Wine Dinner Blog 1 2/20

 

My friend and I (also in geography of wine) made a dinner with a side dish and dessert and tried three different wines with each course.

First, we had a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand (far left in first picture). I read that Sauvignon Blanc goes well with roasted asparagus and that was our side dish tonight (along with roasted squash). We only had Burgundy glasses and used them for all three wines, except my friend had her Sauvignon Blanc in an unspecified glass from the dollar tree's halloween collection. This 100% Sauvignon Blanc, called Matua (2021, $12), was from Marlborough, New Zealand and the description says it is best paired with seafood. It was very light and sweet with a slight grassy taste and a mostly fruity, sweet flavor. Compared my typical red wines, I would say it had a light body, but compared to other whites I have had, I would say medium body. Our first course was roasted asparagus and roasted yellow squash seasoned with lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil and I thought the wine paired perfectly with the vegetables. It played up the light, spring-like taste and I thought it was delicious. Because the wine was fruity, and the vegetables very savory, they paired well together and the food made the wine taste even sweeter. I really enjoyed this combination.

Our main dish was a pasta dish with Italian inspiration that I created a few years ago called "chickpea pasta". We used whole wheat pasta and the sauce consists of mashed chickpeas with a vegetable broth/pasta water mixture, lemon juice, fresh and sun-dried tomatoes, lots of spices, and garlic. We paired it with a boxed Red Blend (year unspecified, $16) called Provisions from Valle Central, Chile (middle in first picture) that had very little information on the box. The box did not specify which grape varieties were included in the blend, but the website says 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Syrah, 20% Malbec. The description specifies notes of raspberry, chocolate, and soft tannins and I find that description to be very accurate. It is a delicious wine with a mild dry and fruity taste with a medium-big body. I think it paired very well with our pasta and the pairing made me enjoy the wine more than before. It only encouraged the salty, and slightly acidic components of the pasta, and both complemented each other. I thought that it made the food taste lighter since the wine was on the heavier side.

Our final wine was called Alamos (2020, $10) from Argentina at the foot of the Andes mountains (far right in first picture). It is 100% Malbec, as I read that Malbec pairs well with chocolate, and we paired it with a chocolate peanut butter pie with a graham cracker crust. The wine description says it has hints of black cherry and blackberry with a long lingering finish, and while I definitely taste the fruity elements of the wine, but I disagree with the "long lingering finish". In my opinion, the red blend we paired with our main course had a longer finish than this Malbec. I didn't think it had any finish at all, which was a bit disappointing. I would say it had a light-medium body as far as reds go, and while it was lacking a finish, it was still very enjoyable. I thought the fruity flavors made the heavier, fatty pie taste lighter. The lighter wine did cut through the heavy food a bit making a very complementing pair.