A big hand for Sean for coming up with some great pairings for wines and American dishes. However, I still can’t seem to come to terms with seeing the words ‘prawn’ and ‘po-boy’ in the same sentence. InterWined reckons that it’s time to offer its own advice for picking an excellent American wine.
Finding decent American […]

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Each Friday, InterWined.com pairs one great wine with one great meal and publishes the results along with the recipe in a little feature it likes to call ‘Blow the Bank’.

This week is a busy one for the world religions, from Baha’i to Zoroastrianism and nearly every other alphabetically in between.

So, today, ‘Blow the Bank’ brings the world a little closer together with InterWined’s Own Rosemary Rack of Lamb with Dolcelatta Polenta.

Not only does Easter, Purim, and Mawlid an-nabi fall within the third week of March this year, but so too does the Vernal Equinox and a host of New Years and religious Spring festivals. And while there is no single food that could satisfy the observers of all of these holidays, there’s certainly one that comes pretty close — at least close enough to bring together Christianity, Judaism, and Islam — which on the fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq is surely no bad thing.

What is this miracle foodstuff, you ask? Well, thank Abraham; it’s the humble little lamb, of course, that delectable little animal so prevalent in Judeo-Christian symbolism and essential to Islam’s Eid Al-Adha celebration.

And interfaith reconciliation aside, it’s also arguably the perfect companion to the totally haraam and non-kosher Pinor Noir. The 2005 Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Clos Bortier (12.5%) from Caroline Lestime and Domaine Jean-Noël Gagnard, currently available in store only from Oddbins, makes for simply a great match to InterWined’s Own Rosemary Rack of Lamb with Dolcelatta Polenta — if only for the goyim.

There’s a great deal of subtly the 2005 Clos Bortier, with a touch of cherry on the nose and tannin in the aftertaste. The tannin in the wine marries very well with lamb, while its limited potency prevents it from clashing with the creaminess of the dolcelatta.

Click on the post to view and download the recipe

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Just thought we’d play along with yesterday’s blackout with today’s title.
But the title is actually topical to today’s review. (Health news tomorrow, we’re a day behind, see yesterday’s post.) See, with normal blends, the objective is to smooth the wine down. To take some fire out it’s belly, if you will, and place a cool […]

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Last night, from midnight to 3 a.m. GMT, the New York Giants (12-6) pulled off the biggest upset in (American) football history by beating the heavily favored New England Patriots (18-0)…
Actually let’s update that to New England Patriots (18-1)!
Loved seeing the ‘perfect’ team fall…with their shiny helmets and their hunky quarterback who dates Brazilian models […]

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Here at InterWined.com, we try to give everyone in the wine industry a fair voice. Our third edition of ‘InterWined In Conversation’ focused on the newly launched French wine for women range, Sublimelle.
The interview gave plenty of attention to the product designs, ideas, and marketing, while reserving any comment or criticism.
The makers of Sublimelle define […]

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Each Friday, InterWined.com pairs one great wine with one great meal and publishes the results along with the recipe in a little feature it likes to call ‘Blow the Bank’.

This week, it’s InterWined’s Own Roast Chicken Givry.

Among some wine drinkers, it would appear that the red wines of Givry have the rather dubious reputation of being once-great, also-rans in a crowded field that includes such famous names as Beaujolais, Côte de Beaune, Côte de Nuits, Mercurey, and Montagny. Sure, as a quick survey of the Web will knowingly confirm that Givry was the favourite tipple of the late King of England and France and Lord of Ireland Henry IV — but that was nearly 600 years ago.

Doesn’t anyone have something good to say about Givry now?

It would seem not. In fact, for the Bourgogne aficionado, the reputation of the reds of Givry was permanently damaged by phylloxera in the 1860s and ‘70s and the ravages of two world wars. Which, one suspects, might explain the difficultly in locating these medium-bodied Pinot Noirs outside of France.

Thankfully, InterWined managed it with a wine that the local Oddbins on Clapham High Street was only too happy to note is personal favourite of South London acting great, Mike Leigh favourite, and voice of Barry Mickelthwaite in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories Timothy Spall. He’s an OBE, don’t you know. That’s Order of the British Empire to you and me. So, you know it’s good… It’s not CBE, KBE, GBE good. But, it’s still good — just like the always engaging and entertaining Mr. Spall and the red Givry. It might not be Hollywood A-list or Mercurey, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth your attention and respect.

