WHINE # 58

Wine Pairing in Virginia: I am not one for buying discount coupons but my good spouse is a fan of "Groupon", "Living Social", etc. Just before we left frigid Nova Scotia for only slightly warmer Alabama Betty bought a coupon for a night at the Lafayette Inn in Stanardsville, Virginia. This included a 10-course tasting dinner with matching wines. As the price was ridiculously low I assumed that the wines would be plonc. WRONG!

The Lafayette Inn was built in 1840 and with the exception of being used as a hospital during the American Civil War it has been an inn ever since. Three other couples were staying at the inn and the eight of us gathered for dinner at 6:00 p.m. sharp. If one includes the Amuse Bouche we actually ate 11 courses, each one interesting and superbly prepared.

I shall not bore you with a description of the entire menu except to say that each course was perfectly paired with a wine from California, Argentina or Virginia. I had not realized that Virginia is the third largest producer of wine (after California and Washington) in the United States. To my surprise the three Virginian wines (two white, one red) that we tasted held up well against the more familiar wines from California and Argentina. The red (Prince Michel Merlot) was more like an "Old World" wine and would not have failed had it been positioned against a French Bordeaux.

Our host (the inn's owner and chef) did two things in his pairings that were most interesting. The very first wine we tasted, a Bandit Pinot Grigio from California (we were told that), was paired with with a delicate corn fritter and was a nice wine with which to begin. It was not until the end of the evening that our host told us that the Bandit was a boxed wine. None of the guests would have suspected.

Perhaps the most interesting wine pairing happened with courses six and seven. A Kenwood Chardonnay was served almost room temperature with the salmon trio (one piece blackened, one served with a dill sauce and one with a wasabi sauce). Then the same Chardonnay was served chilled with a more delicate chicken dish. When served at a warm temperature the oak was very pronunced, allowing the wine to stand up to the strongly flavored salmons. When icy cold the oak was much less pronounced making this a good match for the very mild chicken.

I had always believed that there was one correct temperature to serve a particular wine. Now I have learned that changing the temperature (at least of an oaked Chardonnay) can make it a better or poorer match for a particular food.

NEBBIOLO: Wine contains very complex chemicals and thus the difference from one wine to another can be very subtle. On the other hand much of the differences among wines can be described in terms of four variables. Wines vary in terms of their content of sugar, acid, alcohol and tannins. In terms of taste the sugar content is obvious. More acid gives the wine a "sharp" taste, although allowing subtle flavours to come through. The amount of alcohol determines the viscosity (thickness) of the wine. Finally, the tannins in a wine can be harsh or bitter when the wine is young but impart a smoothness to the wine when well aged. A good tannic wine will give a sense of dryness on the tongue making one almost want to pucker the lips. Tannins also allow a wine to age or cellar helping to bring through any fruit flavours.

When it comes to Italian wines many of us think of their primary characteristic as being high in acid. This is particularly true of the common Italian grapes Sangiovese and Corvina (the main grape in Valpolicella). Obviously these acidic wines match well with the tomato sauces that we love on our pasta dishes.

One Italian grape variety that is largely ignored in North America is Nebbiolo. This grape is grown primarily in Piedmont and the wines from this area are rich not only in acids but heavy in tannins.

The Nebbiolo grape is rarely grown outside Piedmont but it is capable of producing some of the best wine imaginable. Two of the most famous of these wines are BARBARESCO and BAROLO. Of these two Barolo is the more tannic (because of differences in the soils). Also Barbaresco, although pricey, is quite a bit less expensive than Barolo.

Barolo, known for many years as "the King of Wines" is considered to be the very best Italian wine. It has the scent of tar and roses and it is thick and wonderfully tannic. Despite the fact that it is lightly colored it is not a light wine, usually having an alcohol content above 15%.

There are two down-sides to Barolo. First, because of the high level of tannins the wine needs careful aging. Barolo is best when aged about 15 years, whereas Barbaresco needs about 12 years. On the other hand, their cheaper cousin (NEBBIOLO del ALBA) is ready in about 5 years.

Should you have the opportunity to try a bottle of well-aged Barolo you definitely need to pair it with heavier foods. The recommended food pairings include meat dishes, heavy pastas and rich risottos; in other words, foods high in protein.


CELLAR OFFERING # 232:
I have only a few recommendations for this offering. Offering 232 has lots of good Italian wines but they are mostly very expensive. Two less expensive possibilities are 8050, a Negroamaro, and 8091 an Aglianico from Campania. I have not tried this particular wine but on the other hand I have never found an Aglianico (a varietal) that I didn't like. It is a dark, tannic wine for those of you so inclined. Finally, there are three Barolo's in this offering should you have the patience to cellar and the money to spend.