A fortuitous wine/food match

Went in to Howard's for Thanksgiving wine. Planned on drinking red and offering a white as well for guests whose tastes I didn't know. Asked him for an Alsacian riesling at around $15 if possible. He said he could do that, but that I'd do far better in the value-for-money dept. with a German riesling made in the dry style that has become quite fashionable there lately. OK, fine.

Upon opening, I was surprised to find the wine not dry at all, but somewhere between Kabinett and Spatelese level sweetness. Very nice wine, but not turkey wine. Nothing lost. Saved it for another time.

That time came when my wife whipped up a quick, improvised cous-cous the other night: chicken, pistachios, currents, a bit of squash. Madras curry blend from somewhere on Devon provided spice and a bit of heat.

Opened the aforementioned riesling. Perfect. Just, absolutely right for the dish.

For the record: Von Volxem, Saar Riesling. (2001, I believe)
Crisp green apples in the nose, but a touch of peach and apricot in the mouth. Very lively and crisp acid, but enough fruit and sweet not to be at all sour or puckery. Utterly refreshing with the fruit/sweet/heat combination of flavors in the dish.

So, if you'r heading up to Devon, or to Andalous for Moroccan - give it a shot.

Speaking of 2001 German rieslings opened on Thanksgiving, I opened a Markus Molitor Zeltlinger Sonnenuhr, Spatlese to sip while preparing dinner and it was absolutely delightful. And at $18.99 at Binny's, quite a deal. When I returned to the Grand location to pick up another bottle, they were out, but it may still be available at other locations.

Aaron Deacon wrote:Speaking of 2001 German rieslings opened on Thanksgiving, I opened a Markus Molitor Zeltlinger Sonnenuhr, Spatlese to sip while preparing dinner and it was absolutely delightful. And at $18.99 at Binny's, quite a deal. When I returned to the Grand location to pick up another bottle, they were out, but it may still be available at other locations.

That's interesting Aaron, very interesting. I just cannot fathom, me, opening up a $18.99 bottle of wine just to drink while preparing dinner--truth be told, Ms. VI and I take to shots of frozen vodka to steady our nerves when entertaining but that's getting off the subject. My *thing* with wine generally is, it just does not last. I'd love to do what you did, but I find it hard to do.

We rarely finish a bottle of wine when we open it. 9 times out of 10, various factors keep us from getting back to it while it is still fresh. For instance, we might have a nice dinner at home on Monday, with wine. Tuesday, I may have a project that limits evening alcohal intake; Wednesday we are running around with kidz activities and do not have time for anything but Gene and Judes; Thursday is probably work again. Friday, the wine's oxidized or close to it. Even well kept. And that is not even taking into the other thing that bugs me with half-opened bottles of wine, the chill. You go to have dinner, and your merlot is still at the temp of your fridge. All of this bugs me, because I feel like I am wasting money.

So, my hat is really off to you Aaron for the implied pleasure and decadance of your little tipple.

Rob

Rob,

When faced with the delima of having partially finished bottles of wine, the answer for me is to cook something with it.

I'm sure that Molitor is fantastic. But they are a bit pricey. Sadly, I think that Mosel prices have caught up with their intrinsic value over the last decade. Fewer and fewer bargains left. (That said, I believe that that exact bottle was a buck or two cheaper at Sam's last time i looked. I'm not one of the Sam's fanatics by any means, but I'll go anywhere to save a few bucks off the price of a good bottle.)

Re: VI's comments - $18.99 would be pushing the envelope for me too, for a sipping while cooking bottle. I stop at around $12. On the other hand, I have made a somewhat squishy resolve to just relax and drink mo' better wine more often, because when you're a harried parent, the "right" time just doesn't come around enough. So if the $20 bottle winks at me as I'm doing the dinner prep, I just give in. The hell with it.

I've spent the last 5 years or so really exploring the $10 and under bargain stratum. It's been educational and enjoyable. But, there is a certain dimensionality that you just don't get at that price. Big bold tastes, lovely forward fruit, good, happy gulping in a variety of flavors - yes. But long finishes, with evolving layers of flavor - not so much. Sadly this rediscovered yen for drinking at least 1 level up does not square with my resolve to drink more often and will involve the widening of the budget gap, or a significant imbalance of imports and exports from the cellar.

But for the moment at least, I'm a red state oenophile: drink now, pay later, and spur more job growth at the vinyards.

Sorry to have wondered so far afield of a point that was barely in focus to begin with. Wine talk just makes my stream of consciousness overflow the banks.

Happy holidays and good wine to all.

Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2004 6:03 pm Post subject:
Well, twenty bucks is a bit luxurious, but it was Thanksgiving after all, and we had guests and had prepared a nice charcuterie plate (country pate, saucisson l'ail, truffled mousse, cornichons, and a few American artisanal cheeses, nuts, crackers, etc.) for lunch as we prepared an early evening dinner. Heck, I don't usually spend $18.99 on a wine for dinner.

My thoughts very much mirror mrbarolo's:

mrbarolo wrote wrote:I've spent the last 5 years or so really exploring the $10 and under bargain stratum. It's been educational and enjoyable. But, there is a certain dimensionality that you just don't get at that price. Big bold tastes, lovely forward fruit, good, happy gulping in a variety of flavors - yes. But long finishes, with evolving layers of flavor - not so much. Sadly this rediscovered yen for drinking at least 1 level up does not square with my resolve to drink more often and will involve the widening of the budget gap, or a significant imbalance of imports and exports from the cellar.

Except for the cellar part, which doesn't really apply in my case.

Mark, when you say the Molitor is a bit pricey, do you mean simply that $20 is more than you'd typically like to pay, or that you think it's not a good value for that particular bottle relative to other similar wines? I don't know that much about German wines, but I thought that vineyard, vintage, and vintner for $18.99 was a solid bet, and after tasting I thought the value was quite good.

Cheers,

Aaron

Oh, no, I agree with you completely about the wine. By "pricey," I meant only from a purely subjective, personal pocketbook perspective. Marvelous wine, worth every penny if memory serves.

Mais, ou sont les Auslese d'antans? I miss the Mosels of yesteryear -- the Reagan-era strong dollar days. $9.99 vs. $20. Back then you had to go all the way "up" to Bernkasteler-Doktor (J.J. Prum, Dr. Thanisch,), or "Gold Capsule" Egon Muller Scharzhofberger, etc. to hit $20+.

Ah, well. Stop whining and pass the plonk. (Speaking of which, did I mention on the board that "Pastiche" - the self-referentially named rhone-style blend from Phelps (I believe) in CA, is quite nice and avail. at both Sam's and Binny's - under $10 and about $1-$2 less at Sam's, I think.)

mrbarolo wrote:(Speaking of which, did I mention on the board that "Pastiche" - the self-referentially named rhone-style blend from Phelps (I believe) in CA, is quite nice and avail. at both Sam's and Binny's - under $10 and about $1-$2 less at Sam's, I think.)

I don't recall seeing it, but I'll certainly look out for it. Thanks!