region:

Tavel district of the Rhône Valley, France

Nose:

Not terribly aromatic.  There are vague cranberry and cherry notes along with a slight leafiness…kind of like a few too many strawberry leaves got mixed into fruit salad.

Palate:

Medium bodied but very mouth-filling.   Dry, better than moderate acid, well structured.  It really holds together in the mouth.  “Tightly wound” as we like to say.  Strawberry, raspberry, cloves or cinnamon stretch throughout the mid-palate.  Long, lingering finish.

Synopsis:

Tavel is the only appellation in the Rhône Valley that only does Rosé wines.  They are based on the usual Rhône suspects; a blend of  Grenache and Clairette.

I’ve probably had Rosés with more of a “wow” factor, or ones that have a distinct pop of flavor, but for all around beauty and solidness this is right up there.  Great balance and confidence here.  This must be a winemaker that has a strong opinion of what good Rosé should do and is intent on sharing that vision with us.  Just lovely wine.

The Som Rating: 8/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Wines featured in today’s show:

• Domaine Ehrhart Riesling Vieilles Vignes 2006  (~$19)
• Domaine Hering Pinot Gris 2006 (~$21)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

Alsace is one of my favorite wine regions for a few reasons.  The relative obscurity help keep the price of these great wines low when compared to the classic wines of other regions.  The growing conditions are unique and favorable to perfectly ripe grapes.  The resulting wines are very food friendly.

As we discuss in the show, these are grape vines that are grown in the foothills on the east side of the Vosge mountain range.  The soils are thin and mineral rich and the best vineyards are very steep and south-south east facing allowing every vine to get hit with the sun.  Due to the rain-shadow effect of the mountain range rain fall here is low and large rainfalls hitting just before harvest is rare at best resulting in damn near perfect wine grapes almost every year.

• The foods of Alsace tend toward the rich and hearty.  Fois gras, quiche Lorraine, or onion tarts are all in play, but I thought for our food pairing this week we might shoot for something you may actually make tonight.  I made this rib recipe last week and was impressed by the ease of the dish and the heat from the salsa, but the cool acidity of the cranberries and orange zest balance it all out.  Add in an Alsacian Pinot Gris and you have a fruity beverage that should really play well with the spicy fruit baked into the pork ribs.  One word of caution:  The pork will dry out quickly so don’t let it go any longer than it needs.

Featured in today’s show:

• Renacer Punto Final Malbec 2007 from Argentina (~$13)
• Clos La Coutale Cahors (Malbec) 2006 from France (~$17)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

• OK kids, I’m not going to pretend this is something I make everyday, but I can guarantee you that come spring this is on my short list of things to try.  One of the things I really enjoy doing is coming up with recipes that I think will work really well with some of the wines Bovee and I discuss.  This is recipe for duck is not for the beginner, but the only part of the preparation I really was concerned about was the walnut oil.  I’ve never went looking for walnut oil, but I have to believe that any international market or upscale grocery store should carry it.   Anyway, if you’re going to try to make this, the walnut oil may be the least of your worries.  Though the Punto Final would work, this recipe is geared towards the Clos La Coutale.  In the business we refer to this a “regional pairing.”  Drink the wine of the region with a classic dish of the region.  Here in Minnesota, we might enjoy a walleye sandwich with a Summit EPA, and frankly I’m not sure if anything sounds better.  In southwest France, you have a garlic and walnut duck breast paired with a rich and smooth wine of the same region.  Bon appetite!

Show Note from the Producer:

Please don’t freak out…it was a toy gun.   I’m just glad he didn’t bring his lightsaber.

Featured in today’s show:

• 2007 Chateau Beauchene Côtes du Rhône Viognier (~$16)
• 2003 Taurino Salice Salentino Riserva (~$13)
• 2007 Hey Mambo Sultry Red (~$10)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

As I mentioned in the show, I really enjoy Viogniers with soup…especially cream based soups.  They tend to be fuller in body, full flavor, decent acidity, and higher alcohol levels (not to mention a gorgeous floral nose).  Why?  Full body to stand up to the heavier soup, good acidity to cut through the heaviness of the cream, and full flavor so it does not get lost in the layers of flavor a good soup should have.  Here is a Potato-Bean soup I would gladly enjoy with this Côtes du Rhône Viognier.  A moderately oaked Chardonnay would work nicely too.

Recipe for Potato-Bean Soup:

• 2 medium carrots, shredded
• ½ cup sliced celery
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon margarine or butter
• 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 3 cups cubed, peeled potatoes
• 2 Tablespoons snipped fresh dill 2 teaspoons dried dillweed
• 1 15oz can cannelinni beans or Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
• ½ cup sour cream or plain non-fat yogurt
• 1 Tablespoon flour
• Pepper and salt

In a large saucepan cook and stir carrots, celery and garlic in hot margarine or butter over medium heat for 4 minutes or till tender.  Carefully stir in Chicken broth, potatoes and dill.  Bring to boiling.  Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or till potatoes are tender.  With the back of a spoon lightly mash about half of the potatoes in the broth.  Stir the beans into the potato mixture.

In a small mixing bowl stir together the sour cream or yogurt, flour, pinch of pepper and if desired, salt; stir into potato mixture.  Cook and stir until thick and bubbly.  Cook and stir for 1 minute more.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Nose:

Sweet ripe berries and a little cola and coffee.

Palate:

Full bodied with bright, fresh acidity.  Really crisp cherry cola notes with a little chocolate, strawberries and cherry wrapped up in a subtle vanilla robe.  LONG cherry menthol finish.

Very delicate and refined, in fact, it almost wishes it were a Pinot Noir.  A lot of layers here and much to contemplate.  I may have found a new favorite.

