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Local Resources | Wine Pairing with Paul |
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| Written by Dine Us Webmaster | |
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Page 3 of 5 I quickly make my appetizer selection … Beef Carpaccio, thinly sliced raw tenderloin topped with capers, red onion, dressed baby spinach greens, and Parmigiano cheese and a small dollop of Caesar dressing. I purposely tried to make this a little harder … what to pair with Beef Carpaccio? Okay, the nerves are back, but with my trusty bartender Lauren at my side and my own sense of wine knowledge, I try 4 different wines … 2 reds and 2 whites. Not full glasses, folks, just 1 oz. tastes … I need to keep this article PG-13 per Lisa! The general rule as we know is red meat, red wine … but what about raw red meat? So we decide on the Trebbiano Antonori Italian white, Charles de Fere Blanc French Sparkling, the Spalletti Chianti from Italy and the Cantina Zaccagnini from Italy. Apparently, I must believe that Beef Carpaccio is Italian, who knew? And I’m feeling lucky because I get to taste so many different wines tonight, but hey, I’m going to roll with it. So here goes … The Trebbiano was nice & clean … it could easily have been my entrance wine while I looked at the menu as Lauren had suggested. But it did nothing really at all to enhance the excellent beef carpaccio. The Charles de Fere Blanc de Blancs Reserve Brut from France was very interesting and refreshing. It’s a great sparkling on its own (Champagnes are called Champagnes if they are from Champagne, France … all else is Sparkling) and consistently gets rated from The Wine Enthusiast, which they proudly wear on their label. I thought it brought out a sparkle to the beef & paired nicely with the dressings. It may not be the best choice, but it was definitely a fun choice. The Spalletti Chianit from Italy paired nicely. The medium bodied wine was smooth enough to go right along with the carpaccio, and added to the dish, but nothing overwhelmingly perfect about this choice. The Cantina Zaccagnini, however, proved to be the winner. It was an excellent match & made Lauren & I quite proud. The menu description really says it all about the wine … “Rich fruit aromas lead to a velvety palate dotted with peppery spice. An expressive, multi-layered wine capped with a succulent, long finish.” The wine went well with the entire dish, and is definitely a keeper. A bottle of this might do well with an entire meal, depending of course, on all off the above. Bottom line … it looks like red wine does go best with red meat, even raw. But for a twist here, try a nice sparkling or perhaps even a Prosecco, which is usually lighter and fruitier than a regular sparkling. I knew what my entrée choice would be even before I was going in to Caffé Phoenix … it’s actually my favorite dish in town … The Spinachi con Proscuitto. And when you say it with an Italian accent, it sounds even better! This dish is linguine and fresh spinach tossed with thin ribbons of imported prosciutto ham, fresh basil, garlic, parmigiano and pine nuts, and is served warm. I was never one to order pasta out, unless I was out with my Dad … then, it was almost a requirement. But this dish is absolutely excellent, and a must try for any budding Italian. |
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