Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Goat Cheese Ravioli with two Sauces: A Sun Dried Tomato Sauce and White Wine Sauce with Truffle Oil

"Goat cheese in a dish will help to heighten the fruit in a wine"
- Madeline Triffon, MS


Goat Cheese Ravioli with two Sauces: A Sun Dried Tomato Sauce and White Wine Sauce with Truffle Oil
Introduction: For our food and wine pairing project we prepared goat cheese ravioli with two sauces; a sun-dried tomato sauce (red) and a white wine sauce with truffle oil (white). For the tasting we tried wines with the two sauces and found that one wine worked best with both sauces. Because of this, we decided to stick with the two sauces. The focus of our pre-tasting research was to find potential matches for the ravioli and sun-dried tomato combination.
Pre-Tasting Research – Food Elements: Prior to tasting the dish, we thought there would be three dominant elements in the food which would require consideration; goat cheese (in the ravioli) and the sun-dried tomato and garlic (in the red sauce) . We believed the goat cheese would provide the dish with both texture and acidity but would carry flavour rather than provide it. Classic wine matches with goat cheese are wines with a healthy amount of acid such as Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Chablis, Pinot Noir or Champagne.
The sun-dried tomato adds both fruit and more acidity to the dish. Like the goat cheese, tomato benefits from acidic wines. Brian Duncan, Wine Director at Bin 36, says "if you pair it [tomato] with a fruity high acid wine, it is like tasting a tomato for the very first time". Also, like the goat cheese, tomato can be paired equally well with white and red wines. The classic tomato/wine pairings are Barbera, Sangiovese, Pinot Noir or Sauvignon Blanc. With two dominant acidic elements in our dish we had to be especially careful to abide by Rule #2: The acidity of the food must be equal to or less than the acidity of the wine.
Garlic is an omnipresent element in the sun-dried tomato pesto. Garlic, thankfully, is not highly acidic but it is very pungent. That pungency should be matched with herbal elements in a wine. Suggested matches are Sauvignon Blanc or unoaked Chardonnay.
Pre-Tasting Research – Potential Wines: Sauvignon Blanc is the one wine which appears to be a good match with all three food elements. Sauvignon Blanc is known for being a dry wine that has a high level of acidity with strong aromatics of grass, citrus, and gooseberry. The high acidity level should match the acidity of both the goat cheese and the tomato, while providing sufficient fruit and herbal elements to compliment the tomato and the garlic.
Gewürztraminer is a medium bodied wine with strong aromatics of floral and fruit that can contain some spicy elements. When well made, a Gewürztraminer should have enough acid to pair with the goat cheese and tomato while the fruit from the wine should pair nicely with fruit of the tomato. The spicy elements could compliment the pungency of the garlic.
Barbera is known for acidity that, as Oz Clarke says, “rarely fails”. It can be light and cherry-fresh or darker and more serious. The acidity should pair nicely with acidity of the dish; while the goat cheese should bring out the fruit to match the tomato.
Sangiovese has a high level of natural acidity, which this dish requires. The traditional flavours of a Tuscan Sangiovese are of cherries, violets and some herbal/grassy elements, which should pair well with the fruit of tomato and herbal elements of the garlic.
Pinot Noir is known for its acidity and delicate fruit flavours of strawberry, cherry and mushroom. The goat cheese could help bring out the fruit in the wine and could provide a good match for the acidity of the dish.
Sparkling Shiraz may not have the acidity to balance the acidity of the sun-dried tomato and goat cheese, but this should be helped by the effervescence of the wine. The fruit from the Shiraz should pair nicely with the fruit of the tomato and there could be some herbal elements or spice left to match the garlic.
Due to time and budget constraints we chose four wines. A Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, an Italian Chianti, a Burgundy Pinot Noir and an Italian Barbera. Due to the limited number of Barbera’s available we ended up with the heavier style when we would have preferred the lighter. A fifth wine, a white Rioja made from the Viura grape , was bought with the idea of matching with the cream sauce. [See the Appendix for details]
The Tasting: We tried the wines with the cream sauce, minus the parsley garnish, first. Surprisingly, we preferred the Chianti and Barbera to both white wines. The Sauvignon Blanc matched the acidity of the sauce and cut the cream but left an unpleasant bitter grassy flavour on the palate. This was helped by the addition of parsley which matched the grassy flavour and prevented it from leaving a lingering sensation on the palate. The white Rioja did not have the acidity to match the acidity in the dish and felt flabby on the palate. The dish accentuated the tannins in the Pinot Noir, leaving a gripping sensation in the mouth, and the barnyard flavours did not contrast well. The Chianti was the best match before the parsley was added. The acidity of Chianti matched the acidity of the dish and brought out the onion and pepper in the cream sauce. The Barbera was a good match but the body and tannins of the wine made it the second choice. After the parsley was added the Sauvignon Blanc was on par with the Chianti and the Barbera third. The parsley matched the Sauvignon Blanc’s grassy notes and added a nice fresh element.
The ravioli with the sun-died tomato sauce was as expected; it needed a high level of acidity to match its acid but brought out the fruit in the wine. As a result it proved to be a wine friendly food with all of the wines benefiting from the pairing. The least beneficial match with this sauce was the Pinot Noir which did not have enough acid to stand up to the dish and had mushroom flavours that did not contrast well with the red sauce. The white Rioja displayed wonderful spice, tropical fruit and flora aromas but failed to freshen the palate. The Barbera displayed red fruit and earthy elements but the body was too heavy and lacked the necessary acid. Once again, the best two matches were Sauvignon Blanc and Chianti. The reason was that both had the necessary acidity, fruit and herbal elements to match the dish. The Chianti was a fine match but the consensus was that the Sauvignon Blanc was the better match because it its robust herbal elements.
Conclusion: It was no shock that the Sauvignon Blanc paired well with the goat cheese as the literature indicates this is a classic match. The surprised was that we preferred a red wine with a white sauce and a white wine with a red sauce. We were reminded how easily one can get stuck in stereotypes which limit taste experiences. We were also surprised that the addition of parsley could have such an impact on a wine pairing. Parsley is frequently used as garnish and can, as a result, often be over looked when considering matches.
At the end of the tasting we decided to present the ravioli with two sauces and one wine because we were impressed that two tremendously different sauces would pair well with the same wine. We thought that it highlighted the versatility of both the goat cheese ravioli and the Sauvignon Blanc, while demonstrating that different foods can contain similar elements that allow them to be matched with a single wine.


