Food and Wine Pairing: Shiraz.

So, today's wine for food pairing is SHIRAZ!

I've chosen to start with the 'King of Reds'.  Shiraz (or Syrah) is pretty much the most popular red wine there is on the Australian market (and Australia is the biggest producer of Shiraz in the world).  And yes, it is pretty darn delicious.  If you're a straight up Shiraz drinker, please don't neglect the other red wine varietals.  Pinot, Merlot and poor old Cabernet Sauvignon get so overlooked, especially with a spike in popularity of European varietals like Tempranillo and Sangiovese.  But never fear, we will get to all of them in due course.  For now we'll start at the very beginning. 

 

So, Shiraz can come in many guises.  It's a versatile grape and depending on where it was grown, cool or warm climate, and how it is made into wine, there is a huge range in flavours and characters that can be produced.  This versatility really helps when looking at food pairing, because essentially you can probably find a Shiraz which will tick any box you need it to; lighter bodied and savoury, or sticky dark fruit flavours with intense tannins.  In general Shiraz is quite a full bodied fruity drop.  There are notes of charred summer fruits, pepper, liquorice, berries, currants and even chocolate.  It is distinctive and delicious.

Shiraz pairs well with beef.  However duck and pork with heavily flavoured savoury sauces also work well (mmmm, Peking Duck!).  Shiraz doesn't really work quite so well with cheeses.  It you really only drink Shiraz (perhaps it's time to expand your horizons a bit!), and want to eat cheese at the same time, try a creamy cheese like Camembert or Brie.  Even a smoked softer cheddar would work well.

I'm a big fan of Shiraz, and we've got loads of it in our organic and preservative free range.  I find it hard to go past the Paxton MV Shiraz for price and excellence, James Halliday gave it 95 points recently, and for a wine at the $20 price point this is nothing short of outstanding, we've also got the amazingly special Paxton Jones Block... so worth a little splurge.  It's no secret that I'm also a fan of the Kalleske Moppa, it's BIG, and impressive, the hearty flavours leave you in no doubt that this is indeed a Shiraz.  Oh, and I couldn't neglect to mention the Bunn Shiraz, it's warming and spicy all wrapped up in rich velvety fruit flavours.  Man, I am so having a bottle of Shiraz tonight.  You can read up on our range on our website, and if you feel so inclined put in an order for a bottle or two.

Now to what I've been eating while sipping shiraz... In my recent food adventures, I've been playing around with Beef Wellington.  Seriously, if you haven't tried this dish, GET ONTO IT.  It is nothing short of amazeballs.  For the uninitiated it is a prime cut of fillet beef, wrapped in pates and prosciutto, surrounded with flaky pastry.  Baked in the oven and served with a rich red wine sauce, wilted greens (or green beans) and creamy-buttery mashed potatoes, it is my 'death row last meal'.  So, so good.  (**Pauses from writing to wipe drool off chin).

I've tried a few different recipes for BW, but one that I really liked, and was pretty simple, is by potty mouthed chef Gordon Ramsay.  I'll include it here, with my own adaptations, plus a recipe for a velvety sauce to go with it.   

 

Gordon Ramsay's Kick A#*@

Beef Wellington.

Ingredients

• 400g flat cap mushrooms, roughly chopped
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil, for cooking
• 750g piece of prime beef fillet
• 1-2 tbsp English mustard
• 6-8 slices of Parma ham
• 500g ready-made puff pastry (or a couple of puff pastry sheets joined up)
• Flour, to dust
• 2 egg yolks, beaten

To keep the pastry light and crisp, I wrap the beef and mushrooms in a layer of prosciutto to keep the pastry free from moisture (sort of, there is always some seepage).  Some people even use thin crepes, but I can't resist the salty parma ham!

