Matching Food and Wine

24 August 2011

Copyright © Brian Jamieson

Ground rules

Guiding principles: delicate flavoured food =

delicate wine fuller-flavoured food = fuller-

flavoured wine Don’t be a slave to conventional

rules Personal preferences are the most

important to establish

The enemies of wine Be aware of the enemies of wine:

Citric Acidparticularly grapefruit/lemon/limes

Vinegarvinaigrette, mint sauces

Salttry sweeter, fruitier and sometimes fortified wines

Eggssulphur in yolks; taste-bud blocker

Cynaninmetallic taste in fennel, globe artichokes

Enemies of wine (cont’d) Chilli/Curries

drink beer! Oily fish

i.e. mackerel, needs more acidic wine Milder spices

i.e. coriander/ginger: match with Gewürztraminer

Chocolatepalate blocker, but can be offset by

fortified/dessert wines although some prefer shiraz, merlot or even doux champagne!

Ice cream and sorbetsespecially strong fruit flavours

A virtual menu!

Appetizers and startersCheeseDessert

Fish and meat courses left to your imagination!

Touraine (Central Loire)

Benchmark white

La Coulée d’Argent, Bourillon Dorléans, Vouvray Sec AOC

Touraine in Central Loire Chenin Blanc Produced by Bourillon-Dorléans family

since 1921 Maturated in 15th C troglodyte caves

Troglodyte cellars in Touraine

Tasting notes

Colour - pale greenish straw. Aroma – subtle aromas of acacia,

flowers and minerals Taste – top fruit - pears and quince;

quite acid. Drink with oily fish or white meat or hard

cheeses like Comté or Beaufort

Benchmark redLes Cent Boisselées, P J Druet, Bourgueil AOC, 2003

Touraine in Central Loire Druet is one of the Bourgeuil's stars Cabernet Franc Un-oaked: stainless steel fermentation,

then bottled direct after 24-36 months Bottle age important

Pierre Jacques Druet

Tasting notes Aroma: Full of red berry fruits,

smoky blackberries, with wisps of strawberry liquorice

Taste: Full, and quite precise on the palate, sappy and firm, with a little texture overlying a smoky tannic structure.

Enjoy with red meats.

Matching food and wine: starters

Appetizer

Iberico Hamwith

Hildago Bodegas, La Gitana, Manzanilla Sherry

Sherry Essential features

Three grapes: Moscatel, Palomino & Pedro Ximenez (PX)

Oxidised fermentation Natural yeast creates Flor during fermentation to

produce Fino or Oloroso styles Fortification (alcohol and grape spirit) and maturation Fractional blending, sweetening, in soleras

Produces a huge range of styles

Sherry types Fino stock

Fino Manzanilla

Olorsoso stock Oloroso Amontillado Cream (Pale & Dark) Pedro Ximenez (PX)

Still on appetizers

Prawnswith

Pouilly-Fumé

Pouilly-Fumé

Les Griottes, J-P Bailly, Pouilly Fumé AOC, 2010

Upper Loire, near Sancerre. Sauvignon Blanc More mineral (flinty?) than fruity. Contrast with fruity, vegetal New Zealand

Sauvignon Blancs.

Pouilly-Fumé

Another starter

Paté de Foie Graswith

Clos Guirouilh, Jurançon

JurançonClos Guirouilh, AOC Jurançon 2007

Near Pau in SW France Jean Guirouilh: a small producer (6 ha) who

gave up livestock farming to concentrate on his vines and wine

Made from dehydrated, shrivelled Petit and Gros Manseng

Traditional local grape ~90 g per l residual sugar Classic accompaniment for blue cheese and

foie gras.

Tasting notes At the lighter end of the sweet wine scale. Reminiscent of waxy almond kernels and

blossom cut through with just-sliced oranges. The perfume is gently honeyed yet doesn't

cloy at all.

