QPR wine buying and why you should leave the hype at home

It may seem strange, but for me, pacing through the aisles of a supermarket or wine shop, meticulously examining prospective bottles of wine to purchase is an ever enjoyable event.  The fact is, I find the expansion of my palate exhilarating, educational and useful (from both a professional and recreational perspective).  And like most people, I don't have the funds (nor the desire in many ways) to pick up a mixed case of cult California Cab, Grand Cru White Burgundy and Bordeaux on a whim.  

Clearly that example is exaggeration and generalization but there does exist a sect of people looking for "good" wine who will settle for any Cab or Chardonnay as long as it has a heavy bottle, price tag over $40-50 and says Napa Valley on the label.  My clear tone of resentment comes after a visit to a fine wine shop in downtown San Diego where overpriced bottles of Silver Oak, Caymus, Paul Hobbs, Heitz, etc. lined the walls of the cellar... very original.  Sure I'd love to get my hands on some Napa Cult product but can I afford it - absolutely not.  Even if I could spare a grand on a case of wine, there are hundreds of wines I'd buy before I'd look at California Cab.  So enough with hyperbole, the point is that wine is a worldly substance whose quality should be measured subjectively, regardless of label, price, etc.  The goal of this article is to halt the hypnosis of repetitive wine buying and expose the enjoyment of finding interesting new wines of great value - quality price ratio (qpr) baby.

When I go shopping the bottles I see on the shelves look more like Charles Shaw than Chateau Latour.  It may seem confusing trying to sort through the myriad syrah, meritage, and

chardonnay with flashy labels, catchy names and prices barely into double digits or less, but if you know what you like and what to look for there are some serious deals to be had.  I buy wine based on varietal, location, and price (as it fits the varietal & location), and thats how I'm going to explain my strategies to you.

Varietal:  When I'm in a wine buying situation I gravitate towards things I haven't tried.  It is a strategy that has worked more often than not but can be a bit risky too.  There was a time when I said what the hell is Carmenere, Riesling, Barbera and thought if a bottle said Bordeaux in gold leaf writing and had a lithograph of a chateau on the label it was automatically good.  To put this anecdote in a more general context, I'm sure there are situations in which the everyday consumer reaches for the pricier California Cab instead of the Chilean one because it is what they are comfortable with or thinks will be of higher quality.  This is a pattern that I feel needs to be broken.  

So why does Pinot Noir cost twice as much as everything else?  Yes, Pinot is a more difficult grape to grow and needs more delicate vinification, but what the price difference comes down to is supply/demand and marketing.  Hence, the more obscure varietals, ones with bad press i.e. merlot (thanks hollywood), or those where there is a glut are going to naturally be less expensive. Basic business.  My advice is to do a little homework.  Find something new and bargain oriented and try it.  Having some general knowledge of varietals before you buy will help you break out of your comfort zone and find something different that your palate will still agree with.

Location:

When I look at location I'm not just thinking "is that France or is that California?"  Whether budget or cellar worthy, where a wine is made is as important as who made it.  So when perusing through labels I scrutinize each wine down to their AOC (or god forbid Vin de Table) to figure out what "x" bottle has in store.  Again, this is information that takes a little while to seek out.  But once familiarized with general wine regions, buying power multiplies.  For

instance, if I want a tasty southern Rhône blend and I can't fork out the bills for a Chateauneauf-du-Pape, I go immediately to my favorite producers with wines of Cotes-du-Rhone Villages, Cote-de-Ventoux, and Vaqueras designations.  It's simple tricks like this that will allow you to be a knowledgeable and savvy shopper.

Recommendations: 

Chilean Reds: Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Meritage.  There are some good quality wines coming out of Chile right now at very decent prices.  This shouldn't be new news to the informed wine drinker but worth making a note of anyway. Carmenere, the lost Bordeaux varietal that became virtually extinct after the phylloxera epidemic swept Europe, has been protected, nurtured and made into some tasty and distinct wines.  

Try: Chocolan, Santa Rita Reserva, and Concha y Toro Diablo for value grocery brands that are easy to find. 

Spain:  Spain is often considered one of the top "new world" wine producers.  With a vineyard expansion into hotter more continental climate areas, spanish vintners have found the ability to produce excellent value wines with plenty of mature fruit that plays well to the new world palate.  The domestic powerhouse of "La Rioja" is shadowed by areas like Ribera del Duero, Toro, and Campo de Borja.  

For deals I would recommend: reds from Jumilla, Campo de Borja, and whites from Rueda, Bierzo and Rias Baixas.  

New Zealand:  Sauvignon Blanc from $5-$15, plenty of good ones, everyone knows about this already so I'll end my commentary there.

