valkyrie1969: valkyrie1969:gastairfad:boyneriver-fraser:ladywynneoutlander:Hello everyone! F
valkyrie1969: valkyrie1969: gastairfad: boyneriver-fraser: ladywynneoutlander: Hello everyone! For Christmas I got these awesome Outlander wines. I have been saving them for the season to start. I’m watching by myself so I really want to make it a special “me” time. The problem is I don’t know what all of this means, and I would like to have something small to eat that goes with each one. If anyone wants to suggest something I would really appreciate it! Here are the descriptions so they will be a little more readable. Keep reading Any sommeliers or wine lovers out there who could help @ladywynneoutlander? Paging @valkyrie1969 she knows her wine and can surely help @ladywynneoutlander Okay. *cracks knuckles* Here we go, @ladywynneoutlander. This series of wines was released as part of S2 promo about 4 years ago. I bought several bottles for the novelty factor and was pleasantly surprised by the quality. The wines sold out online pretty quickly so I assume someone either bought them a while ago and cellared them before giving them to you, or there is a liquor store in your area that bought far more than local consumer demand. In either case, hopefully they were properly stored (on their side, in a cool dark place) – as you should. [Author’s note: nothing saddens me more than seeing casual wine drinkers buy a few bottles and STORE THEM ABOVE THEIR REFRIGERATOR.] By “something small” to eat with them I’m going to assume that you’re looking for a snack rather than a full meal. Here are my recommendations: La Dame Blanche is what I’d consider a medium-bodied white, rather fruity. Not as sharp or mineral-y as a sauvignon blanc, but in that neighborhood. Less crisp than a Sancerre. I think all of my friends liked it when we drank it a few years ago. This is one I would be tempted to pair with a whipped feta spread on crusty french bread, topped with sliced pears, and drizzled with a balsamic glaze. Sassenach is one I skipped on my order because (a) I’m pretty particular about rose, and (b) where I live it’s absolutely a summer drink and S2 premiered in April when it didn’t feel “in season.” It’s going to be a bit different for a rose’ – much more dry, with some tanins on the finish I assume, like other wines from the Languedoc. If you’re not familiar, tanins are the “bite” that you feel on either side of your tongue when you swallow a tanin-heavy wine. This one is probably, minimal, but you’ll get some. I’d probably pair this with something buttery, like shortbread, but without too sharp of a flavor (like a strong cheese). Fatty, rich flavors help balance and soften the tanins. Mo Nighean Donn is fine. If you’re a serious pinot noir drinker, you’ll find it pretty good for a California pinot (I go for Oregon or French pinots - better climate for that grape.) This will be rather jammy, but not as sweet as a merlot. Sorry - not sure what happened with Tumblr…and it won’t let me edit. Anyway, @ladywynneoutlander… with the pinot you probably have the most options. You could do something dessert-y, like a chocolate tart or something with sea salt caramel. You could get away with an aged cheddar or a gouda cheese with some crackers and dried fruit and nuts. Mac Dubh is a quite nice bottle. It is a deep red that can handle a fair amount of spice. It’s got a more concentrated flavor than the pinot, but a similar fruit profile. I’d probably eat something like a roasted eggplant spread or caponata on toast, crispy cheese sticks, or mini meatballs in a marinara sauce. You could also go with a dark, bitter chocolate to balance the berry flavors. A. Malcolm was my favorite of the bunch. It’s drier than the pinot and less fruity than the syrah. On first pour, it seems like it will be lighter – maybe too placid – but it isn’t. I’ve still got some of this in my cellar and it’s aging quite nicely. We’ve certainly served this with beef tenderloin, duck, and other rich meats. You might try a charcuterie and cheese plate with this bottle – prosciutto, capricola, fontina. Again, the fat in these foods soften the tanins and make the wine open up. Red Jamie. It’s been a while since I drank this, but remember it as being pretty unusual for a cotes du rhone. Much, much more dry than is typical. The carignan grape content adds a lot more of that tanin. This one is the toughest to pair because of the uncommon blend. It’s not a dense enough wine to pair with foods like steak, but the tanin makes it hard to pair with lighter foods in a way. Let’s see… again, you could do cured meats and cheeses with it, but it can also handle Asian and Middle Eastern spice profiles. So I might try some za’atar spiced carrots, mini egg rolls (minus a goopy dipping sauce!), baba ghannouj, chicken shawarma skewers, and the like. [ETA: Please don’t think of this as a typical cotes du rhone – it absolutely isn’t.] I hope that’s helpful! Hit me up if you’d like recipes for anything. [ETA: These were the ones sold as promo for S3, not S2 – those included the ugly Fr*nk bottles that NO ONE bought. These came out in late summer 2017.] Bookmarking!! -- source link