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National Wine and Cheese Day: Four Great Pairings to Get You Started

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Disclosure Statement: This post contains affiliate links. When you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, I receive a commission at no additional cost to you. All opinions are my own.

Greetings, readers! Whew, it’s been a minute, hasn’t it? I survived my first spring as a sports mom… hence the unintentional crickets for several months. But I’m missing our wine chats. Now that it’s summer and I’m enjoying life at a slower pace for a while (please God, no tragedies or health issues this summer), I can refocus and get back on here. Because grape gossip is irresistible! 🙂

Today is National Wine and Cheese Day! Special salutations to my fellow enophiles and turophiles (cheeseheads)! It is our day to celebrate two of nature’s most magnificent contributions to the human diet, and to stand in awe of their joint power and beauty. Coincidentally, an especially Happy Birthday to my dear sister today! xoxo

I like to have fun with the many wine holidays out there. There’s even an International Xinomavro Day, if you can believe it (it’s a Greek red wine). Calendar holidays give me some structure to follow when creating blog posts and picking what to post on when. So when I looked at my list of blog drafts and saw National Wine and Cheese Day approaching, I knew this would be a good time to share with you several tried-and-true wine and cheese pairings (and, mainly, to get my butt in gear and do a post already).

Several years back, during the pandemic, our lives depended not only on our ability to stay safe but on the need to keep ourselves entertained during intense boredom and isolation. I did my best to keep things lighthearted (see my post on blind tasting). 🙂 When ordering takeout from restaurants lost its luster (ah, memories of soggy and saggy fries and lettuce in cardboard), I decided to try something festive, fun, and different.

I love sitting outside on our deck on a beautiful day, taking in the sky and the trees. So I decided the only thing that could possibly improve on an already idyllic situation would be to have an evening of culinary matchmaking, in which I set several cheeses up on first dates with several bottles of wine. It’s one of the easiest dinners in the universe and one of my kids’ favorite ways to eat dinner (minus the wine, of course — see also crackers, fruit, charcuterie). 🙂

So here is the wine and cheese menu I put together.

Cheese Board

The stars of the show. On the left are Parmigiano and Herbed Goat Cheese. On the right are Brie and Manchego. No autographs, please.

Wine and cheese are both ancient fermented foods that through fungal finessing and microbial magic become so much more than merely grape juice and curdled milk. When they join forces, it’s a gustatory revelation of sheer delight.

But with so darn many wines and cheeses, how to pick what to go with what? I did some research, compiled some promising looking suggestions, and based on what I found put together this particular wine and cheese menu. I can vouch wholeheartedly that these wines and cheeses make for lovely pairings! And don’t sweat the brands too much – just buy what you can find in that wine or cheese category!

1) Prosecco and Parmigiano-Reggiano
La Marca Proseccoicon
This was one of my favorite pairings on the whole menu. Salty, nutty, umami Parm and sweet, fruity, fizzy Prosecco need to make much more regular appearances at my house! I hadn’t really cut into a wedge of Parm and eaten it – I’d only ever grated it onto food, mainly pasta and soup dishes. The full-on texture of the Parm was something I’d never really experienced before. The crunchy nugget “crystals” in the cheese actually form when the cheese ages: the proteins break down and the individual amino acid tyrosine becomes concentrated and forms crystals. When matched with Prosecco’s bubbles, it’s molto delizioso!

2) Rosé and Goat Cheese
Acidic rosé wine both complements the tang of and contrasts with the fatty creaminess of goat cheese. It puts you in a very, je ne sais quoi, French state of mind. The light berry, stone fruit, and mild vegetal flavors of rosé with the goat cheese are reminiscent of a summery salad. I used Dark Horse Rosé which is surprisingly good for under $10/bottle, as all Dark Horse wines are priced in that arena. And the herby goat cheese I used was very tasty with the wine. Très délicieux!

3) Pinot Noir and Brie
La Crema Monterey Pinot Noiricon
Speaking of a French state of mind, it truly does not get more French than Pinot Noir and Brie. For this pairing, I did use a California Pinot Noir but it still went very well with the Brie. It could be because I’m more familiar with Pinot Noir than other wines, but I think Pinot Noir makes for an especially interesting wine to pair with cheese, because there are so many very different styles and types of Pinot out there and you can play on the specific flavors in your specific wine with the cheese (for example, you can emphasize an Oregon Pinot Noir’s mushroom/truffle notes by pairing it with pecorino tartufo cheese). This is a classic pairing that takes a lighter, more acidic and aromatic red wine and puts it with a rich, creamy, singularly flavored cheese. It is scrumptious.

4) Rioja and Manchego
This was my other favorite pairing of the night! Oh. Yum. Leathery cherry and spiced Rioja (Tempranillo) went perfectly with Manchego, a Spanish sheep’s milk cheese. ¡Muy delicioso!

Wine and Cheese Pairing Party

Take a bow: Prosecco, Rose, Pinot Noir, Rioja.

So there you have it. It sounds more like International Wine and Cheese Day, with the Italian, Spanish, and French contributions.

