Archive for the ‘Recipes’ Category
A civilized red from the Languedoc
While this made a fine pairing for hanger steak with anchovy, garlic and parsley (recipe after the jump), I couldn’t stop thinking of Patricia Wells’ roasted guinea hen stuffed with finely chopped black olives, shallots, thyme, chicken liver and bacon (see Bistro Cooking for the script).
Languedoc 2012, Campredon, Domaine Alain Chabanon ($27.15, 11909586)
Chabanon is reportedly a disciple of Alain Brumont, not that you’d ever guess it from this wine. A blend of Syrah, Mourvèdre and Grenache (50-30-20 according to some, 60-25-15 according to SAQ.com) from biodynamically and organically farmed vines averaging 23 years old. Manually harvested. Gravity-transferred to stainless steel tanks. Fermentation (with indigenous yeasts) and maceration last five weeks and entail alternating punch-downs and pump-overs. The wine is then pressed in a pneumatic press and matured ten months in stainless steel tanks. Bottled unfiltered and unfined. 12% ABV (!) per the label, 13% per SAQ.com. Quebec agent: A.O.C. & Cie Châteaux et Domaines.
Fresh and fragrant nose of dusty plum and blackberry with hints of dried herbs, licorice, game and old wood. Medium-bodied. The impressively pure, ripe-sweet fruit is soon wrapped in a gossamer astringency and bitterness. Supple tannins frame, soft acidity buoys, mineral and black olive flavours haunt. A dry, long and graceful wine that is savoury to its core. (Buy again? Yes.)
Dido’s ferment
Montsant 2011, Dido, Venus la Universal ($26.85, 11376994)
Organically farmed Grenache (75%), Syrah (15%), Cabernet Sauvignon (5%) and Merlot (5%). Medium-long maceration of the whole grapes. Fermentation with indigenous yeasts. Around 60% of the wine is matured in barrels of various sizes for 16 months, around 40% in concrete tanks and a fraction in clay amphorae. Minimal amounts of sulphur are the only additive. 14.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Importation Épicurienne R.A. Fortin.
Engulfing nose of blackberry and black raspberry, sandalwood spice, turned earth, cigar box, and graphite with a fresh tarragon-like overtone. In the mouth, it’s rich yet elegantly fluid, fruity yet dry, clean and pure at its core. Acidity enlivens while tight, velvety tannins provide backbone and lend an astringency to the long, savoury finish. Cellar for two to five years or carafe an hour before serving, preferably with grilled red meat, braised oxtail or beef stew with red wine and prunes (recipe follows). (Buy again? Def.)
And, yes, the title’s a pun: Dido’s Lament.
Wild thing?
A couple of weeks ago, the Pork Futures guys and I got together for an evening of baby sitting and burger grilling. Among the wines popped and poured was a bottle N had brought back from a recent trip to Greece. It left us scratching our heads. You’ll find our comments below.
Santorini 2012, Assyrtiko by Gaia – Wild Ferment, Gaia Wines (€13.00 in Athens)
100% Assyrtiko from an upland vineyard reputed to produce grapes more aromatic than those from other parts of the island. After pressing, the must is macerated on the skins for 12 hours at 10°C. About half is then transferred to stainless steel tanks and half to new 225-litre barrels (40% French oak, 40% American oak, 10% acacia). Fermentation with ambient yeasts is spontaneous; the tank batch ferments at 16 to 18°C, the barrel batches at 26 to 28°C. After fermentation is complete, selected tanks and barrels are blended and bottled. 13% ABV.
N: “Disjointed at first (website says to decant it for 1/2 hour). Makes no sense why one would oak Assyrtiko. Slightly narrow and linear (also a bit surprising for a wild yeast ferment – maybe the oak tramps it down). Much more agreeable with the potato salad and even the burger.” (Speaking of that potato salad, which truly did make a fine pairing, you’ll find the recipe after the jump.)
