The most enjoyable and rewarding aspect of this job is discovering these really amazing ways that wine and food can work together. Finding a delicious wine is easy. Cooking an amazing dish is more challenging and more impressive. But nailing down a winning combination between a composed dish and a profound wine is like the moment of orgasm in the best sex you've ever had. No offense to my wife...
So, Kara was off and decided she was going to make this fun little recipe we've made a few times over the years: Pork Chops and Pears in a Port Wine and Mustard Sauce. I immediately begin thinking of Riesling since it's the classic pairing for pork. But, the dish is based in red wine. So, red then? What about something white, but really full-bodied, like a Roussane/Marsanne blend? Winemakers say those grapes are practically like drinking a red wine.
Gonna have to try them all, I think!
Such begins a typical Saturday night at home. I served a Watermelon and Jonah Crab salad with a half-bottle of 2005 Dr. Loosen Bernkasteller Lay Kabinett Riesling. It was perfect. The wine is showing a lot of honey tones these days which isn't a perfect match, but adds another interesting layer. Perfect sweetness level, though.
We allowed the Riesling to blend over into the pork course. In addition, I opened a Tablas Creek 'Esprit de Beaucastel' Blanc 2006, a Sine Qua Non 'Body and Soul' Roussane/Marsanne 2007, and an Alta Maria 'Bien Nacido' Pinot Noir 2005. We lined them all up in front of us and went to work.
On first pass, the Riesling was my favorite. The delicious sweetness and ripe fruits made a cornucopia of flavors come to life in my mouth. But, while delicious, the truth was that both things were just delicious on their own and weren't really hurting or helping each other. Ultimately, I had to knock it down to second place.
Wine #2 was the Tablas Creek. This is an odd little wine. I respect that they are really trying to mimic white Rhone, but this is almost too a fault. The oxidative notes are still there, giving a nuttiness on the finish, but the nose seems wildly overripe in the way an apricot can be bruised and left on the counter a few days too long. Orange marmalade flavors and honeysuckle are interesting. With the dish, it lost that weird flavor profile, but essentially just tasted like a glass of white flower juice. Not a winner on either count here.
Wine #3 was the Sine Qua Non. Whoof! Talk about dry dessert in a glass. The nose is every dessert you can think of: we got Pineapple Cake, Apricot Tart, Bananas Foster, etc. But on the palate, the wine is totally dry. This was intense and delicius on its own, but there was no pairing anything to this wine. It was as if Arnold Schwarzenneger walked into the room and nobody could talk about anything else. Kara and I both went back to it a time or two, but only because the wine was delicious and we really wanted to drink it.
Wine #4 was the Pinot Noir and ultimately both of our picks for the best pairing. This Pinot is a little weird on its own: tart red fruits in the way of pomegranete arrils and sour cherry. Hints of cola and herbs. Not really the sort of wine I'd choose to drink on the patio in the afternoon. But it completely fell into balance with the Port Wine Sauce and the acidity of the whole mustard grain. What a surprise! It became a black/red cherry combo and led into riper cranberry flavors, still colored by the herbal component. I don't know if we'll ever get around to drinking the rest of this bottle because there isn't anymore pork, but it was great at the time!
Check this recipe out online if you're bored and try it yourself. It was in a Bon Appetit magazine in the 2000's (not sure which year/month). Pretty easy to make and something different and fun. Grab a nice bottle of Santa Barbara Pinot, too!
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