At this point in my life, I’ve put together at least one other wine and cheese pairing feast at home. The menu above, however, was delicious and doable, and is ideal for celebrating your first National Wine and Cheese Day. The featured wines and cheeses, I feel, are pretty widely available and interchangeable (you don’t have to worry too much about getting a certain brand, etc.), so my advice would be to start with the above menu and then go from there.

I don’t want to promise I’ll post on other wine and cheese pairings soon, because you know my track record of posting regularly can be very intermittent, but I think that wine & cheese is a topic all of us on here can appreciate, so I do plan to do more in the future.

How about you? Do you have any must-try wine and cheese pairings we should know about? Please share and comment below!

Gourmet Essentials for Wine Lovers, Elevate your summer pairings with these products.

Hula²: Pork Sliders and Sparkling Maui Pineapple Wine

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Aloha, readers! I don’t know what the weather is like where you are, but for the last several weeks we have had nothing but blue skies and full sunshine, albeit with freezing temperatures. If you didn’t have to feel the cold, and ignored the bare trees, you would think you were somewhere warm and humid. Somewhere tropical, even.

Let’s take a break from our usual Cab and Chardonnay and venture into other realms and regions for wine. Let’s entertain some novel possibilities. As you know, wine can be made from more than just grapes; see my past posts on blackberry wine and mead, for example.

Today I’m going to take you on a whirlwind tour to Maui, introduce you to a delightful sparkling pineapple wine, and rock your world with to-die-for Hula Pork Sliders. This is a food and wine equation that yields exponential bliss – read on!

Maui Wine signLast April I was fortunate to travel to Maui and enjoy an afternoon wine tasting at Maui Wine, in the Ulupalakua upcountry. If you are a wine lover who happens to be vacationing on Maui, this is definitely worth the drive up the mountain. Behold the beauty! You can learn more about the Maui Wine experience here.

Maui Wine Tasting RoomAt this idyllic winery, with a rich and varied history (the King of Hawaii used to party here), you can do tastings that feature pineapple based wines, whites, or reds. They gladly poured us tastes of other wines even if those wines were not on our flight. Lovely aloha spirit. 🌺

My favorite red wine that day was the 2022 GSM, from grapes grown in the Ulupalakua Vineyards AVA. It’s a blend of 69% Syrah, 18% Grenache, and 13% Malbec. I believe I enjoyed it more than the single varietal wines. Sometimes at a winery it’s the opposite; I prefer the single varietals over the blends. Maui Wine Tasting RoomOther favorites were the Lokelani Sparkling Rosé and Lehua Raspberry Dessert Wine (made from raspberries from Walla Walla, Washington – on Maui!). Tart, light, just the right amount of sweet. Scrumptious! And I’m in love with this label (Valentine’s is coming soon, ahem). Maui Wine Lehua Raspberry Dessert Wine

But the wine I want you to really pay attention to is the Hula O Maui Pineapple Sparkling Wine. This was given to me as a gift by my sister and brother-in-law who live there, and I didn’t open it up until after I got home since I was waiting to pair the wine with this special recipe. I think I need to order some more of this wine, it was truly special. Sparkling wine is admittedly not my jam, but this won me over and I will happily imbibe this any time.

Maui Wine uses fine Maui Gold pineapples that are not quite ripe to contribute fresh aromatic qualities to the wine. It is a wine made in the traditional method, the same as French Champagne and certain other sparkling wines. I actually really liked this wine and honestly prefer it to traditional sparkling wine made from grapes, even though some of those are excellent. This wine was pure refreshment and made the perfect accompaniment to the pork sliders.

Hula O Maui Sparkling Pineapple WineHula O Maui Sparkling Pineapple Wine

  • $26/bottle
  • Super pale straw/lightest lemon yellow
  • Light, delicate body with fine perlage (bubbles/carbonation)
  • Semi-dry
  • Aromas of pineapple, macadamia nut, green papaya, toast
  • An elegant sparkling wine that stays true to the character of the pineapples it’s made from

And for the ultimate food pairing with this wine, here is my take on Half Baked Harvest’s decadent Hawaiian-style pork sliders from the cookbook, Half Baked Harvest. Pulled pork is one of the darn tastiest things I have ever eaten, and this recipe just may be my ultimate favorite. Do not let my quick, mediocre photo dissuade you. Enjoy! 😋

Hula Pork Sliders from Half Baked Harvest Cookbook

These are absolutely worth the effort, and pure bliss with the sparkling pineapple wine. Paradise!