The Som Rating: 8/10 Scarlett Johansson Heads

Featured in today’s show:

• 2006 Domaine du Trapiadis Côtes du Rhône
• 2005 Domaine Sainte-Anne Côtes du Rhône Villages
• Domaine de Cassan Gigondas
• 2005 Château Boucarut Lirac
• 2005 Domaine Bois De Boursan Chateauneuf-du-Pape

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

• The Côtes du Rhône wine is  more medium bodied with fairly simple flavors, but it does have good fruit, is slightly dry, and has very good acidity.  I proclaim the 2006 Domaine du Trapadis a great grilling hamburgers wine!  No recipe needed here.  If you can’t grill a hamburger, then you probably prefer Seagrams anyway, and in which case we at WineGeekTV pity you.

• For the Château Boucarut Lirac,  few things would go well with a simply prepared rack of lamb as a grenache/syrah based Rhône…especially when you find one as full flavored and nuanced as this Lirac.  Lamb is rich, naturally flavorful,  and when cooked right, can be incredibly juicy with tantalizing texture.  This recipe pairs a great wine with a simply prepared lamb rack brushed with a killer mint pesto sauce.   This pairing matches richness to richness,  herbiness to herbiness, and seasoned meat flavors with the seasoned meatiness that is a wine from Lirac.

Ever get invited to a holiday or wine tasting party and need to bring the hosts a gift…but have NO idea what to bring them?   Well, this is the episode for you!   The Som gives you 10 great wine suggestions to give your party hosts.

Featured in today’s show:

• L’Ecole No 41 Recess Red from Columbia Valley in Washington
• 2006 Hey Mambo “sultry red” blend from Don Sabastiani & Sons in Sonoma, California
• Vollereaux Champagne from northern France
• Chateau d’Orignac’s Pineau Des Charentes from just north of the Bordeaux region of France
• 2005 Côtes-du-Rhône from Chateau Beauchene from, again, France
• Bosquet Des Papes’ Chateauneuf du Pape from, no surprise, the Rhône Valley of  France
• Gigondas from Domaine De Cassan from….what do you know…, the Rhône Valley (see any themes developing here?)
• Quady’s Essensia late harvest Orange Muscat from Madera, California
• R.L. Buller & Sons Tokay from Victoria, Australia
• Quinta do Noval 10 Year Tawny (nummy!!) from Portugal

Recommended food pairings from the Som:

• I think the marinade on this chicken sounds great and very easy.  Pounding out the chicken breasts seems unnecessary to me but try it both ways and let me know.  Anyway, the L’Ecole 41 Recess Red should soar with this dish.  Mild but flavorful chicken with a subtle kick of smoke from the grill and heat from the chili powder I believe would meld wonderfully with the L’Ecole’s red fruit, chocolate and just enough acidity to make it food friendly.
• Honestly, almost any quiche recipe would work great with the Vollereaux Champagne, but I really like the brown mustard idea in this one.  New Years Day brunch anyone?  Egg and cheese recipes need a wine with a great zip to clear the pallet of that thick, mouth coating conglomeration in your mouth and nothing works better than a great sparkling wine.  What better way to start your year that with quiche and Champagne!
• Enjoy the Pineau Des Charentes with conversation as an aperitif including strong cheeses (ya know, pungent-blue veined types) and assorted nuts.  Or have it as an after dinner drink to aid digestion…along with a cigar and (if necessary) unbuttoned pants.

Thanksgiving Dinner Wines

With the holiday upon us, we thought it prudent to suggest a couple good wines to pair with your feast!

Quick Show Note:

We were testing some new microphones. They really helped with the sound issues we were having, but they were highly sensitive and picking up sounds we normally wouldn’t wish to share (gulping and such). They were also picking up on some interference as well, so sorry for any static you may pick up on in the show audio. We’ll be working on perfecting our sound in the coming shows.

Featured in today’s show:

• 2007 Casillero del Diablo Reserve Gewurztraminer from Chile
• La Madone Gamay sur Vulcan from Cotes du Forez in France (sorry…couldn’t find a website for them)
• 2007 Ventisquero Pinot Noir from the Casablanca Valley in Chile

Recommended food pairings:

Thanksgiving is not the time for subtlety in wine. There is zero subtlety in a Thanksgiving dinner and the wine needs to mirror that. Thanksgiving is one of the few times you need to think about what is on the plate as a whole. There are too many flavors and too many styles to match a dish to one specific item. A “wine that goes with turkey” does not cut it.

• One of the first food and wine pairing rules is match the “weight “of the food with the wine beverage of your choice. It’s like drinking a glass of water with beef stew, or drinking a Porto with your Chef’s Salad…neither of which is very appealing.
• Thanksgiving dinner has a tendency to be on the salty side. High tannin wines (Cabernet, Syrah, Tannat, high end Petite Sirah, Nebbiolo,) can make saltier food and the wine taste bitter. Stick to fruity, full flavored, low tannin red wines like a Gamay (Beaujolais), a California Pinot Noir, or maybe a lower alcohol (13-14.5%) Zinfandel or Dolcetto. For whites, think about a full bodied, slightly sweet grape like a Gewürztraminer or Riesling, especially from the Alsace region of France, or a moderately oaked California Chardonnay.

What am I going to serve with MY Thanksgiving dinner, you ask?

• Chateau Valmer Vouvray: a full bodied, slightly sweet Chenin Blanc from the Loire region of France
• Firestone Santa Rita Valley Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara (nummy)

Here’s some great tips and techniques for preparing your bird.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Som

Featured in today’s show:

• Louis Latour Pouilly-Vinzelles unoaked Chardonnay from the Maconnais region of France
• Paul Zinck Eichberg Gewürztraminer from the Alsace region of France

Recommended food pairings:

• The Pouilly-Fuissé is a great match for seafood. Scallops provenical would be perfect.