Method

1. Put the mushrooms into a food processor with some seasoning and pulse to a rough paste. Scrape the paste into a pan and cook over a high heat for about 10 mins, tossing frequently, to cook out the moisture from the mushrooms. Cook for longer if you need to.  Spread out on a plate to cool.
2. Heat in a frying pan and add a little olive oil. Season the beef and sear in the hot pan for 30 secs only on each side. (You don't want to cook it at this stage, just colour it.) Remove the beef from the pan and leave to cool, then brush all over with the mustard - I like lots of mustard, and have found that the cooking process seems to mellow the 'hot' flavour, so don't be frightened to go hard.
3. Lay a sheet of cling film on a work surface and arrange the prosciutto slices on it, in slightly overlapping rows. With a palette knife, spread the mushroom paste over the ham, then place the seared beef fillet in the middle. Keeping a tight hold of the cling film from the edge, neatly roll the prosciutto and mushrooms around the beef to form a tight barrel shape. Twit the ends of the cling film to secure. Chill for 15-20 mins minimum to allow the beef to set and keep its shape.  (You could even complete this part of the process the day before).
4. Roll out the puff pastry (or use the shop bought sheets) on a floured surface to a large rectangle, the thickness of a $2 coin. Remove the cling film from the beef, then lay in the centre. Brush the surrounding pastry with egg yolk. Fold the ends over, the wrap the pastry around the beef, cutting off any excess. Turn over, so the seam is underneath, and place on a baking sheet. Brush over all the pastry with egg and chill for about 15 mins to let the pastry rest.
5. Heat the oven to 200ºC.
6. Lightly score the pastry at 1cm intervals and glaze again with beaten egg yolk. Bake for 20 minutes , then lower the oven setting to 180ºC and cook for another 15 mins. Allow to rest for 10-15 mins before slicing and serving with the accompaniments. The beef should still be pink in the centre when you serve it.

For my sauce I started with about 500 mls of BONE BROTH (this is just a super duper version of stock that has been slow cooked for 70 odd hours...sooooooo good!).  I get this boiling away on the stove then add a good slug or two of red wine, SHIRAZ in this instance.  I continue to cook until the sauce is reduced by about half and is quite thick, if it isn't thickening up well enough (or if you've just used regular stock), take out about 3 tablespoons of liquid and mix in 1 tablespoon of plain flour until you've formed a smooth paste, then return to the sauce.  As a final thickener and to add that bit of glossy deliciousness add a good tablespoon of butter.  Taste and then season with salt, pepper, and any other flavour profile you'd like (maybe a hint of chili, or a whack of hot English mustard?).  Basically tinker about with the sauce until you get a consistency, and flavour, that you like.

So, there you have it, what to eat when you've got a cracking Shiraz to drink.  And if you haven't got one on hand, drop by our website and order some!

Happy drinking!

Food and Wine Pairing: Rosé

It seems that if you put 'food and wine pairing' into a search engine these days you will be completely inundated with blog posts and web pages galore telling you which drop goes best with what dish.  It's a complicated business. In the interests of making things a bit simpler, and a bit more hands on, I've decided to do some regular posts on the topic, and I might even add in the occasional recipe to try along with some suggested wine matches.

I absolutely love cooking, it's totally my 'down time' thing.  In my younger years (not all that long ago, I might add), I would spend days preparing special dishes for dinner parties.  I held an Indian dinner party for 16 people once, there were 5 curries, all prepared from scratch.  I don't get the chance to do as much of it as I used to (thanks kids!!), but I still get to salivate over recipe books, and occasionally there is a special dinner party, or a romantic evening planned, where I can try out something a bit more complicated than pasta and meat sauce (again, thanks kids...). Anyway, matching the food I cook to the perfect beverage is also a passion.  There is nothing worse than sitting down to a cracking good meal, and taking a sip of completely the wrong wine.  There can be a massive clash of flavours in your mouth, spoiling what could have been a marriage made in heaven.

We've got a few Rosés up on our website, and just this week we introduced a great new Preservative Free Rosé from Temple Bruer in stock at the moment.  It's seriously awesome, and has inspired me to write about this 'Pink Drink' that is often scorned by those who 'think' they know a thing or two about wine.  Now, rose has been given a bad wrap over the years.  It has serious associations with 1970s dinner parties, women in platform shoes, gold one piece jump suits, glossy lipstick and overly sweet PINK wine.  I'm here to tell you that it's time to put aside old prejudices and look at that pink vino with new eyes.  It's versatile to the max, and I'm sure that there will be a style that is bound to float your boat. 






The Temple Bruer 2014 Preservative Free Rosé, is a real beauty.  It is awash with flavours of cherry, watermelon and citrus. The crisp palate shows tropical fruit and citrus, fresh pineapple and lime characters. There is a little hint of chalky tannins on the finish and a cleansing gentle acidity. It's a wine of medium weight (and only 12% alcohol!) and is well suited to many Asian foods.  I served it up with a curry last night and all were suitably impressed.  We've got this for sale from $18.50 on our website.  Seriously, do yourself a favour and try it.  One word:  YUM.