Matching food and wine: Fish & Meat

Possible matchesFish

Cod, Sole, Turbot Chenin BlancIn richer sauces Montrachet, G’traminerSalmon/Sea Trout Riesling, ViognierTuna Viognier

MeatLamb Burgundy (Pinot noir)Beef Burgundy or ClaretPork BrunelloVenison Côte Rotie or ShirazGame Shiraz (blends)Casseroles/stews Rhone blends (spicy)

Matching food and wine: cheese

Some cheese matches

Cheddar, Gruyère ChardonnaysStilton Vintage PortMunster Red burgundyRoquefort Sauternes, Montbazillac

Pont Levèque Bourgeuil (Loire)Comté Sauvignon blanc, Savagnin

(Jura)

Cheese

Roquefortwith

Chateau Castelnau de Suduiraut 2003, Sauternes

Bordeaux wine areas

SauternesCastelnau de Suduiraut, Sauternes AOC, 2003

A property between Bordeaux and the Atlantic Autumns characterised by misty morning sand

sunny days, encouraging Botrytis or Noble rot. Second wine of Cru Classée Chateau Suduiraut Semillon 90%, Sauvignon Blanc 10%. Elegant, sweet, full-bodied with a long life-

expectancy. Aged in oak for 12 months

Botrytis mould

‘Noble rot’

Tasting notes

Yellow- golden colour depending on age. Citrus rind and tropical fruits up-front in

younger vintages. With ageing, wines become darker and

crystallised fruits, acacia and honey aromas and flavours come through.

Should have the perfect balance between acidity, sweetness and alcohol.

Matching food and wine: Pudding

Variety of sweet winesIce creams Liqueur MuscatFruit flans SauternesTiramasu Vino SantoChristmas Pudding PassitoPanna cotta BeerenausleseCreme Brulée Muscat de Beaumes de

VeniseBread & Butter Pudding Coteaux du LayonCheesecake TokajiChocolate Asti Spumante, Liqueur

Muscat

Pudding

Chocolatewith

Alcyone Tannat Dessert Wine

Alcyone Tannat Dessert Wine Vinedo de Los Vientos Winery, Uruguay A purple fortified wine made from 100% Tannat.

Late harvested grapes Fermentation stopped by addition of grape spirit

Boosts alcohol to 16% Preserves residual sugar

A secret proprietary blend of herbs is also added to the fermenting wine.

Aged for several years in French oak Wine maker: Pablo Fallabrino Divine with chocolate; pour over vanilla ice-cream.

Pablo FallabrinoRockstarSurferWinemaker

Alcyone Tannat Dessert Wine

The Alcyone is made with Italian techniques from Marsala that I took from the old books of my family to do liqueurs. I invented the Alcyone Reserve... fortified with grappa, it's a bomb!

Pablo Fallabrino

Tasting Notes Radiant yet amber purple hue and its honey like

texture. Touched with a bouquet of winter flowers, Madagascan

vanilla bean and wild apple mint indulged with a warmth and savour of white cacao soufflé.

Savoury and longsome finish. ‘Think of marshmallows with vanilla, milk chocolate and

then glimpses of red cherry and fig lurking in the background.’

Today’s wines1. La Coulée d’Argent, Bourillon Dorléans, Vouvray Sec AOC,

2009 £8.49 M

2. Les Cent Boisselées, P J Druet, Bourgueil AOC, 2003£8.99 M

3. Bodegas Hildago, La Gitana, Manzanilla £8.99 M

4. Les Griottes, J-P Bailly, Pouilly-Fumé AOC, 2010£12.99

M 5. Clos Guirouilh, Jurançon AOC, 2006 (0.37 l) £8.90 CD 6. Castelnau de Suduiraut, Sauternes AOC, 2003 (0.37 l)

£11.99 M

7. Alcyone Tannat Dessert Wine, Vinedo de los Vientos, Uruguay (0.5 l) £19.00 WoU

M Majestic CD Confit Direct WoU Wines of Uruguay

Have you remembered? Red wine and white wine

production.

What is wine? Water 85% Alcohol

12% Glycerol 1% Everything else 1 – 1.5%

Range & diversity Grape variety Vineyard Environment; French

Terroir Climate Soil Husbandry Harvest

Winemaking processes Storing/ageing

Tasting 1. Look - colour

Red: Purple > Garnet > Ebony > Brick-red > Orange

White: White/colourless > Straw > Yellow

2. Smell - aroma 3. Taste - palate

Corked wines Causes

natural microbes in/on cork chemical -TCA (2-4-6 Trichloranisole), a

by-product of sterilising corks Signs

musty on nose (test cork); foul in extreme cases

lack of freshness on palate; again can be foul

bitter aftertaste If in doubt, compare with another

bottle (if possible!)

Jancis Robinson DVD Jancis Robinson Wine Course

Amazon.co.uk About £17.00 plus p&p

Finally….

That’s it folks!

Improvers’ Course for all next year.

Thank you