Hula Pork Sliders
Recipe courtesy of Tieghan Gerard
Half Baked Harvest Cookbook: Recipes from My Barn in the Mountains
Makes 12 sliders

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 1/4 cups pineapple juice
  • 1 – 1-inch knob fresh ginger, peeled and grated (or use refrigerated ginger paste like I do)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced or grated
  • 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
  • 2/3 cup ketchup
  • 2-3 tablespoons sriracha sauce
  • 2 1/2 pounds pork shoulder or butt, cut into two pieces
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 6 large pineapple rings, halved
  • 12 Hawaiian slider buns
  • 12 slices Swiss cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded green lettuce or cabbage (bagged coleslaw mix works great)
  • Melted butter (optional)
  • Poppy seeds (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the pineapple juice, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, ketchup, and sriracha.
  • Place the pork in a Dutch oven and pour over half the sauce. Cover and transfer to the oven. Roast for 3 to 4 hours, or until the pork is falling off the bone and shreds easily – check the pork once or twice throughout cooking to be sure the sauce is not reducing too much. If it is, add the remaining sauce as needed to keep the pork moist. The pork should be submerged in liquid at least halfway. Shred the pork and add some of the remaining pineapple sauce to the pot, if desired.
  • Heat the broiler to high with a rack in the top third.
  • In a large skillet, melt the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the pineapple slices and cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until caramelized.
  • Arrange the bottom halves of the slider buns on a baking sheet and add a scoop of pork to each. Top each with a slice of Swiss cheese. Place under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.
  • Top each slider with a slice of caramelized pineapple and shredded lettuce or cabbage. If desired, brush the top of each bun with melted butter and sprinkle with poppy seeds.

A Tale of Two Valleys: Comparing Old World & New World for Cabernet Franc Day

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Disclosure Statement: This post contains affiliate links. When you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, I receive a commission at no additional cost to you. All opinions are my own.

Hip hip hooray, it’s Cabernet Franc Day! If you haven’t climbed aboard the Cab Francophile train yet, it’s time to do so. Especially YOU, you Cabernet Sauvignon drinkers who want a red wine that pairs with more than just steak! Prepare to have your mind blown, world rocked, and palate converted. 🙂

Not too long ago, my kids and I listened to an abridged version of one of my favorite novels, A Tale of Two Cities. I understand they were trying to make it shorter to introduce it to kids, but oh, the misery of listening to a butchered-up book. It takes away SO MUCH. I couldn’t take it, and my kids didn’t really take to it, either.

In my imagination, when comparing an Old World and a New World wine, I get into this two-part, back and forth, sing-song contrasting that reminds me of the beginning of the book: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times….”

Except in this case, the wines under scrutiny are more like vastly different and yet subtly similar siblings. It was the Loire Valley, it was the Yakima Valley….

Grapevine at Elks Temple

I couldn’t find pics of the wine labels on my computer (getting over a cold), so here is a pic I took of a grapevine painting adorning the walls of McMenamin’s Elks Temple Hotel in Forest Grove, OR. 🙂

I’ve got two very different and distinct Cabernet Francs I’d love for you to try – open and taste side by side, if you can. The first is Old World and hails from France’s Loire Valley. It’s essentially the signature red wine grape of the region, standing out amidst the whitewashed sea of Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc. It is not to be missed!

The second is New World from Washington State’s Yakima Valley, which was the state’s very first AVA. While still being a Cabernet Franc, it’s like the wild party animal sister compared to its stately and brooding elder sibling. Either way, neither of these wines is a slacker and delivers a full Cabernet Franc experience.

The first one to try is Le Pre Vaujour Chinon. Chinon is the region of the Loire Valley known for growing Cabernet Franc. The color is paler than Cabernet Sauvignon, and in case you didn’t already know, Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc are the parent grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon. Voilà ici.

Le Pre Vaujour Chinon Cabernet Franc

  • Black currant, licorice, raspberry, smoke, tea leaves, leafiness, earthy, mushroomy
  • Slightly grippy tannins
  • Medium to full body, dry
  • Moderate length/finish
  • 13% ABV
  • $22.99/bottle
  • Make sure you give this wine plenty of time to open up. I remember especially enjoying it on the second or third day of it being open. It kept revealing multiple rich flavors. The licorice notes make it very compelling and unique.

Next, please set your sights on this dazzling New World Cabernet Franc. Mazzacano Cellars is a secondary label produced by the same winemakers behind WIT Cellars (tastings rooms in Prosser and Woodinville, Washington). I was poured this wine whilst living out my fantasy (wine tasting by myself in Woodinville for the day) and even though it was not on the tasting flight, it was the wine I went home with that day. The 2019 vintage won GOLD at the Bellingham Northwest Wine Festival.

Mazzacano Cellars 2018 Cabernet Franc Olsen Vineyards Yakima Valley

  • 14.5% ABV
  • $49/bottle
  • Cabernet Franc sourced from one of my top favorite vineyards EVER in Washington State (see also Dineen Vineyards) ❤
  • Color is deep garnet/ruby
  • On the nose: cherry, tobacco, currant, and that bell pepper note to let you know it’s Cab Franc
  • Full body, luxurious mouthfeel, it’s like opening up a gift basket in your mouth: chock full of cherry, chocolate, and spice
  • Velvety tannins
  • Reverberating finish that just keeps going and going
  • Acidity is just the right amount I like in a wine
  • This is a voluptuous “Jessica Rabbit” Cabernet Franc that oozes richness and fullness.
  • From start to finish, this wine is pure love. I could drink this all day. But I won’t. 😊 Oh, so good! Must try some of their other Mazzacano wines.

So there you have it. Pick your poison – rustic, glamorous Old World or fervent, passionate New World. Each is wonderful.

What are you opening up this Cabernet Franc Day? Any favorites? Comment!

Cheers!

Christmas shopping to do?
Stun your loved ones with these Wine Gift Collections – Gifting made easy with these curated wine sets!

