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Wines featured in today’s show:

• 2007 Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel  (~$13)
• 2007 Bogle Petite Sirah  (~$12)
• 2006 Bogle Phantom  (~$20)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

Needless to say Jeff and I are pretty impressed that we made it to episode 40!  It may not seem like a lot to you but 40 shows makes us very happy.  In celebration, we thought we should do something fun and easy.  We are both big fans of Bogle Vineyards.  Why?  It’s family owned since the early 60′s and consistently great wine.  The true imputes of this particular show was the recent release of the highly coveted Bogle Phantom.  Bovee loves it, and I appreciate it.  But doing a ten minute show on one wine is shaky at best, so we threw in the Petite Sirah and O.V. Zin for good measure.

In terms of food pairing, they are all in the same ball park.  Big beefy steaks, Prime rib, BBQ.  In fact I may even recommend that the Phantom stand alone.  Pour it with friends as a pre-out-on-the-town cocktail.  It is rich and fruity enough to stand on it’s own.

Post show note from The Neophyte:

Ok…so yes, the Sommelier was correct.   There’s been five vintages of the Bogle Phantom, the first was in 2002.  I’ve  only been in love with Phantom for the last two years, so I assumed it did not exist before 2005.  Lucky for you, the viewing audience, I stripped the debate Jeff and I had out of the show.  It got a little ugly after I called him a fascist.

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Wines featured in today’s show:

• Martin Ray Angeline Chardonnay 2006  (~$13)
• Ravenswood Vintner’s Blend Zinfandel 2006  (~$11)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

Zinfandel was brought to this country either by early Italian setters or early Croatian settlers.  There is much discussion on where the Zinfandel grape originated.  Speculation is that in came from Italy where the grape is known as Primitivo,  or possibly Croatia where they call it Crljenak Kastelanski.  It does not really matter because the only place where it blows people away is California.  Please see our previous episode on Zinfandel for more info on this great American grape.

I feel like we are beginning to repeat ourselves, but as you may have gleaned from episode  #32, steak works very well with Zin.  Thanksgiving dinner is a wonderful Zin pairing as well, as the meal has lots of flavor components, and a big, juicy, slightly spicy Zinfandel helps everything pop a bit.  It’s the cranberry sauce in a glass.

When wine was trying to re-establish itself after prohibition, the wine-makers and vineyard owners used the great wines of France as a model, and you don’t get any greater than the white wines of Burgundy where the Chardonnay grape is both king and queen.  Fortunately, Chardonnay seems to do quite nicely in the near flawless climate of the Napa Valley.  Add a good measure of new oak barrel to them and bingo…you have your now famous California Chardonnay.  Full bodied, loaded with tropical fruits (like pineapple and banana), and the oak barrel adds a vanilla and coconut tint.  The old school versions of these are not very food friendly as they are so rich they are almost a meal by themselves.   As consumers began to tire of that style, vineyards only used oak to add nuance, and they began picking the grapes slightly before they became over-ripe in order to retain acidity.  Heck, nowadays many see no oak at all, leaving a crisper, juicier version great for summer dining.  These more reserved Chards are very food friendly and can be used for almost anything:  grilled fish, roasted chicken, lobster, crab, or grilled cheese sandwiches.  One key tip I have discoverd: Chardonnay works great with anything having to do with corn or mustard.  Try it and be blown away!

Screaming Blue Meanie Recipe:

• 3 shots any distilled vodka
• 2 shot DeKuyper’s Island Punch Pucker (I went a little light in the show and only did 1)
• 2 shots lemon sour

Mix well with  ice in a martini shaker and serve in a chilled glass.   You can change the measurements above to fit your taste (e.g. add more Pucker to make sweeter).   For the 4th of July, you can serve it with a slice of star fruit, or  a cherry to add a little red to the blue.  Watch out…these go down easy.  Recommend you don’t drive if you drink more than 1 an hour.

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Wines featured in today’s show:

• Colores del Sol Malbec 2008   (~$11)
• Robert Mondavi Solaire Cabernet Sauvignon 2006  (~$16)
• Vino Con Brio Matzin Zinfandel  (~$18)

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

It shouldn’t be hard to figure out what to pair with these wines.   If you’re still struggling, we recommend you don’t compound the issue by drinking alcohol.

When I make steak, I usually prepare it like I did for the show.  I love the touch of heat combined with the caramelized sugar.  They provide great balance and can make even an average cut of meat seem pretty special.

Sprinkle both sides liberally with salt and pepper.  Add a pinch of hot red-pepper flakes to both sides and then sugar.  Don’t be stingy but you also don’t want heaps of white sugar on your meat…believe me.  Drizzle extra virgin olive oil and poke fork holes in the meat to help tenderize and get some of those spices and oil deep inside.  Let it sit at room temp for at least 15 minutes, then throw those babies on the grill for 4 minutes per side over med-high heat.   Remove from the grill, place on a plate, then cover well with aluminum foil for 5 minutes to let those juices flow back into the cooked sections, as well as to let the meet cook just a bit further.   Now you’re ready for one helluva steak!

Interesting part of the Zinfandel-Primitivo saga that we hinted at during the show but did not have time to get into.  There is no record of Primitivo in Italy before Zinfandel in California.  It’s possible that a grape called Plavic Mali from Croatia made it to the east coast of America before making it to the east coast of Italy.   Reason #58 why we love the wine world:  many ancient mysteries and few answers.

Thanks for watching!

Featured in today’s show:

• 2007 LiVeli Orion Primitivo from the Apulia region of Italy
• 2005 Graziano Zinfandel from Mendocino, California

Recommended food pairings from The Som:

• Mr. Bovee brought the remainder of the LiVeli Primitivo home to share with family and friends.  They enjoyed spaghetti pie with the wine and loved every second of it.  I think the mushrooms in this recipe add an earthy note that work great with the slightly earthy edge of the Primitivo.
• Here is a flavorful and fairly simple BBQ ribs recipe that would be pretty great with the Graziano Zinfandel.  One thing to keep in mind with food and wine pairings, and especially with Zinfandel, is that wines that are higher in alcohol (Zin is definitely one) increases the perception of spice.  Example:  Zin and pizza…no good.  Zin and chili…no good.  If you chose to grill some ribs and add some BBQ sauce make sure the sauce is reasonably mild.  If not, choose an inexpensive Petite Sirah or Merlot.  Graziano is a smoother and lower alcohol Zinfandel than most Zins.  That’s why I love it!