Each Thirsty Thursday we help you get ready for the weekend ahead with a round up of the best wine reviews and pairings from your fave winos, oenophiles and beyond . . .
Reviews
- “Billy’s Best Bottles Under $25 From Prince Edward County”
- For rosés, take a walk on the dry side
- The next big wine country? (Hint: It starts with ‘c’ and ends with ‘a’)
- Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc, Liberty School Syrah, Cave Spring Riesling: Best LCBO Wines Vintages Release May 26 ::link::
- Words, not numbers, are key to wine reviews: Gord on Grapes
A Curious Coupling … That Works
Cheeseburger and Barbaresco
My friend and blogging colleague Franco Ziliani — Italy’s top wine blogger and veteran enojournalist — is always astonished at how Americans “apply” the great wines of Italy. In Europe, the food and wine canon guides the “user” in ensuring that the wine will be enjoyed to the fullest by pairing it with aromas and flavors that will draw out their counterparts in the wine.
In the case of Barbaresco — one of the great red wines of Piedmont — stewed and braised meat (namely veal and beef) are considered an ideal marriage. Just like the umami (think mushroom and earth) and fruit (think wild berry) flavors of Nebbiolo grapes grown in the Langhe Hills of northwestern Italy (the foothills of the Alps), the pronounced savory and gently sweet flavors (from tomato paste and reduced red wine) in the braise or stew play against one another in what I like to call the “peanut butter and jelly” theorem. When its saltiness and sweetness are well-balanced, a wine transcends its nature as fermented grape juice and transports the user to an enlightened state of sensorial pleasure. Therein lies the magic and mystery of the great wines of the world.