A: “Bizarre. Smelled funny. Not banana or butter but something vaguely off-putting. There’s a sourness to the nose, a bit like the drain of my sink. And the oak came off as cheesy. In the mouth, the wine had a unique texture – viscous. Quite nice with food though.”
Me: Ashy nose. Extract-rich but balanced. Honeyed but dry. Unexpected cantaloupe at the back of the palate. Minerals mainly take the form of salinity on the finish. Subdued acidity for a Santorini Assyrtiko. The oak isn’t heavy but seems beside the point. Less crystalline, rounder, smoother, softer-focused and, paradoxically, tamer than my go-to Santorinis like the Hatzidakis. On its own terms, not bad. But not what I’m looking for in an Assyrtiko.
Gaia is represented in Quebec by Le Marchand de Vin. At the Printemps grec tasting in May, one of the agency’s sales reps was pouring the 2013 vintage of the wine, which he implied may be showing up at the SAQ for around $24. My sketchy note reads: “Nose: Mineral, a bit farty, lemon, white grapefruit. Mouth: Clean and snappy. Fruit and white flowers on finish. Only a bit of an acid bite. The wood is discreet. ‘Sweet’ up front but very dry on the finish. Buy again? Maybe.”
Saved by the food
With a few blessed exceptions, South American wines aren’t my cup of tea. But hope springs eternal and every now and then I buy a few bottles for a tasting or my table as a kind of reality check. Which is how I ended up with this new arrival, a popular Argentinean Malbec. One of my issues with these wines is their lack of versatility: what can you serve them with besides a grilled hunk of red meat? Unwilling to dig the barbie out of the snow and brave minus 10 degree temperatures and stuck foraging at the local green grocer, I came up with a stir-fry of beef tenderloin and chorizo that actually did the wine a favour and was fast and tasty enough to make again. You’ll find the recipe after the jump. But first, the vino.
Malbec 2010, Terroir, Valle de Uco, Altos Las Hormigas ($21.25, 12068379)
100% Malbec from several vineyards. Manually harvested. The different lots of grapes are vinified separately. After gentle pressing, the grapes are cold macerated for five days at 10ºC in stainless steel tanks. Alcoholic fermentation (with indigenous yeasts) at 28-30ºC lasts for 12 days with three pump-overs a day and three rack-and-returns. About two-thirds of the wine is matured in French oak barrels. 14.5% ABV.
Strawberry, black raspberry, chocolate, dried herbs, earth and red meat, faint cinnamon and bacon. A sip and the wine shows super ripe and juicy but doesn’t tip over into fruit bomb territory. Why? Well, the initial lollipop fades fast, giving way to earthier, more savoury flavours. Plus it’s not monolithic: the sugar’s held in check, there’s some souring acidity and the tannins, round at first, gain some astringency and grit as the wine wends its way through the mouth. Unfortunately, though the fruit per se isn’t devoid of appeal, the oak starts drawing attention to itself, a sad reality that persists through the flaring, chocolate-kirschy finish. Many, maybe even most, will love this but I found it cloying and inebriating, far from undrinkable but not delivering much pleasure. Something’s not right when you have to rely on the food – and not light food at that – to refresh your palate and rescue the wine. (Buy again? Unlikely.)
Bringing the food to the wine
Had a rib steak in my shopping bag when I happened upon this new arrival. My recipe for bringing the two together is after the jump.
Bandol 2009, Domaine de Souviou ($28.45, 12108377)
100% Mourvèdre. Picked by hand and destemmed. Fermentation takes place at 28 to 30ºC and maceration lasts 15 to 28 days, depending on the vintage. There are two pumpovers and one punchdown a day. The wine is matured in oak barrels. 14% ABV.
Complex aromatics: sun-baked earth, garrigue, pencil shavings, black raspberry, plum, faint new leather and black pepper, hint of kirschy alcohol. On the palate, the wine seems introverted. It’s a silky-textured middleweight, well balanced and finely structured, but the tannins are very tight. Very dry and savoury, not at all fruity. The long, mildly astringent finish has a leather note. Unsmiling when first opened, it smoothed, rounded, deepened and even sweetened with time in a carafe. Still, the rigid tannins indicate it needs a few more years to reach maturity. (Buy again? Sure.)