So the upshot is, Rosé is not necessarily sweet.  In fact, you'd have to have been living under a rock not to have noticed the sheer number of different kinds of Rosés available at your local bottle-o.  Just to give you a mini 101 lesson on the kinds of Rosé available, as well as the kinds of food you might serve with them...read on!

Light dry Rosé - 

This style is generally made with Pinot Noir grapes.  The closest comparison would be to a crisp dry white like a Pinot Gris.  It pairs amazingly well with light meals, salads, a light pasta or rice dish, goats cheese, seafood, shellfish.  Basically it is great for summer time drinking.

Light off-dry Rosé - 

This style is similar that above, but with a touch of sweetness.  It is more in line with a traditional rosé from Portugal (Mateus).  This pairs well with the same foods are above, but also lightly spiced dishes, like an Indian curry or Asian foods.  If you're keen to try this style, we've got a lovely Knight's Templar Rose.

Medium dry Rosé - 

Zinfandel or sparkling zin.  This kind of rosé is often called 'Blush' .  And you guessed it, it pairs well with the above foods including the spicy foods.  It also kicks as a dessert wine, provided the dessert isn't overly sweetened.

Medium bodied dry Rosé -

 This style is in line with rose from the Spanish Rioja region.  It is very accommodating in terms of food matching.  It's not overly sweet, and It can stand up to some punchy flavours, like olives, garlic, anchovies, etc.  It goes well with a good paella, grilled meats, a charcuterie plate, tapas, pre-dinner nibbles of pate or rillettes.  It's a winner.

Elegant, Fruity Rosé - 

Often Melot based, this is a rosé with many of the same qualities as a good Pinot Noir.  It should be drunk with big ticket dinner items like rare lamb, duck, salmon, tuna, or if you're feeling flush, LOBSTER!

Full bodied fruity Rosé - 

You'll find lots of these in Australia.  And in line with our obsession with Shiraz and flavours that are bold, big and obvious, this Rosé is all that.  It's heavy handed with the fruit flavours.  It's often served chilled and goes well with curries, Asian food, a barbeque or the like.  

Sparkling Rosé - 

These are lots of these on the Australian market, and for good reason.  They're fun and tasty!  They are a great social drink, and can range from dry to medium dry.  They are great with nibbles (cheese, nuts, smoked salmon, etc), or can be served with sweet treats like cakes and sweet tarts.  We've got a lovely Rosnay Sparkling Vintage Rose for a good price.

Rosé Champagne - 

For really impressing someone!  Again, these can vary between lighter and more full bodied flavours and levels of sweetness.  This style usually suits canapes, like Blinis and such.  A more serious vintage number would go well with game birds.

I hope this little post has helped clarify matters for you.  Normally I'll include a recipe to match the wine varietal that I'm food pairing with, but there is such a huge variation in styles of Rosé that I could be blogging for hours.  I think the info I've given you should be sufficient to lead you in the right direction when it comes to preparing a suitable meal to go with any Rosé.  And should you want to try a good Organic or Preservative Free Rosé, please check out our website.  Good wine, good value!


Happy drinking!

Crackers and White Frontignac

This weekend was a quite one at my place.  We've all been knocked out with various illnesses, and this was the time to catch up on some relax time around the house.  You know the drill, lots of crawling back into bed with the newspaper, endless cups of tea, DVD marathons.  Fun!

However, with three small children in the house there also had to be some 'action'.  So we chose baking.

I've made my own crackers before, and honestly I can't rave enough about them.  Crackers that you buy from the supermarket often have long list of 'ingredients', many of these ingredients are just numbers....hmmm.  And more often than not the vegetable oil they use is unlabelled palm oil.  We are massive palm oil avoiders knowing how damaging the industry is for the environment, and how animals (namely, and most famously, orangutans and sun bears) are being killed and displaced just so we can have tasty crackers or two minute noodles.  I much prefer to know exactly what I'm eating, and what my kids are eating...hence organic wine, and home made goodies!   