Such is certainly the case with the InterWined-tested, Spall-approved 2004 Givry Domaine Tatraux. £10.99 from Oddbins, the Givry Domaine Tatraux gives a subtle, really breathe it in, hint of berry on the nose (raspberry, forest fruits, you know the rest) that proves indicative of its light finish and medium-body. No score; if it’s good enough for Spall, it’s good enough for you. Just, go buy a Givry and drink it (especially if you live in the United States, where the Domaine Tatraux is unfortunately, unavailable at present). In the mind of Blow the Bank scribe Sean, it was entirely reminiscent of many lighter New World Pinot Noirs and the perfect accompaniment to white meat, like InterWined’s Own Roast Chicken Givry.

See; the clue is in the name: Roast Chicken Givry.

InterWined’s Own Recipe In Full

Roast Chicken Givry

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Each Friday, InterWined.com pairs one great wine with one great meal and publishes the results, along with the recipe.

Today, ‘Blow the Bank’ serves you the second of its two turkey-free dishes, aimed to guide you through the tumultuous week that marks the starting bell for the mad dash toward Chrismukah and New Year’s and help you to recover from the horrors of packed shopping aisles and empty wallets.

Lamb neck or scrag, as it’s sometimes known, is a fairly inexpensive and fatty cut of meat that cooks up a treat in casserole dishes and traditional stews. It’s also great for making simple, easy to prepare meals, such as InterWined’s own Black Friday Lambwiches.

Simply put, the Windy Peak 2006 Pinot Noir from De Bortoli, available from Sainsbury’s for £8.99, makes the perfect match for Black Friday Lambwiches, with its abundant concentration lamb-friendly aromas and fruity flavours (cherries, plums, pomegranates). Like the lamb neck, it’s young and easy-going, and makes a spot-on remedy to trials of Black Friday.

As some past reviews, this wine’s price might not technically ‘Blow the Bank’ but it might well prove difficult to find for readers. In which case, InterWined would recommend looking to one of De Bortoli’s other wine labels, of which there are several, such as the popular Gulf Station available in the US from Little Bros Beverages and K & L Wine Merchants.

InterWined’s Own Recipe In Full

Black Friday Lambwiches

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Hate to sound like a broken record…

Hate to sound like a broken record…

Hate to sound like a broken record…

Seriously, an in-depth knowledge of Burgundy is something, it’s fair to say, none of us would even hope to achieve. And why bother, when so many wine writers already tell us what to buy.

InterWined said awhile back that 2004 whites (Chardonnay) in Burgundy and 2005 reds (Pinot Noir) were the way to go… and now that many of the budget wines in this area are on sale now, buy ‘em up. Stick to major producers, Latour, Rodet, Drouhin, etc. even LaRouche.

TIP: When at a dinner party and serving your freshly purchased Burgundy, announce that you have cellared it for six months and when it’s poured take a big smell and then a long, obnoxious slurp and declare, “Now, that’s how the Phoenicians liked it!”

No one will doubt you.

The 2004 Louis Latour Pouilly-Vinzelles ‘En Paradis’ Chardonnay: On sale for just under a tenner, at Nicolas wine shop, this white is exceptionally smooth and tinny, with fresh citrus acidity bursts. Hints of fleshy peach make it tough to pair distinctly with anything but salads and shellfish, but this is best drunk on its own. Decent dry finish balances the sweet hits here and there: 8.9 points.

The 2005 Aegerter Hautes Côtes de Beaune ‘Reserve Personnelle’ (That’s sweet of them, isn’t it?) Pinot Noir. £8.50 at Nicolas. Caramel and Indian spices in the nose, with a soft and fleshy body. Simple and elegant. Good for cooking with and drinking with heavy, blue-veined cheeses. Cinnamon on the finish with also a harmonious ending. Excellent value, and exactly how the Phoenicians like it: 8.9 points.

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In a recent edition of ‘Blow the Bank’, InterWined.com relayed the popular, and mostly accurate, professional dictum that red wine and fish &mash: well, red wine and white fish — go together about as well as red wine and Coca Cola.

So what about red wine and red fish? Is there a difference? In a word, yes. Think about a white fish (cod or haddock, for instance); then, think about a red fish (a salmon or tuna).
The one glaring flaw to the above bit of professional advice is that it glosses over at best and ignores at worse the differences in textures and flavours within fish — something that would never take place with meat or poultry.