Unorthodox Greek
I originally intended to pair this wine with a roasted prime rib of beef but, after scoring a taste in an SAQ outlet, opted instead for pan-roasted lamb shoulder, a near perfect match. The recipe came from Marcella Hazan and, to mark her passing earlier today, I’ve included it after the jump.
Nemea 2005, Réserve, Parparoussis ($34.50, 11900493)
100% Agiorgitiko. Manually harvested. Fermentation in stainless steel tanks typically lasts 20 days with up to two weeks’ maceration. Matured in 70% new French oak barrels for 12 months. 13% ABV.
Fascinating, multifaceted bouquet of pomegranate, dried cherry, turned earth, herbs (tarragon?), blood and nut skins. The fruit – sour cherry, above all – is ripe and present but, contrary to expectations, far from dominant. In fact the wine is medium-bodied, supple and quite dry, not to mention savoury, bright with acidity, structured by fine resolved tannins and nuanced by overtones of underbrush and a coppery tang. A caramel thread runs throughout and is joined by faint cocoa husks on the long finish. Surprising in its exoticism but also in its restraint and elegance. Parparoussis studied wine-making in Dijon and, while you wouldn’t mistake this wine for a Burgundy, you can definitely see the influence. (Buy again? Yes.)
It is increasingly clear that the Greek wine scene is one of the most dynamic and exciting on the planet.
Cultured Vulture
Have lately had little time to drink and even less time to write, but I wanted to flag today’s release at the SAQ of a wine I and many others enjoyed last November, when it was available as a private import from oenopole. The intervening nine months have done it nothing but good and, once again, it has proved to be a fantastic match for lamb, this time a stew with vinegar and green beans (recipe after the jump). Quantities appear to be limited, so fast action is advised.
Aglianico del Vulture 2009, Antelio, Camerlengo ($23.35, 11951961)
100% Aglianico from organically farmed 30-year-old vines. Manually harvested in late October and early November. Fermented with native yeasts, macerated 25 days and matured in a 50-hl Slavonian oak botte. Unfiltered and unfined. Lightly sulphured at bottling for stability during transportation. 13% ABV.
Alluring nose: black cherry, graphite, hints of balsam, spice and flowers. Medium-bodied. The silky, sweet-cored fruit is brightened by acidity and velveted by lightly rustic tannins. Chewing brings a tooth-coating astringency and reveals a mineral substrate. The savoury finish lasts longer than you’d expect. A here-and-now wine: not particularly deep but remarkably fresh, pure and satisfying, more so than other Aglianicos in the price range, which often seem coarse, unbalanced and untamed, like gorillas in sports jackets. (Buy again? In multiples.)
Beatus ille
Isabelle Ferrando acquired Domaine Saint-Préfert in the southern Châteauneuf du Pape AOC in 2002. Her 2007 Châteauneuf, one of the few wines I’ve ever called sexy, impressed the hell out of me. She recently began making a Côtes-du-Rhône. Not only does it bear a family resemblance to that CDP, it proved a great match for a grilled bavette seasoned with rosemary and garlic (recipe after the jump).
And in case you’re wondering, beatus ille, Latin for “happy is the man,” is the opening line of Horace’s second Epode, which “praises country life [and] the pristine joys of working one’s own land free from exploitation.”
Côtes du Rhône 2012, Beatus Ille, Domaine Saint-Préfert ($18.90, 11941631)
Grenache (85%) and Cinsault (15%) from 40- to 70-year-old vines grown in La Lionne (on the border of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape AOC in Sorgues commune). The estate has obtained organic certification for the 2013 vintage. Fully destemmed. Matured six months in concrete vats. 14% ABV.