Crazy for Counoise: Holiday Dinner Wines Part I

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A merry Monday to you, readers! We just got back from an epic family adventure in Disneyland. I had hoped to get my Thanksgiving wine recommendation out to you a little earlier but thinking I would have time to write while on vacation was foolish optimism. The Disney experience is not for the faint of heart; you literally go all day and then all night. Fun, but hard. Us adults all required moderate doses of Advil most days. And since the Happiest Place on Earth is also the Germiest Place on Earth, we are now all dealing with various levels of a cold (because who really is going to stay away from Disney after sinking thousands of dollars into a vacation?). Thankfully, mine is barely a whisper of a cold. Viruses encounter my immune system, see I’m carrying, and run for it. Heh heh heh. 🙂

Anyway, thus begins Part I of my Holiday Dinner Wines Series.

a festival of gourdsI was flipping through a Costco magazine recently, and came across a typical “wine pairings for your Thanksgiving meal” article. I skimmed over the list. The wine and food pairing recommendations were great (doesn’t Moscato d’Asti with apple pie sound yummy?), but, unless you’re a wine geek/snob/swimming in money, do you really pair a DIFFERENT wine with SEVERAL COURSES at your gatherings??? Not only is that a ton of wine to buy, that is a ton of alcohol to drink.

At our extended family holiday meals, at least, here is the wine sitch: everybody brings wine, plops it on a designated drinks counter, and then everybody just drinks the wine they brought, unless someone (like me) insists others try what they brought (which I am always doing, so pushy). We don’t care too much about how well it matches the food – we just enjoy the wine we enjoy alongside the food we are eating. And let’s face it, the star of the Thanksgiving show is the turkey dinner, with the multiple traditional side dishes. So it seems to me what we MOST need is a wine that will play well with the major stars of the meal and be a fabulous team player. It will be delightful and welcome, but its welcome it shall not overstay.

While there are many wines clamoring for your attention, I picked this wine especially with Thanksgiving turkey dinner in mind: it partners exceptionally well with other foods, and is beautifully unique. It’s utterly delicious and I can’t think of any reason why anyone would not like it.

The wine you need, ladies and gentlemen, is Bacovino Winery’s… Counoise.

First of all, Counoise is not a weird French clown (although he could be? Hmm). Counoise (pronounced “COON – NWAHS”) is one of the red grape varieties allowed in the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape blends of the Rhône Valley in France. Bacovino sources its Counoise from Washington state’s highly venerated Red Mountain AVA and lets it stand solo.

Here are my tasting notes for Bacovino’s 2021 Signature Counoise:

  • 100% Counoise from Red Mountain AVA
  • $30/bottle
  • A younger, lighter drinking wine
  • Kind of a cross between a dessert wine and a light-bodied red like a Pinot Noir or Frappato
  • Medium garnet/dusty crimson color with clear edge/rim
  • Highly aromatic! Bright and full of cherry, strawberry, raspberry, spice, hazelnut
  • 14.9% ABV
  • Off-dry, so a touch of sweetness
  • Rich, sweet mouth-filling fruit like black cherry, plum, strawberry preserves
  • Very background tannins (wallflowers?) to give a little structure
  • Tart acidity to keep you coming back for more
  • Amazing, warm, lingering finish
  • Serve slightly chilled, but not so chilled you can’t appreciate the aromatics

For those of you in the greater Seattle area, you can probably snag this wine in time for Thanksgiving. And if you’re not, go ahead and order some in time for Christmas; the same sorts of traditional holiday foods will work well with this wine. And even if you don’t celebrate any holidays or pair wines with foods, you still need to get this wine. No excuses (hint hint, it’s wonderful in the summer, too!).

No need to buy half a dozen or more different wines to try and pair with every last item on the menu (although if you are going to do that, please tell me what you did and how you liked the pairings!). Keep it simple, and surprise your loved ones with a delicious and delightful red like Bacovino Counoise.

Just be sure to buy more than you think you’ll need… it’s that good, and Christmas is coming up soon, too, after all. 😉

P.S. Bacovino is opening up a second location on the Seattle Waterfront very soon! Go check it out or see them in the mean time at their Tukwila winery and tasting room.

Sangiovese grapes fermenting at Bacovino Winery

Sangiovese grapes fermenting at Bacovino Winery in Tukwila, Washington. Owner and winemaker Randy Brooks let us help with punch down on one occasion. Talk about a workout!

Related Posts on Bacovino:
Sangiovese
Dessert Wine
Viognier

Divine Blackberry Wine for the Summer Solstice

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Good morning, and an official hello to summer! ‘Tis the summer solstice and as we embrace this magical, mythical time of year, it only makes sense to sidle up to a glass of wine that uses summer’s quintessential fruit: blackberries. So allow me to introduce you to Pasek Cellars Blackberry Wine. I’ve been sitting on this particular wine recommendation for probably over a decade, and I still find this wine to be utterly delicious, delightful, and a pure embodiment of the spirit of summer, which I am welcoming with outstretched arms (if you could see me now!)! 🙂

This is sweet enough to be considered a dessert wine but complex enough to enjoy with savory food. Pasek Cellars recommends drinking it with salmon, wild game, or barbecued chicken. I have tried it alongside salmon and I find it’s a better pairing than commonly prescribed Pinot Noir. Nothing screams “Pacific Northwest summer” more than salmon and blackberries. It’s one of, or perhaps even the best, blackberry wine I have ever had. I truly don’t think you will be disappointed.

