Date night with "E" is for Eat!

The Swirl

Tonight's post is the first of many weekly posts "paired" with Jaymee of "E" is for Eat.

This week is "Date Night". Jaymee made prosciutto wrapped garlic roasted almond stuffed dates! Oh, and I almost forgot to mention as if the 'wrapped in prosciutto' wasn't enough, she then brushed with maple butter before she baked them. Yum!

It just so happens that dates are often paired with a Syrah or a Petite Sirah. Here is a GREAT article on the difference of those two! Wine guy and I also happened to visit Napa this weekend and found an amazing Petite Sirah from The Hess Collection, vineyard, museum and winery.

Without further ado, I introduce the...

2008 Hess Allomi Petite Sirah

Here are the technical notes:

BLEND: 100% Petite Sirah
APPELLATION: Napa Valley
COOPERAGE: 18 months barrel aging in 100% old French oak

Enough of the technical jargon!

I found this wine to be amazingly clean and dry. I had a hard time putting my finger on exactly what it tasted like and then the light bulb went off! This wine tasted like a cinnamon graham cracker. Some folks say that Petite Sirahs from California can tend to be peppery, I didn't really taste it but I thought it would really go well with salsa  or anything with cilantro in it. Which makes me wonder, would a cinnamon graham cracker taste good with salsa? Back to date night....

When I started thinking of other things to pair it with I kept wanting something that had a savory but sweet taste. What is more savory and sweet than a prosciutto wrapped date. A date has a ton of natural sugar (you can feel it when you bite into one!) and we all know how I feel about wine and salty foods, in this case the baked prosciutto. The Allomi Petite Sirah would bring out all of the rich, decadence that the date has but not be so overwhelming that you couldn't eat 4 (or 5-- or 6) dates for starters and sit down with the bottle of wine.

It does have a slightly higher retail price $36.00, but can probably be found at beverage warehouses at a smaller price point. It is available at grocery stores.

Overall, this wine was great! It would definitely be appealing to the masses, so throw a party, serve some dates and enjoy all the compliments!

Cheers!
xok

All things that glitter...or bubble.

Not all sparkling wines are created equal- nor are they all called "Champagne".

The one I am sharing with you today is just one of the many that I love!

It is:

Francis Ford Coppola's
Sophia
Blanc de Blanc
86% Pinot Blanc, 12% Muscat, 2% Riesling


Yum. Muscat- can you taste the peaches yet?

Available in bottle form, wrapped in a cute pink bag (boys- girls will love this!), or in can form, yes, can form. Did I mention that the can comes with a straw!

The concept for this wine in a can is inspiring for an event planner like myself.

It is said that when Sophia, FFC's daughter, was getting married, that she wanted an individual size portions to serve to guests at her wedding.

"For years, Champagne and other sparkling wines have been served up in 187 ml bottles (about six ounces, or a quarter of a full bottle) known among wine types as splits. Coppola wanted to sell a split of Sofia, but couldn't find anyone to package it in small bottles with corks of the same quality as their full-sized offering, which has been bottled since at least 1999." -MSNBC, Jon Bonne'


Their answer to this? Put it in cans, make it marketable to the "Sex in the City" crowd. Guess what? It worked.


 You can take cans anywhere where glass isn't allowed, think outdoor concerts and beaches. Ingenious.


What I LOVE about the Blanc de Blancs is that you can add almost anything to it and you still get the crisp flavor of the original wine as well as the liquor or juice. One of my favorite liquors right now is St. Germaine's. You should put it in everything you drink. 


Tasting Notes:
Mellow flavors of apples and pears are topped by a hint of citrus and honeysuckle


My tasting notes:
Slight tastes of the original SweeTarts, especially the citrus flavors
Very crisp
Goes with just about anything
It has a slight "earthy" flavor to it, I am assuming that this is the honeysuckle mentioned above


At a price point of $15-$20. it is an easy sparkling to keep in the fridge. I know I do!


Until next time, keep on tasting!
xok

Now more equipped for this blog...in San Francisco!

It's been a while!

I am back and ready to start this blog up in force!

I have relocated to San Francisco aka Northern California, North America's wine mecca, am now engaged and am a thirty something. Now just feels like the right time.

Since moving to SF, I have discovered that I like white wine and that I LOVE sparkling wines. I am still primarily a red drinker but I don't feel bad when I want a nice chilled crisp white.

I hope to post once or twice a week and make winery/vineyard trips and posts at least once a month.

Once a week you can find me doing "pairings" with Jaymee at http://www.eisforeat.blogspot.com. She has a letter per week- my goal is to find a wine beginning with that letter to pair with her recipe or if at a restaurant, finding a wine that we think will complement our mood or feelings that day (of course staying with the letter of the week!)

I am NOT a sommelier and have no aspirations to be one, but rather to just enjoy wine and make recommendations to the best of my ability.

Let's have fun!