Appendix
The Dish:
The ravioli was hand made and stuffed with a goat cheese and some parmigiano reggiano cheese. The ravioli was cooked in water with a splash of salt and some olive oil. Both sauces were then poured over the ravioli, had the garnish added and served.

Goat Cheese Ravioli fill
The Ravioli is filled with:
3 cups Goat cheese
2 to 3 eggs
1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese
¼ cup bread crumbs.

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto
Blend:
1 can of sun-dried tomatoes in oil
4 to 5 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of capers
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
after you blend this ingredients you add
1 cup of parmigiano reggiano cheese
1 cup of romano cheese
pepper and salt to taste
Heat and add a splash of cream
Top with Basil

Creamy Sauvignon Blanc and White Truffle Sauce
Butter
sauté chopped French Shallots
Add Sauvignon Blanc and reduce
add 35% cream
add oregano
add sea salt
add truffle oil

Topped with pine nuts, pepper and parsley.



The Wines:
Wine LCBO Description
COOPERS CREEK SAUVIGNON BLANC (V) With its lively aromas of citrus, fresh herbs, gooseberry and lime, this is a fine example of how New Zealand winemakers have become masters of Sauvignon Blanc. It is racy, refreshing and perfectly balanced.
CONDE DE VALDEMAR WHITE 2006 Made from the Spain's popular Viura grape, (aka Macabeo), this light and fruity white possesses notes of white flower, yellow fruit, melon, and oak/spice hints. Crisp and fresh, it has excellent length.
CHANSON PÈRE & FILS LE BOURGOGNE PINOT NOIR (V) This sleek and classically built wine shows that Burgundy produces stunning Pinot Noir for all budgets. This elegant, medium-bodied, beautifully structured red treats the palate to flavours of sour cherry, spices, underbrush and a hint of minerality as well as a finish that lasts and lasts
GABBIANO CHIANTI DOCG This wine is clear, bright and ruby-red in color. The bouquet is reminiscent of ripe plums spiced with pepper and wood nuances. The first sip reveals invigorating flavors of sour cherry, blackberry, and spice followed by a dry vivid finish. This Chianti is bold enough to complement rich and spicy pasta dishes, and is also perfect with tangy chicken or gourmet pizza.
ASCHERI BARBERA D'ALBA FONTANELLE (V) This single-vineyard Barbera gives you a taste of Piedmont for a song! It displays elegant aromas of ripe cherry, red plum, leather, and hints of new oak. Medium-bodied, it's fresh and fruity with sour cherry and plum flavours, ripe tannins and a medium-long finish