**If you're passionate about palm oil, you can have a look at the P.O.I. (Palm Oil Investigations), which has a handy app to tell you if something is palm oil free, or from certified palm plantations. 

 


These crackers are really easy (if a little time consuming), and the result is always a winner. I've done a bit of research, and have discovered a recipe that is pretty much foolproof.  I nabbed it from fellow blogger at 'The Kitchn'  who seems to have quite a few nice looking recipes and a cook book to boot.  I'll pop my slightly modified recipe below so that you can just get in and start making.






Anyway, once the crackers were baked, there was a required 'tasting' session.  What better to have with a plate of crackers and Danish fetta cheese?  A zesty white wine of course! I chose to crack open one of my faves, a White Frontignac by Temple Bruer.  It is one of their limited release natural wines, made by Verity Stanistreet, and honestly it is good, good, good!  There were only 44 dozen bottles of this wine made, so it's worth trying to get your hands on it if you can (which you can!).  




White Frontignac is an interesting drop and not a varietal that you come across often.  To taste, there are notes of rose, pear and lychee which gently grip your mouth.  Then the flavour palette shifts to  spearmint and tangy lemon sorbet.  It's quite something... a really interesting wine, in both taste and mouth feel.  The wine was fermented partly on solids to provide extra texture and mouth feel.  



If your mouth is watering now, why not order a bottle? 

Happy drinking!

The Delicious and Easy Cracker Recipe

Ingredients
3 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup water
 
Optional topping: 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, 1 tablespoon fennel seeds, 1 tablespoon poppy seeds, 1 teaspoon sea salt
 
Equipment
Mixing bowl
Measuring cups and spoons
Sturdy spoon or spatula
Rolling pin
Pastry brush
Pizza cutter or sharp knife
Baking sheet
Dinner fork

 

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 210°C: 
2. Line some baking trays with non stick baking paper.
3. Mix together the dry ingredients.
4. Add the oil and water:  Stir until a soft, sticky dough is formed. If a lot of loose flour remains in the bottom of the bowl and the surface of the dough, add more water a tablespoon at a time until all the flour is incorporated.
5. Divide and shape the dough into a square: Divide the dough into two halves and set one half aside. Sprinkle your work surface lightly with flour and set the other half on top. Pat it into a thick square with your hands.
6. Roll out the dough: Working from the center of the dough out, roll the dough into a rectangle roughly 3-4mm thick or thinner if you prefer crispier crackers. If the dough starts to shrink back as you roll it, let it rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes and then continue rolling.
7. Sprinkle dough with topping (optional): Brush the surface of the dough very lightly with water. Combine the seeds in a small bowl and sprinkle half of them (roughly 1 1/2 tablespoons) evenly over the surface of the dough.Press the seeds or toppings into the dough (you could even lightly roll the dough again).
8. Cut the dough into cracker-sized rectangles: Using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, cut the dough into individual crackers roughly 3 cm by 3 cm. Alternatively, cut the crackers into squares, diamonds, or use cookie cutters.  We went pretty free form, as the kids were helping.
9. Transfer crackers to baking tray and prick with fork:  It's fine to crowd the crackers very close to each other. Prick each cracker with the tines of a fork to prevent them from puffing during baking.
10. Bake for 12-15 minutes: Bake the crackers in the oven for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are browned. Thinner crackers will bake more quickly than thicker ones; you can remove the crackers as they brown to your liking and continue baking the rest. While the first batch of crackers is baking, roll out and cut the remaining dough.
11. Cool and store the crackers: Transfer the baked crackers to a wire rack to cool completely. The crackers will crisp further as they cool. Store the crackers in an airtight container on the counter for 3-5 days (they won't last that long!). If you're crackers are a little old and less-than-crispy, lay them on a baking sheet and put them in a 180°F oven for a few minutes to re-crisp.

TOPPINGS:  I added a good couple of teaspoons of garlic power to the dry ingredients, which gives the crackers a bit of a kick. For one batch I added finely chopped herbs from the garden to the dough and then topped with finely grated parmesan cheese...DELICIOUS!  The second back I topped with poppy seeds, sunflower seeds and sea salt.  Scrumbo and very crispy.  Other toppings could include chilli flakes, fennel seeds,  pesto, or really anything you feel brave enough to try.  If using a wet ingredient like pesto, you may need to adjust the amount of water or oil you add.