La Paella Es Buena.

Paella is easy to make, easy to manipulate quantity and just delicious.  Whatever valenciano (Paella is through to have originated in Valencia) figured out that throwing a bunch of meat and seafood into a pan with rice and assorted spices was onto something.  Paella is a dish that seems more proletariat than bourgeois, but its exotic appeal and unique presentation make it impressive to most everyone that has the opportunity to enjoy it.  The best part about Paella is that you can customize it to your liking.  I tend to stick with a fairly traditional approach, chicken, chorizo, shrimp and shellfish being the sources of protein.  Entonces, aquí está mi receta. (Here's the recipe)

Ingredients:

Arborio Rice

Quarts Chicken Stock

Onions

Red and/or Green Bell Pepper 

Garlic 

Mussels

Clams

Shrimp/Prawns (tail-on, deveined work best)

Chicken Thighs

Chorizo/Linguica Sausage

Lemons

Cumin 

Turmeric

Smoked Paprika

Saffron

Salt 

Pepper 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:

Heat large (Paella) pan to med-high heat

Add olive oil and chorizo/linguica to pan

Render some of the fat from chorizo/linguica and remove before fully cooked

Add chicken thighs to pan to brown (add some salt and pepper at this stage if you want)

Remove chicken thighs once exterior is moderately crispy and set aside

Lower heat slightly and add roughly chopped or sliced onions and bell peppers (they cook at a similar rate so should be cut the same way)

Let onions and bell peppers cook down just slightly 

While onions and bell peppers are cooking chop chicken off the bone in cubes/chunks of any size you desire

Add Chorizo/Linguica, Chicken back into pan as well as arborio rice (how much is a matter of preference) and garlic (again its a matter of preference but I tend to use quite a bit)

Stir the mixture now in pan over medium heat for about 3 minutes in order to break down the hard exterior of the arborio rice and firm up the proteins a bit more.

Just before adding Chicken stock add spices: Cumin, Salt, Turmeric, Pepper, and Saffron (in descending order of quantity, i.e. most - least) and stir into mixture.

Add Chicken stock so that it fills the pan just over the top of the dry ingredients and turn down heat slightly.  The goal is to maintain the mixture on a high simmer.  The rice will generally take about 30-35 minutes to cook fully.  Taste occasionally and add more chicken stock if needed.  

About 15 minutes after adding the chicken stock add the clams (these take more time to cook fully than anticipated)

When the rice is almost finished (maybe 5-10 minutes away) add shrimp and mussels.  The shrimp should cook quickly and nicely the mussels might need to get closer to the bottom of the plan/heat source to cook properly.  

Once mussels open and shrimp are pink everything should be done and ready to serve.  

Squeeze lemon juice over top or serve wedges/halves on individual plates so that people can season to taste.

Presentation:I'm not sure whether Paella should really be served like those tacky signs for the "Paellador" Paella.  A side note, if you've ever eaten a "Paellador" paella at a restaurant in Spain, you've been duped with pre-made junk.  Regardless, I

like my paella served messy and rustic.  One of the better presentations I've had was at a

 cool, classic "Spanish" restaurant in Madrid called La Fragua de Vulcano.  The stern bartender brought out a big wooden bowl full of Paella from the kitchen and slapped spoonfuls on your plate right in front of you.

Thats how I like to do it.  Mix it up, throw it on a plate, keep it simple and easy.  

Wine:

Paella is a dish that combines freshness and hearty flavors with plenty of spice.  So when it comes to Paella I'm looking for the wine to do the same thing.  Taste bright, flavorful and mimic the body of the dish.  For something so abundant with flavor I go automatically to Spain's most planted (and one of my personal favorite) varietals, Garnacha (or Grenache).  Grenache is a medium bodied, fruit forward and sometimes spicy varietal that I feel in many ways, has the versatility that Pinot Noir does.  While, Grenache is often used as a blending grape due to its lack of acid and tannin for aging, modern day Grenache's when grown and harvested properly can create excellent single varietal wines.  

Pairing: Grenache, Garnacha... whatever you want to call it.  Its tasty.

Espero que vosotros disfrutéis esta receta y intentéis hacer os propias versiones de este plato valenciano tan clásico.

¡Buen Provecho!

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.