Sources
Dornenburg, Andrew and Page, Karen. What to Drink with What you Eat. Bulfinch Press, New York, 2006.
Clark, Oz. Grapes and Wines: The Definitive Guide To The World’s Great Grapes And The Wines They Make. Websters International Publishers, 2007.
Harrington, Robert J. Food and Wine Pairing: A Sensory Experience. John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, New Jersey, 2008.
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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

The Ottawa Food and Wine Show

For three days the Ottawa Civic centre was turned into Ottawa's largest bar serving cheap ass swill to horny public servants. I am sure my buddies that went to pick up girls had a good time but if you went there wanting to taste some great wine you likely ended up burping oak.

One of the most disappointing aspects of the show is the total ignorance of the wine representatives. It is totally unbelievable that a rep would not know where the region of their wine, the grape, whether it was oaked or not. But every now and then I'd come across someone that wasn't a body hired to pour.

My best experience came from talking with the winemaker at the Grange of Prince Edward County. He explained to me that malolactic fermentation sounded like the snap crackle and pop of Rice Krispies. He also allowed me to taste his just bottled 2007 Pinot Noir, 2007 Pinot Noir Reserve, and 2007 Cabernet Franc Reserve. I wish I could provide a full description but I wasn't taking notes and it was at the end of the evening.....meaning I was 1/2 in the bag. What I can tell you is that the 2007 Pinot Noir, which is suppose to sell at $19 a bottle will be a steal. The wine is a beautiful cherry red and has class pinot noir elements or cherry and sweet spice on the nose and sour cherry on the palate. The reserve was tighter but it was clearly more concentrated. With time in the bottle it will open up and should blossom into a wonderful wine. This is a winery worth keeping an eye on.

Drum Roll please........ Here are the wine shows GOLD MEDAL WINNERS

The Grange of Prince Edward Country 'Trumpour's Mill' Riesling VQA Ontario 2007 $15.80
This was a nice wine with the classic Riesling notes of petroleum, white flowers and honey. This is a dry wine and you better like a wine with a solid backbone of acid.

Konzelmann Estate Winery 'White Moose' Rielsing VQA Niagara Peninsula 2007 $13.20 - I honestly can't remember anything about this wine. Which i guess means it wasn't offensive....like the corked wine I drank last night. So....giver a try its only 13.20.

Citra Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC Abruzzo, Italy 2007 $7.25 - You would have never guess this less than $8 dollar. It was an earthy and had good aromatics. A good buy at $14 a great buy $7 if your supplying wine to others. I am not suggesting buying an arm full but if your going to a party or a pot luck this wine will fullfill you obligation and won't make you smack the person that brings a bag of Lays.

Waitiri Creek Pinot Noir Central Otago, South Island, New Zealand 2006 $37.95 - Can you overpriced? This wine won best in show but for $37.95 you can keep it. It was ripe but it smelled nothing like a pinot noir. If you want something ripe go pick up $16 shriaz for Australia.

Woodbridge Cabernet Sauvignon , USA $13 - This wine is plunk. It is likely made from unripe grapes and soaked in woodchips, imparting a woody vanilla to the green pepper. It is barely identifiable as Cabernet Sauvignon and I would suggest never ever buying this wine.

Konzelmann Estate Winery Vidal Ice Wine - This is a classic vidal ice wine. It has nice hints of honey, citrus and spice. If your looking for a sweet desert wine this will do. Personally I would rather go for a late harvest or botrytis infected wine.
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Friday, November 7, 2008

Top 25 Wine Songs



Yesterday I was listening to CBC radio 2 and heard a great wine song. So I started thinking, what are the best wine songs of all time. And since everyone love a top a top ten list I’ll over due things with a top 25. The rating is in part my musical taste and in part how much the song has to do with wine.

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Friday, October 17, 2008

Posts To Come!

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