Pasek Cellars Blackberry Wine
100% Oregon Blackberry Wine
11% ABV
$12.99/bottle on Pasek Cellars website
(I have also found it for slightly less at Cost Plus World Market)

Pasek Cellars Blackberry Wine

Good on its own, good as dessert, good with savory food. Yes, I’m for real!

  • Crafted from Oregon blackberries, the wine is semi-opaque and medium ruby in color
  • Aromas of blackberry, cream, and bramble waft from the glass
  • While the wine is quite sweet, it also has a nice, subtle tartness to balance the sweetness
  • Full body with a medium finish
  • Fun fact: it takes 1.3 lbs. of blackberries to yield one whole bottle!

It isn’t often you find a wine that can be a dessert wine, a savory food partner, and a scrumptious “drinks well on its own” wine. Pasek Cellars Blackberry Wine is a rare “triple threat” that you need to add to your cellar stat!

Have you tried this wine? Or is there another blackberry wine you adore? Comment!

Cheers to summer! ☀️

PS: Word to the wise… Pasek Cellars Cranberry Wine is the magical winter equivalent to the summery blackberry wine. Stay tuned in the coming months, but it’s never too early to stock up on a good wine like this to go with holiday fare like turkey and ham. 😉

A Delicious Discovery for World Verdejo Day

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Happy World Verdejo Day, readers! This may be the fastest blog post I have ever thrown together in a day (pant, pant – June is BUSY!) but the word must go out. The blog must go on! Plus, I also share an easy recipe that will pair exceptionally well with this wine. And, last but not least, drum roll… Happy 100th post to The Rambling Vine! ❤

I first had this wine at a Spanish wine class at Total Wine. As someone who prefers red wines, I tend to reluctantly try white wines with low expectations. But this cheerful and exuberant white made me check my biases and thrust me into full-blown enjoyment. When a white wine makes me say “whoa” after the first sip, I know I’m on to a good thing. It’s also a fantastic price ($16.99) for a truly fantastic wine.

So what is Verdejo? Verdejo is a white wine grape grown in Rueda, Spain. Rueda is a region that uses mainly Verdejo grapes to create amazing white wines bursting with tart acidity and plush, full fruit flavors. If you’re a New Zealand Sauv Blanc fan, wait until you give this a try!

Check out the Finca Vallejo Rueda Verdejo 2022:

Finca Vallejo Rueda Verdejo 2022

Love the label

  • $16.99/bottle
  • 13% ABV
  • Rich, pale gold color
  • Knockout aromas of lime, peach, grapefruit, fennel, melon, etc.
  • Light body with plush, creamy mouthfeel
  • Powerful, refreshing acidity curtailed by juicy citrus fruit flavors
  • Screams “I wanna party with some seafood!”

My “recipe” for fish tacos is simple in the extreme, but wonderful. We all need more easy-to-pull-together dinners. Four basic ingredients. Try it when you’re floundering for what to make for dinner (pun unintended, or not). 😉

The Rambling Vine’s Fish Tacos in a Cinch

  • Flour tortillas (or tortilla/wrap of your choice)
  • White fish fillets of your choice (cod, rockfish, halibut, etc.)
  • Bagged coleslaw mix
  • Brianna’s ® Home Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing

Warm your tortillas so they’re pliable. Cook your fish to doneness: throw several fillets on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush fish with some olive oil, salt, and pepper (keep it simple – the dressing will add more flavor later). Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until cooked to a safe internal temperature of 145 degrees.

For each taco, lay a tortilla flat on a plate, lay on a fish fillet, scatter on a handful of coleslaw mix, and then drizzle on the Brianna’s ® Home Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Salad Dressing (don’t skip that). You’re done!

Brianna's Home Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

Love this brand and this dressing!

Pour a chilled glass of this Verdejo to go with your dinner and pretend you’re in Rueda, Spain or other warm sunny location of your choice.

Happy Verdejo Day! Let me know if you try the recipe or the wine. 🙂

Pinot Noir & Tempranillo Dance the Mitote in Alumbra Cellars’ Red Blend

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I love it when I get to tell you about wines that “grab” me.

These wines are different. Compelling. Unique. Doin’ their own thang. And, they’re really, really good.

These are the wines that stop me in my tracks and I take note of.

After just one sip of this wine at the McMinnville Food + Wine Festival this past March, I committed to a bottle immediately. That bottle was Alumbra Cellars’ 2021 Mitote Red Blend, a surprising blend of Pinot Noir and Tempranillo.

I love blends because they become greater than the sum of their parts. Some of the greatest wines in the world are blends (most notably Bordeaux and Rhône GSMs).

