THANKSGIVING 2009:
DAY(S) OF WINE & ROSÉS, AND TURKEY…

BY DAVID STEVENS

FIRST, THE WINE …

BY DAVID STEVENS

When Chef Katz and I first put our heads together to come up with a wine pairing for a festive Thanksgiving Dinner, my immediate and most traditionally accepted response was… Sonoma County Pinot Noir. It would not overwhelm, has nice cherry, strawberry and spice components. No brainer. Pinot Noir, in the tradition of all things safe and easy, is the wine. Next question please!

But alas, as you will read in Chef’s portion of this article, he is not envisioning a simple 1620’s Pilgrim’s meal. To complement a Heritage breed turkey and side dishes with rich, complex and diverse flavors, we are going to have to step outside of our normal comfort zone for wines. The varietal I have selected is a Cabernet Sauvignon. Yes, but this Cabernet Sauvignon is not your typical Napa Valley Cab… this is a Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon!

But first, a bit about Rosé Wines for you nonbelievers… Rosé wines have been produced in Europe for centuries. In France, Rhone varieties such as Grenache and Mourvèdre are very popular. In Spain, varieties such as Garnacha and Tempranillo produce delicious rosé wines.

Rosé wines are commonly produced by a method called saignée (French for “bleed”) in which grapes are crushed and fermented on the skins for a short time. The skin contact adds a bit of color to the white juice of the grapes. Once some of this juice has been pulled off, two things have been accomplished - a rosé wine has been produced, and the ratio of skin to juice in the tank has been increased by decreasing the quantity of juice. This means that the juice that remains is even more concentrated.

The Napa Valley rosé wines I have selected are complex and pair well with the variety of flavors on the Thanksgiving table. Put a little chill on these wines and they will enhance almost any food.

WHITE COTTAGE, “Elena”, Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mt. 2008 $18

White Cottage gained notoriety for it’s Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignons made by former owner, Dennis Johns, in the mid 90’s. These were rustic, full throttle, big tannin wines that were made to last and gained quite a fervent following. The winery was recently sold and the new owners brought in Rudy Zuidema as winemaker. Rudy has taken a firm grasp of the vineyard and is moving toward all organic and biodynamic farming at White Cottage. This wine was crushed and vinified to be a rosé from start to finish.

During a recent visit to the winery I found this wine to be an absolute gem. The color is dark garnet red, the aromas of wild cherry, strawberry and cranberry are bright and lively and the body weight and flavors are more like that of a red wine than most rosé wines. Tasted blind, you may be fooled into believing this is a red wine!

The real WOW FACTOR of this wine is the amazing complexity it has. The forward fruit will certainly hold up to the poultry, the fresh zesty flavors will compliment cranberry sauce and the acidity will cut through mashed potatoes and gravy. There’s a lot to like in this wine. And the color…a perfect color to complement the harvest table.

Note from Chef Katz: For food flexibility, pure and simple, dry and off-dry rosé present body with a twist – you could easily aim this wine at everything from fresh shellfish to fairly robust veal and pork dishes with no fear.

Two other outstanding rosé wines to consider for this meal are:

GARGIULO, Rosato Di Sangiovese, Oakville 2008 $30

Gargiulo Vineyard is predominantly known for their Bordeaux Varieties. They have gained notoriety for their Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and G Major 7 (a blend of 4 grapes, named for a musical chord containing four notes), but their two Italian varieties, Pinot Grigio and Rosato di Sangiovese, are both terrific as well.

CHASE CELLARS, Rosé of Zinfandel, Hayne Vineyard 2008 $20

because it is well known as one of the best vineyards for old vine Zinfandel and Petite Sirah in the Napa Valley. The sister and brother team of Pam Simpson and Jeff Blaum produce this fantastic wine from some of the oldest zinfandel vines in the State of California. The wine is bold, spicy, and has a full, round texture.

Still not convinced that rosé is the way to go? Here are a couple of suggestions for dyed-in-the-wool Pinot Noir and Chardonnay lovers:

AUTEUR, Pinot Noir, Sonoma Stage Vineyard 2007 $55

The Sonoma Stage Vineyard is located in the Petaluma Gap, just west of the town of Sonoma. The wine has rich aromatics of cherry and plum with high notes of anise and clove which are supported by a dense core. The palate is intense with expressive acidity focused around lush blueberry compote flavors and a black cherry center. Chef Katz notes that, if you choose this Pinot, a nice addition to your stuffing would be chestnuts, dried dark fruit, or wild mushrooms.

STAGLIN FAMILY , Estate Chardonnay, Rutherford 2007 $75

This wine is fermented and aged in 100% French Oak barrels, 65% of which are new each year. The wine does not go through malo-lactic fermentation, which helps it retain balanced acidity and crisp texture. The wine is stirred weekly on its lees which adds a richness and roundness to the finished wine. This is a great example of Chardonnay produced in the Napa Valley in (dare I say it?) a Burgundian style.

Chef Katz says that, for this wine, keep the chestnuts in the stuffing, but toss in an apple and a sprig or two of sage.

