As you know, I am in total denial that winter is here, so lately I have insisted on drinking summer-y wines, generally from the Southern Hemisphere. The sun sets at 4:30 these days, so you have to find ways to trick your body into not falling into a depression. Obviously, wine is the answer. Delicious food helps too. Put the two together and you can occasionally succeed in your anti-depressive measures.
This happened in a completely serendipitous way on Saturday night. Let me preface this story by saying that I am not a fantastic cook by any means, which is unfortunate since I seem to be the primary cook in the house. I love pinterest as much as the next guy and use it to inspire myself to try new things, but sometimes it’s 7 o’clock on Saturday night and you are HANGRY (i.e. hungry to the point of anger) and you need to throw something together FAST before it comes to blows. On this particular Saturday night, pan-fried fish was the fastest thing that came to mind. What I concocted in the end wasn’t anything fancy: tilapia, rice and stir-fried swiss chard. Given the h-anger, I didn’t have too much time to deliberate on a wine either, so I just grabbed the only bottle I had in the fridge: Oyster Bay chardonnay from (surprise, surprise) New Zealand.
You may recognize this wine from this post
We were totally blown away by this pairing. The weight of this medium-bodied wine was the perfect match for the meaty texture of the fish. The acidity of the wine successfully cut through the butter in which the fish was sautéed, leaving behind only citrus, tropical fruit and stone fruit flavours on the tongue. My not-so-secret seasoning for tilapia is tarragon, which I find adds a sort of nutty component to the dish, which played off the subtle oakiness of the wine in a way that absolutely delighted the tastebuds.
By the time I realized I needed to write about this amazing food-wine pairing, both our plates looked like they had been attacked by a pack of wild dogs. It was not pretty. This was the best picture we got (using leftovers):
Tilapia and Oyster Bay Chardonnay
Does this mean I need to start photographing all my meals before I start eating, just in case of an orgasmic pairing?
I am acutely aware that my posts of late have been heavily focused on white wines, specifically those from southerly latitudes. As a result, I am making it my goal for the rest of the month to accept my fate as an inhabitant of the Northern Hemisphere and embrace the premature winter. And this means drinking more seasonally appropriate wines. Which brings us to our next topic…
Balderson cheese and Canadian wine pairings
Henry of Pelham Cuvée Catharine Rosé Brut + Double-Smoked Cheddar
As you can tell by the amount of wine left in the bottle, this was a very popular wine in our household! This lovely rosé bubbly from Niagara is a blend of chardonnay and pinot noir.
Made using the traditional method of Champagne, this wine is aged on its lees for over two years, contributing a delicious biscuity aroma in addition to that of strawberries and roses. The fine bubbles positively dance on the tongue! They are the secret to this fabulous pairing.
The effervescence of this wine is what helps it stand up to the cheese, cutting through its smokiness and creamy texture, while the fruity characteristics of the wine complement the flavours. A festive and fun pairing!
Harwood Merlot + Vintner’s Cheddar
Just because the label on the cheese shows a glass of white wine doesn’t mean you can’t think outside the box! So how about a juicy merlot to go with your cheddar?
Harwood Estate is an entirely solar-powered winery in Prince Edward County. Its ruby-red merlot shows glorious black fruit on the nose, and on the palate reveals black cherry, raspberry, plum, leather, and smoke.
The tannins are nicely integrated in this delicious medium-bodied red, whose fruit-forward flavours, good acidity and texture is a great match for the creamy Vintner’s Cheddar. This wine gets bonus points from me because of the sailboat on the label.
Happy wining, friends!