France: I've had a recent fetish for Mourvèdre that has led me to experiment with wines of Provence and Languedoc-Rousillon.  Mourvèdre is a varietal that makes sturdy, tannic, and gamy wines and is a major varietal used in southern French reds (and sometimes rosés).  Its blended frequently blended with Syrah and Grenache (two other favorites of mine) and can produce some interesting wines at good prices.  I recently opened a 2000 Jean Luc Colombo Les Pins Couchés from Aix en Provence that was exquisite and retailed for around $12.  

Portugal:  The word on the street is that Portuguese still reds are some of the hottest buys on the market right now.  I have not tasted much from Portugal personally but what I have tried was fairly impressive.  Look for reds from Dao and Douro although it might be worthwhile to try anything.

California:  Ahh, so many choices.  Plain and simple, I know where I like my fruit to come from and I like deals.  I would suggest trying wines from all over the state and narrow down a few areas that are making wine to your liking.  Pay attention to producers, price trends, and look for deals.  For example, Trader Joes bought the entire 2006 estate line from Domaine Alfred, a respectable Edna Valley label, and is selling the wines off at approximately 1/2 the suggested retail.  

My picks for CA wine regions:  North Coast and Mendocino,  Monterey, Arroyo Seco, Santa Cruz Mountains, West Side Paso Robles, Edna Valley, most of Santa Barbara County.  

Final Word:  Leave your comfort zone and try something new.  Pay attention to what you like about a wine and only use ratings for general guidance.  Its a slow learning process but one that will pay off in the end if you let it.  I encourage everyone to explore and appreciate the diversity wine has to offer.  

Salud.

A trip to the Asian market, light thai curry noodles, and an off-dry gewürtztraminer

I like Asian markets and so should you.

Collin (my good friend and roommate) and I were traipsing around Clairemont Mesa Blvd one afternoon, finding a way to kill time as his car was getting serviced when we became inspired to pay a visit to a notorious asian supermarket in the area.  Tucked in between dated strip malls and fast food establishment lies Ranch 99 Market; a San Diego fixture and treasure trove of asian edibles.  Needless to say, a trip for specialty teas, tsing tao beer and some exotic fruits Collin had developed a taste for during his extensive travel through south east Asia, became a rabid shopping spree that would fill our pantry with plenty of asian staples.  In the midst of some random purchases we decided to plan a dish that would be fresh, unique and please my sister and friends who were to come over for dinner later that evening.  However, before I begin to explain the following dish I would like to let all those not in the know in on a little secret.  Produce, fish and meats at asian markets (or at least this one) are CHEAP!  And not only do they have all the products we would consider conventional, but specialty items that no other market  carries.  Hence,I urge anyone, whether looking for specialty items or not to visit Ranch 99 or similar.

The dish:

I have always enjoyed making curry dishes.  Over the past few years I have experimented with many different sauce recipes, often heavy and rich.  Being that it was summer I wanted to try a different, fresher and lighter approach to the classic yellow curry attempts I had made prior.    

Making the sauce:

For this particular sauce I used a base of light coconut milk, chicken stock, and the juice of one whole lime.  The coconut milk and chicken stock may be proportioned to taste - i.e. the more coconut milk the thicker the sauce and vice versa.

In addition to this I added Madras curry (any basice yellow curry will do), brown sugar, plenty of chopped garlic, fresh ground pepper, salt to taste, and a touch of sriracha hot sauce (the one with the chicken on it).

On low-med heat the sauce should be reduced to a viscosity that you the chef, desires - as well as stirred occasionally.

The Fix-ins:

As the protein of this dish I chose fresh tiger prawns.  I will always get fresh prawns normally tail on, because pre-cooked flat out suck.  

The prawns are best de-veined and tail off for this dish.

They are then sautéed in a wok with sesame oil and a touch of salt and pepper

Add them to the sauce in accordance with the next step, noodles.

Finishing the Dish:  Angel Hair-esque rice noodles were used for this dish - boiled although in hindsight they should have been prepared as such...

Add rice noodles in desired proportion to sauce and cover pan/pot with lid for a few minutes to let noodles soften.  Stir into sauce and add the previously cooked prawns, continue to stir to blend all components evenly.

The last ingredient used was a leafy herb that Collin encountered in Laos.  The name escapes me at the moment but it tasted like lemongrass crossed with basil and had a spicy ginger like finish.  Anyway, several leaves were roughly chopped and added at the last minute as not to wilt.

Finally, grated persian cucumber was rolled into balls and placed on top of each dish to balance the heat and spice of the dish.  Garnished with another leaf of said Laotian herb and a few drops of sriracha for color and taste, and thats it.  

(The Laotian mystery herb could be substituted with a bit of basil and mint.  Adding some thai lime or thai lemon leaves to the sauce and then removing before mixing in the rest of the ingredients would be a nice touch too).