But what I love about this wine is that the blend of grape varieties – in this case, Pinot Noir and Tempranillo – is unexpected and exciting, much like another favorite wine of mine which blends Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. It’s not simply another traditional recipe for combining certain grape varieties together; it’s a winemaker’s choice to exercise her vision and realize the potential of two different grape varieties in creating a new style. And in this, winemaker Elena Rodriguez succeeds magnificently! ❤

In Spanish, mitote refers to an indigenous Mexican dance, but it can also mean a party or a scandalous uproar/hubbub. In this case I feel the wine represents less of an  uproar/hubbub and more of a beautiful pas de deux (in Spanish I believe it is “no dos”) between Tempranillo and Pinot Noir; more of a celebration than a brawl, ha ha.

Alumbra Cellars 2021 Mitote Red Blend
14% ABV
60% Tempranillo, 40% Pinot Noir
$32/bottle

Alumbra Cellars 2021 Mitote Red BlendHere are my rambling, effusive tasting notes to give you an idea of the fun carnival of scents and flavors I delighted in. Promise me you will sip some for yourself!

  • Mesmerizing, mysterious nose hinting strongly at cinnamon, cayenne, cumin, pepper
  • Black cherry, bark/wood, blackberry pie à la mode, a sweet minty herbal note (sassafrass?)
  • A bouquet of heady, savory spices but also light, sweet spices
  • Toffee, gingersnap, vanilla, candied rose floral aroma, whiff of leather saddle to tip me off to the presence of Tempranillo
  • Medium ruby with purple core – color actually very close to the purple of the bottle label
  • Medium body, silky smooth texture
  • Minerality showing up
  • No harshness, tartness, bitterness
  • Silky, gentle tannins
  • Warm, prolonged finish
  • More medium body feel even though alcohol level higher

I have no negative criticisms of this wine. Zero.

I foresee this wine going very well with a number of foods, particularly Mexican food.

For a delicious accompaniment to a glass of this wine, grab a bag of your favorite and freshest tortilla chips and whip up this Mushroom Pico de Gallo. I first had a version of this unbelievable dip at a Mexican restaurant in Belfair, Washington. Forget the salsa and bean dips; we couldn’t get enough of this pico and polished off a couple bowls (after that, what’s the point of dinner?). This recipe is the closest thing I could find to what we had in Belfair.

With a little more effort (or another helper), pile some cooked meat on the side and call this dinner!

Some of the best meals to go with wine (I think) are where you just throw a few, simple foods together and then let them all work their collective magic. A mitote. ❤

¡Buen apetito! 🙂

Mushroom Pico de Gallo

Your new favorite dip.

Mushroom Pico de Gallo
Liberally adapted from a recipe by Nina Lee | Food.com

INGREDIENTS

  • 16 oz. crimini mushrooms
  • 1 small red onion
  • 1 jalapeño
  • A giant handful fresh cilantro
  • 4-6 T avocado oil (or olive if that’s what you have)
  • 6-8 T cooking sherry
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 limes, juiced (or to taste – I felt this needed way more acid than the original)

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Finely chop all of the ingredients and mix well in a bowl.
  • Add your avocado oil, lime juice, and cooking sherry to the bowl, mix well, add more if needed.
  • Add salt and pepper to taste.
  • Let sit to allow flavors to meld for about half an hour, if you can even wait that long. Dip in freshest tortilla chips you can find.

Ciao, Frappato: Meet a Charming Sicilian Wine

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Here at The Rambling Vine, I have a tendency to befriend unusual grape varieties: basically, to pick the weird wines. This sometimes results in many a dud (I’m looking at you, $4 bottle of Georgian orange wine), but sometimes I unearth vinous treasure. 🍇 As much as I am a purist and love the classics, I also like to take chances on less common grape varieties. It’s my source of adventure! My philosophy is hey, it’s just wine – if you go wrong, order a different glass or bottle. No biggie (well, unless you’ve really splurged, then that bites).

But I also want this site to be a place with reliable recommendations that are delicious, so I never post on anything I don’t love or that I wouldn’t buy myself. Sure, all of our palates vary, and they even change over time (I’m sure I have one wine on here that I reviewed over a decade ago that I don’t like now). But if you are at least enjoying the majority of the wines I’ve got on here, then I’m doing a pretty good job. 🙂

I was originally planning on saving this wine for a post in November as a Thanksgiving meal wine recommendation, and I still stand by that. But there’s no reason to wait that long to share this special wine with you (plus I have other great wine recommendations for Thanksgiving).

Today, I’m taking the vineyard row less trampled and seeking out something truly exciting and extraordinary. Say, “Ciao, Bella!” to a rare grape from the Mediterranean island of Sicily – Frappato! Tenuta Valle dell'Acate Il Frappato About this wine:
Il Frappato | Vittoria Frappato | DOC Sicilia | Valle Dell’Acate

  • 100% Frappato dry red wine
  • 12.5% ABV
  • Price between $20 – $30, depending on where you purchase
  • Aromas of cranberry, strawberry, and herbs blast out of the glass. I have never smelled anything quite like this wine. This is up there in terms of all-time favorite smelling wines.
  • On the palate: high acid but with soft fruity tannins. Delightful slightly chilled. Made for food.
  • From the winery’s tasting notes: “Aromas are fresh and overpowering with hints of red fruits, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, violet flowers and sage. Fresh and vivacious flavors with a pleasant and persistent closing. Medium bodied with silky tannins. Best paired with fresh and aged cheeses, Sicilian red tuna, sushi and sashimi.”