Seductive nose of crushed black raspberry and red cherry, herbes de Provence, faint brick dust and leather and a whiff of kirsch. In the mouth the wine is a silky-textured if heady middleweight. The peppery fruit, splintery tannins, nipping acidity and underlying dryness are wrapped in a gauzy veil of sweetness and glycerine. The long finish – lifted, not heated, by alcohol – leads to a red licorice, red currant jam aftertaste. While there’s nothing Pinot Noirish about it, I kept coming back to the descriptor Burgundian. Proof that Côtes du Rhônes don’t have to be fruit bombs or bruisers. Grenache lovers should make a beeline. (Buy again? Yes.)
MWG April 18th tasting (3/9): Vermentinu times two
Corse Calvi 2011, Clos Culombu ($23.10, 11902114)
The estate is in the process of converting to organic agriculture. 100% Vermentinu (aka Vermentino). Destemmed, crushed and cold-soaked on the skins for several hours, then pressed. Stirred after fermentation. Matured on the fine lees for five months. Lightly fined before bottling. 12.5% ABV. Part of the April 18th Cellier New Arrivals release.
Fragrant: peaches in syrup, quartz, white flowers. Dense and waxy in the mouth, peachy and soft-seeming at first, then turning lemony and harder. Long, mineral-tinged finish with a trenchant, almost fiery streak. Enjoyable but coming across as unpolished, even coarse next to the Faustine. (Buy again? Maybe.)
Ajaccio 2011, Faustine, Domaine Comte Abbatucci ($31.50, 11927792)
The Faustine cuvées are named after the winemaker’s daughter. This white is 100% biodynamically farmed Vermentinu from low-yielding, 40-year-old vines. Manually harvested. Following a brief cold soak, slow-fermented at 18ºC. Reportedly not allowed to undergo malolactic fermentation. Sees only stainless steel. 13% ABV.
Complex nose: “charcoal” in the words of one taster, minerals, lemon, wax, hints of clover blossom, orange peel and maquis. Rich but not heavy, mouth-filling yet elegant. Fine layers of fruit are wrapped around a solid mineral core aglow with acidity. Finishes on a saline note. Savoury, balanced and nuanced, a beautiful wine. What’s more, it’s $5 or $6 less expensive than the private import 2010 was. (Buy again? Absolutely.)
Food pairings? Corsican cheeses (Yannick is the best source in Montreal) and, of course, seafood in simple Mediterranean preparations, like the recipe for striped bass flambéed with thyme and Pernod that you’ll find after the jump.
Recipe for a cheerful marriage
And a mixed marriage at that.
One of the best uses for leftover roast is in a tian, a simple Provençal preparation in which the chopped meat is combined with vegetables, aromatics and white wine and baked in a earthenware dish of the same name (recipe after the jump). I recently made one with the trimmings from our vernal equinox leg of lamb. As a believer in regional parings, I’d normally reach for a lighter-styled Provençal red. Having none on hand, I popped the cork on this: an outlander, yes, but it made a fine match.
IGT Sicilia 2010, Gaio Gaio, Calabretta ($21.90, oenopole, NLA)
100% organically farmed Nerello Mascalese grown on the north slope of Mount Etna. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. Matured in stainless steel and Slavonian oak barrels (neutral, I’d guess). The wine is named after the winemaker’s father, Gaio, which also means cheerful, merry, chipper. 11.5% (!) ABV.
Pale red. Nose of red berries, obsidian dust, dried orange and a umami note (dried porcini mushrooms?). Light and flowing in the mouth, with a caressing texture, singing acidity and soft tannins. The fruit plays sweet over a ground base of dark minerals and finishes on a savoury note. Fresh and pure, a wine that almost drinks itself, a joy. The closest analogue would be one of the lighter Beaujolais crus – a Fleuri, say – except the flavours are more southern, solar, volcanic.
oenopole’s first-ever shipment of Calabretta wines arrived in March and sold out within days. Going by the quality of this bottle, it’s easy to understand why. Those who didn’t get any or enough can try it in local restaurants, hope for a second shipment and keep an eye peeled for the next vintage. Wines like this are why people turn to the private import channel.
Brett happens 