Ingredients Needed:  

The Sauce:

Light Coconut Milk

Chicken Stock

Limes

Madras Curry

Sriracha Hot Sauce

Garlic

Salt

Pepper

Rice Noodles

Fresh Prawns/Shrimp

Sesame Oil

Laotian Mystery Herb (...or basil and mint)

Le Vin:

I brought out a pretty standard "asian food" wine for this dinner.  A "budget" alsatian gewürtztraminer from Michel Leon that I picked up at Trader Joes for around 8 or 9 bucks.  I'm not going to review this one primarily because it was a long time ago that I drank it and can't remember enough details to describe it accurately, but I remember it being balanced, ripe and with a touch of residual sugar.  All in all I think this style of wine, properly chilled, is considered the "asian food" wine for the right reasons.  The freshness, ripeness and residual sugar coated the palate for a nice balance from the flavorful, salty and spicy noodle dish.  All I can say is that it worked and there are tons of wines like this out there that are go-to's when looking for something to eat with curry or stir fry.

Some suggestions: Dry or Off-Dry Riesling or Gewürtztraminer, Dry Muscat, Viognier

...Must-Go Italian and Red Burgundy

After an exuberant feast of homemade wood-fired oven pizza last saturday night, the abundance of leftover toppings found their way into my fridge.  Healthy portions of fresh ricotta, sicilian sundried tomatoes, and brown beech mushrooms inspired me to whip up some rustic Italian fare.  So, I tracked down some fresh fettuccine from a local italian deli and got to work.  

Its probably a good idea that I make note of that fact that while I never open a cookbook, much of my inspiration comes from the Food Network and similar programming (Iron Chef America mostly).  Thats not to say I copy recipes, I don't, but I pay close attention to the choice of ingredients and cooking methods of the best chefs in the world and try to incorporate those into my dishes in order to achieve excellent balance and flavor.  

So here is my "recipe" for:

Fettuccine con Funghi (if thats how you say it in italian?  ...I speak spanish):

Ingredients:

Fresh Fettuccine

Bacon or Pancetta

Brown Beech Mushrooms

Garlic 

Sundried Tomatoes (moderate salt/spiciness preferred)

Fresh Ricotta Cheese

Fresh Basil

Lemon (zest)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Pepper

Salt (to taste although I did not use any)

Instructions:

Cook bacon in large sautée pan to render as much fat as desired

Remove bacon and discard or enjoy by itself

Add olive oil to pan and bring to medium high heat

Add mushrooms, finely chopped garlic, and roughly chopped sundried tomatoes to pan and season with fresh ground pepper

Sautée mushroom, garlic, tomato mixture in pan at med-high heat for 5-6min

Have fettuccine cooked al dente (fresh should only take 45

sec - 1 min) strained and ready to join other ingredients in pan

Add fettuccine to pan and mix evenly with sautéed ingredients, continue over heat for 1 min

Serve into desired dishes and top with a few

 pinches of fresh ricotta, roughly chopped basil and a very light dusting of lemon zest, e voila!

If the right amount of ingredients are used this dish should taste rich and earthy but equally fresh and light due to the ricotta, basil and lemo

n zest.  The amount of each ingredient should be based upon taste desired.  More savory ingredients can be used for a more wintery feel or omit the bacon and add salt or parmesano reggiano to an olive oil base for a more summery dish.  Enjoy.

Wine Selection:

For this dish I chose an aggressively priced côte-de-nuits red - the 2006 Régis Bouvier Marsannay Les Longierres Rouge.  For those not in the know, Marsannay is the northern most town of the côte-de-nuits, the northern most viticultural area of Burgundy aside from Chablis.  This wine, made exclusively from Pinot Noir, as all red Burgundies are (except forBeaujolais), exhibited character bestowed by the colder northern climate.  The nice acidity and freshness of this wine paired well with the fresh, earthy pasta dish.

Review:  Fresh and fruity, the nose shows some dried cranberry, pomegranate coupled with hints of white pepper, chives and earth and rounded by a kiss of smokey oak and duck fat.  Light and thin on the palate the '06 tastes of red fruit, sour strawberry, cherry and cranberry.  A hollow mid-palate that gives way to a less than impressive finish makes this an unmemorable although rather drinkable wine and a questionable purchase even at the reduced price of $13.95.  82pts. 

Pairing:  While this wine selection was quite acceptable with the pasta dish as it is made in a food friendly style, there are likely many wines $15 and under made in a similar style that would give you better value.  Look for lighter reds with nice fruit and plenty of acidity - this dish isn't char-broiled steak so powerful bordeaux varietals aren't going to work.

Recommended:  Chianti (or old world style Sangiovese), Barbera di Asti, Pinot Noir, Carignan and similar blends (... from Languedoc-Rousillon for good values)

- I encourage you to experiment with your own variation of this simple to make dish and pair a wine to your taste. -

Bon Appetit.