I first tried this Frappato along with some other fantastic wines from this same winery at Arista Wine Cellars in Edmonds, Washington. My husband and I were so smitten with this baby we purchased a bottle and then ordered three more shortly thereafter.

The Tenuta Valle dell’Acate estate is in the southeast corner of Sicily and boasts organic vineyards. In the last 15 years or so, the quality of Sicilian wine has improved by leaps and bounds, thanks to better vineyard practices and new folks carrying out the work of growing the grapes and making the wine. As our tasting sheet noted, “It’s a good time to be drinking wine from Sicily.”

This may be true, but caveat emptor! In addition to this wine, I have tried two other Sicilian Frappatos, and neither one was molto bene. So keep in mind that not every Frappato will be as noteworthy as this one. This is the one to get!

To order this wine, purchase here.

As this wine is such a wonderful partner for food, I’ve also got an EASY dinner recipe that goes beautifully with this wine. Here is my riff on Joanna Gaines’ Grilled Raspberry Chipotle Pork Tenderloin from the Magnolia Table cookbook, adapted for the oven instead of the grill. As she states in the recipe introduction, this was the first way she cooked pork tenderloin and it’s been the only way she’s done it since. Ditto!

To round out the meal, serve it with steamed green beans, and either potatoes or rice.

Raspberry-Chipotle Pork Tenderloin
Recipe adapted from The Magnolia Table Cookbook by Joanna Gaines
Yields 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

  • 24 oz. bottle raspberry-chipotle sauce, preferably Fischer & Wieser (too much – save some to serve on the cooked pork)
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 4 T honey
  • 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 2 tsp. garlic salt
  • 2 lbs. pork tenderloin
  • Vegetable oil

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • In a bowl, whisk together the raspberry-chipotle sauce, soy sauce, honey, garlic, garlic powder, and garlic salt. Place the pork tenderloins in a Pyrex baking dish and pour over the marinade. Roll it around a couple times to thoroughly coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours.
  • Remove the pork from the marinade and place it in a greased baking dish. Brush the pork with some of the marinade, then discard the remaining marinade.
  • Bake until pork reaches a safe internal temperature of 145°F
  • Transfer pork to a cutting board and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice crosswise and serve.
  • Tightly wrap leftover pork in plastic and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Leftover cooked pork can dry out if reheated, but it makes delicious cold sandwiches and a quick taco filling.

Have you tried Frappato? Or made this recipe before? Comment!

That’s One Way to Do a Blind Tasting

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Remembering My First Attempt at a Blind Wine Tasting

COVID-19. That word elicits an entire gamut of reactions – from sorrow, fear, panic, to annoyance, anger, and even indifference and eyerolling mockery. I think all of those were certainly warranted at various times, of course depending on our opinions of the whole situation and who we were trusting as a reliable news source. Regardless, it’s a word and a reality we all hope never to have to visit again. But it did force us to be creative and adaptive, I’ll give it that.

The COVID-19 pandemic presented humanity with the unique situation of having to learn how to deal with our unmet needs and wants in an environment devoid of 98% of our social norms and interactions. For me, I made do for a while – I pride myself on being able to suffer a great deal of monotony, thanks to past jobs and present parenthood. But after months of tedious isolation from the lockdowns, I was bursting at the seams for social interaction and, namely, festivity. A party. Specifically, a blind wine tasting party, where several wines would be visually sized up and sipped without any knowledge as to the wine’s identity. Within my bubble, obvi. So I roped my husband and in-laws into it (they were happy to have an excuse for a party at that point, too) and made it happen.

Because I wanted to participate, too, the wines needed to be kept a complete mystery, even to me, the party organizer. So I called my local Total Wine & More store, and explained I needed to make a secret purchase. I told them I was looking for four bottles of red wine, each a different single variety (like Merlot or Pinot Noir), each from a different region. When the store associate asked me over the phone what my budget was, I told her $60, under the assumption she meant my total budget for the purchase. She was happy to make the order happen. The store even bagged each bottle and boxed it up securely so I would have no idea as to the contents. I even handed my debit card to the cashier and she rang me up without a word and then I shoved the receipt elsewhere.

The tasting was a lot of fun. The four of us enjoy great wine, and whatever our Total Wine person had picked out was indeed great. Maybe a little too great for an approximate price of $15/bottle, but I was going to wait until the end to find out. I put together elaborate tasting sheets fit for professional sommeliers. I even stuck the bottles in red velvet drawstring wine bags like door prizes at a bordello. Clearly, I take my wine tastings damn seriously. 😉

Blind Wine Tasting Party

My kind of game night: guessing grapes! 🙂

We tasted all four wines and attempted to guess the grape variety and country of origin for each one. Just those two things alone were hard enough! We talked through all the characteristics and traits of each wine, creating our own quartet of sniffing, swirling, slurping, and sipping (spitting has no place in a pandemic), and volleyed around our best guesses as to why this one tasted European or that one might be a Syrah, etc. It was a lot of fun for me to practice what I had been learning the last few months with my online wine course and readings. We wrote down our best guesses on our worksheets, and then finally unveiled the wines.

