What better place to experience a wine - food pairing dinner than at a restaurant that specializes in wine? Our server Eric was incredibly helpful and, after understanding my assignment, recommended that I purchase a flight of wine. This way, he reasoned, I would save a little money and have an extra wine to pair or compare. 622 North is on Main Street in Blacksburg and in June when the majority of students are home for the summer, traffic, parking, and getting a table are a breeze.
We ordered the bruschetta as our appetizer and I decided to begin with the Gabbiano Pinot Grigio to pair with it. Once I saw the wines in the glasses I finalized my plan of action for pairing. In my limited experience I've yet to enjoy a wine that looks like this Pinot Grigio and so I wanted to get it out of the way early. I determined to save the Pinot Gris with its much more appealing golden color for the dessert round and pair one or both of the Malbecs with my entree.
Bruschetta
Eric thought it would be a good idea to have whites from the same grapes and reds from the same grapes, just so I have another point of comparison to make. He was right. I'll explain that as I go but for now, back to the appetizer round.
Pinot Grigio and Bruschetta
Gabbiano Pinot Grigio
As expected, and perhaps due to the bias of my earlier experiences with pale white wines from Italy, I found the rather chemical-smelling 2015 Gabbiano Pinot Grigio to be overly acidic and frankly kind of gross. The bruschetta helped it quite a bit, making it drinkable. I really liked the look of my other white, the Hugel Pinot Gris, and I confess that I took a sniff and sip of it at the end of the appetizer round just so I could have something I like before the main course arrived.
For my entree, I ordered the pork chop. I wanted to experience how the wine paired with the meat so I asked that the sauce and toppings be placed on the side. As you can see below, the chop was served with zucchini and yellow summer squash in a butter sauce.
Pork Chop Entree'
Gouguenheim
Entree' with Wine
The Malbec I chose to pair with the pork chop first was the 2014 Gouguenheim. This was only my second Malbec ever, and I enjoyed it as well as my first. The dark, fruity aromas reflected in the flavor and were appetizing and delicious when paired with the pork chop. There was a little bit of a tannic bite that lingered with the finish but I'm not complaining. It was a pleasure to drink with my meal.
The wine was so good, in fact, that it was gone before the pork chop, so there was nothing else I could do but start in on the second Malbec. The Calgiore Reserve from 2011 was even better than the younger Gouguenheim. Similar dark fruits on the nose and palate but milder tannins and a smoother finish. Paired just as well with the pork chop but could very easily stand on its own without food.
I think Ferris sums up the Calgiore Reserve Malbec best:
Calgiore Reserve
Wonderful meal with two awesome friends and two really good wines so far (and one 'meh' wine). Below is a picture of me with the two Malbecs, comparing aromas before finishing up the first one.
Jim Double-fisting Malbec
Creme Brulee
2011 Hugel Pinot Gris and Creme Brulee
For dessert we were all pretty full so we decided to share one. We ordered a cherry creme brulee, and I had one wine left to pair it with. The 2011 Hugel Pinot Gris from France was a night and day difference compared to the Pinot Grigio I had with the bruschetta. It paired well and, being smoother and creamier, was much more drinkable on its own than the earlier white. It went better with the creme sauce of the dessert than the cherries themselves, but overall, still a winning
combination. Appley-citrus or citrusy-apple? However you describe it, this is a well-balanced white that I would happily order and drink again.
Thank you to my friends Caroline and Marilyn for accompanying me on this wine dinner adventure and for helping take some of the pictures, as well.
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