Case in point: Summer in the United States, as in many other parts of the world, means outdoor barbecues. At a recent evening barbecue held in honour of InterWined’s journey to the US, the host prepared salmon steaks with a lemon and pepper rub. Since other guests were eating burgers instead of salmon, InterWined opted for a red wine that would compliment both the firmness and flavour of the salmon steak and the juiciness of the burgers.

Enter the 2006 Cloudline Pinot Noir from the Williamette Valley in Oregon. In recent years, Oregon and the Williamette Valley have grown in fame for the quality of their Pinot Noir, and the 2006 Cloudline is very good example. It’s deep-red with a forest gateaux cherry kind of flavour. Left open to breathe for 20 minutes, it softened nicely and paired better than expected with the salmon, helping to highlight the meatiness of the Pacific salmon served at the barbecue.

As its press will attest, Cloudline’s debut vintage was 2002. And, it already sells in some restaurants for $10 a glass — something of an indication of the league of wines with which its makers see it competing. Retailing at just over $20 a bottle, InterWined says save your money and, as is common in the US, buy in bulk, bottle over glass: 8.7.

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Bollinger Non-Vintage Special Cuvee, light and airy, and exceptionally easy-to-drink. Green apples and very dry. Great bubbles, small and copious: 8.9.

Yellow Label Veuve Cliquot, real ‘Champagne’ like. Crisp and refreshing, with biscuit and hints of lemon and vanilla: 8.9.

Both are made from a blend of Pinto Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. Both are a touch under £30.

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In this case: Viña Ventisquero Pinot Noir, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005.

The 2005 will be the best – eventually. Now it’s the 2003. The 2002 is on its way out, and so lacks fresh vivacity and sandal soapiness of a Chilean Pinot Noir. The 2004 had too much rain, and that is evident in the wine, especially when running against the others.

A vertical of the Cabernet Sauvignons 2003, 2004, 2005: All decent. New Oak and mineral. The evening was sealed as winemaker Felipe Tossa Bruna presented a sneak peek of Ventisquero’s latest Iconic wine, Pangea. The wine is a collaboration of John Duval of Penfold’s Grange fame. The wine is being launched at the end of June, and will retail for around £25 per bottle.

Out of the league for the InterWined.com wallet, which doesn’t want to give away any tasting notes on Pangea just yet, except for this: buy a bottle for a special occasion. It is an incredibly delicious and drinkable wine.

Pangea rocks, dude.

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Stepped into the Londis near my house.

Normally avoid it since my wife hates the lady at the till. Cheap, decent wines! 2003 Babich Pinot Noir, £5.49: Decent cherry, almost crystal clear, so a very light body. Touch of pepper and a bit sour. Little finish, little tannin, little oak. Great price: 8.5.

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Bonterra 2004 Merlot and Zinfandel, ruby and peppery, respectively. Both full-bodied, but somewhat sweet. Well-priced and easy to drink. The lower blend of Shiraz-Carignan, whatever, cost around £5, and is about as tasty an Organic table can get.

2005 Vida Organica Sangiovese Bonarda blend, from Argentina. This nice little wine sells for £6 at one of London’s more impressive wine shops Planet of the Grapes. It’s peppery and smooth, very ripe with aromas of vine fruits. The label says red current, but InterWined tastes it as raspberry. Fun: 8.5.

2002 Williamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Noir Pommard: Aromas of blackberry with a hint of vanilla. Tastes of grape lollipop and smoky oak. There’s something floral and vivacious, that is muted out by the folds of jasmine perfume that come and go: 9.1.

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Wines from Burgundy are made with Chardonnay for whites and Pinot Noir for reds. But, like many French regions, the struggle has been for a consistent wine at a decent price.

All of the whites came from the 2004 harvest, the reds, some still not in bottle for retail, from the 2005. Remember that. The 2004 Burgundy whites are crisp and clean, metallic, citrus and vanilla. Touch of honey in the grapes infected with mild rot.

The 2005 are uplifting and fresh, fruit-forward and funky. Tannic but not tart. Memorable. The ‘estate’ wines can age for at least ten years yet. Both outstanding wines from outstanding vintages.

2004 Burgundy White: 9.0.
2005 Burgundy Red: 9.1

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Cono Sur Pinot Noir (It’s not bad, but not nearly as good as some blogs would have you believe)…

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