It was educational to compare what we experienced with the revealed wines. I did not guess anything correctly, and I don’t think anyone else did either, unless it was one part of the answer like the grape or the country. Tasting wine blind is like taking a test: it’s your best educated guess, based on what you know in that moment from the facts at hand interpreted through your own experience. But that was without a doubt the most fun test to ever fail.

It was also highly educational (ahem) when I finally uncrumpled my receipt and realized, to my astonishment, that Total Wine had interpreted my $60 budget not as the total for the order, but the average price of each individual bottle of wine! No wonder they were all so good! 🙂

I cannot find where or if I wrote down the exact names of the wines, but I did write down the general categories and one producer.

Just for fun, here are the wines we had. The majority were superbly delicious:

1) Brunello di Montalcino (Sangiovese from Italy)
2) Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (California)
3) Rhône Syrah (France)
4) 2010 Betz Family Winery Yakima Valley Syrah (Washington) (This one, sadly, was a little past its prime, and the cork crumbled on us)

Lesson learned: if I attempt a blind tasting this way in the future, I will be extremely clear on price with my salesperson. But since it’s not every day I get to drink outstanding wines like these, I decided it was well worth it. And especially during an awful time like the pandemic, it was all the more reason to indulge.

Wine.com

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling: A GSM to Steal Your Heart Away

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Happy Pi Day, readers! It’s hard to believe it’s been one month already since Valentine’s Day. I don’t have any pie recipes for you today (see my Valentine’s Day post on grape galette), but with St. Patrick’s Day looming, I thought I would pull out a cherished bottle from my wine cellar with an utterly fitting name: Irish Eyes. Cue the Bing Crosby song.

This lovely bottle came home with me after a Saturday out tasting solo in Woodinville (a city in Washington state with a bajillion wineries). This wine was not part of the tasting flight that day but I am sure glad my server poured it because it stole my heart and I had to go home with it. As a matter of fact, both wines I purchased that day from two different wineries were not on the flight menu, including a ridiculous Cab Franc that I need to write about soon.

For those of you who don’t know, GSM stands for the three red grape varieties of Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre. These three varieties comprise a famous red wine blend you’ll find traditionally in France’s Rhône Valley and also Spain’s Catalonia region. There is a reason these three grapes are frequent bottle-fellows. Here is a quick snapshot of what each grape variety is like and what each typically contributes to a blend:
Grenache: raspberry, cherry flavors. Medium body, low/medium tannin and acid, high alcohol.
Syrah: blueberry, plum, smoke, pepper, meat flavors. Full body, medium tannin, alcohol, acidity.
Mourvèdre: dark fruits, chocolate, velvety texture. Deep, dark, inky color. Full body, high tannin, medium high alcohol, medium acidity.

Together, they make some of the world’s greatest wine blends. 🍷

Irish Eyes is made by Tinte Cellars, and named in honor of the owners’ Irish parents. Tinte Cellars crafts premium Washington state wine, as evidenced by this exceptional bottle. But not only are they making award-winning delicious wine, they are engaged in a wide range of charitable activities. The family-owned business operates to give back generously to the community through a robust philanthropic program. Check out all the cool things they are doing here. All the more reason to visit them for a tasting, take home a bottle (or a few), and maybe even join their wine club. It sounds like they have a lot of fun doing good. ❤

Here’s their take on a GSM blend:

Tinte Cellars Irish Eyes Red Wine

You’ll be smiling once you sip this wine.

Tinte Cellars 2018 Irish Eyes Red Wine Columbia Valley

  • $48/bottle
  • Composition: 41% Grenache, 39% Syrah, 20% Mourvèdre
  • Alcohol: 14.8%
  • Color: Deep ruby
  • Aromas: Raspberry, Blackberry, Plum, Pepper, lavender/rosemary, smoky, touch of leather, orange peel
  • Flavors: cherry jam, orange pekoe tea
  • Tannins: Very soft, gentle, velvety, in the background
  • Body: medium
  • Acidity: Moderate. It’s there to play enough of a role but it’s super even-keel.
  • Finish: Not super long. But not super short, either.
  • Winemaker’s Notes: “Aromas of mixed berries and black tea give way to cherry jam and orange zest on the palate. The finish treats you to berry punch and a hint of butterscotch.”

This wine is delicious on its own so it does not need any food to go with it. I happened to drink some of this along with my dinner of Smoky Lentil Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, and it was very tasty.

I don’t think you can go wrong pairing this with corned beef and cabbage. It certainly has the structure to handle juicy beef and other typical St. Paddy’s Day fare. We are having our Irish feast on Sunday, and my mouth is watering just thinking about the menu. I’ll even be whipping up my Bailey’s Irish Cream cheesecake for dessert. 😋

Have you tried this wine? What did you think? Let me know in the comments.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, and Happy Almost Spring! 🍀

Spring mix from my yard

Spring is springing! My daughter’s “salad” made from weeds and grasses pulled from our yard – I love all the shades and textures of green.

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