David Stevens is the owner of 750 Wines in St. Helena, CA. 750 Wines specializes in interesting, small production, hard to find wines of the Napa Valley. David sources wines from his friends in the business – local, passionate artisan winemakers and vintners. Contact David at david@750wines.com or 707.484.4539. www.750wines.com

AND THEN, THE FOOD…

BY DAVID KATZ

Two weeks ago, David Stevens and I stood in front of an inspiring wall of wine bottles, discussing where we wanted to go with this issue’s Potable Pairings. Frankly, another article about Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with Thanksgiving dinner did not feel inspiring at first blush, but we kept coming back to it again and again, and then we came to blush itself. Two of our region’s greatest varietal wines, Pinot and Chardonnay, do make great guests at the holiday table. What rarely gets any mention is the reason why these varietals meet the bird and other fixin’s on good footing. Knowing the why of it suggests that there are other answers too, maybe a little less well trodden.

In this issue, you’ll read about how Bill and Nicolette Niman are helping to bring back the kind of holiday bird that our great grandparents might have put on that big platter. The depth of flavor from Heritage breed turkey will surprise and delight you. Once you understand how humane practices and healthy feed benefit you and the birds, it’s hard to choose a Butterball again. In selecting wine, however, the choices are not as straightforward with a rich, deeply flavored Heritage breed turkey, and, if you pair only to the turkey, you may be missing a great opportunity.

Starchy, rich side dishes like stuffing, whipped potatoes and sweet potatoes all dictate a wine of enough inherent body to stand up. Add beans (with butter), or Brussels sprouts (with butter), my own favorite, turnips (with butter), or creamed pearl onions and you start to get the picture. One might look for a little refreshment in the form of a light-bodied wine with high acidity, but would you really taste the wine? On the other side, in the over-the-top-wine-loving world of today, put a highly extracted, high alcohol, heavily-oaked and inevitably young Cabernet Sauvignon in your glass, and would you really taste the turkey? Make no mistake, I love the big stuff as much as you do, but unless the Nimans cross-breed their turkeys with their cattle…

Most food and wine gurus start the discussion with flavor pairing. Fortunately and unfortunately, flavor is the one part of food and wine pairing that is entirely subjective. If you comb a magazine rack, the focus is most often on flavor complement and contrast. Go ahead and listen to the cuisinistas, but back up your choices with a little gut-check on body style. Balancing body style is the only meaningful foundation of wine pairing, because if the body style of food and wine are too different, one of the two partners gets stepped on at the table. “Body,” as it refers to both wine and food, comes down to a feeling one gets, the overall impression of weight or fullness on the palate. It may sound esoteric at first, but really, body style is about using your gut. Our sensation of the body of a wine is dictated by flavor intensity, mouth feel, oak, tannin, alcohol and sweetness.

Any combination of these primary building blocks might build body in wine. When we sense the body of a food, the list includes flavor intensity, fat, texture, temperature, cooking method and seasoning or spice intensity. What’s critical to understand is that a great body style match-up isn’t a slam dunk, but it’s a very good starting point.

After that, it’s about well-considered complement and contrast of flavors and acid balance – if you please four out of five foodies with your choices you are truly gifted, and beating the odds considerably.

For this issue, I thought I’d add my two cents about gravy. Growing up, gravy was a way to bring moisture to an otherwise dry bird. When I started cooking in restaurants nearly two decades ago, I fell in love with the stock pot and the sauce pot. I fussed with my skimming spoon, faithfully roasted bones, deglazed pans and marveled at the incredible aroma, flavor and texture that a well made sauce could bring to a composed dinner plate. Now I see Thanksgiving gravy in a whole new light. It is the bonding agent for the whole plate, bringing together the different flavors and textures of a moist roast turkey, creamy potatoes, aromatic stuffing, rich vegetables and even the tang of cranberry sauce. And if we pull a trick or two, it can be a powerful bridge to a broad palate of wines as well.

One of the cornerstones of basic flavor development in cooking is carmelization, and it extends from the plate to the glass. Wines that see the inside of a toasted oak barrel, even briefly, complement caramelized food. Crisp, clean wines contrast against caramelized food equally effectively. Most traditional turkey gravy recipes start with the caramelized juices on the bottom of a roasting pan, add flour and water or stock, and a little seasoning. To enhance this flavor, I add just a touch of flour to thicken, deglaze the pan with wine and brandy, then add a generous pile of caramelized shallots, which I purée into the gravy to thicken it naturally. This gravy not only brings depth of flavor to the dishes it kisses, it brings a little acidity to help balance the food to the acidity of any of the wines we’ve recommended.

David Katz is the managing partner of Panevino–Food for Wine, a catering and education company in St. Helena, CA. David has been on the faculty of the Culinary Institute of America, Greystone, for more than 5 years, and teaches Wine & Food Fundamentals and Advanced Food & Wine Pairing courses at the CIA’s Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies. www.panevino-napavalley.com

RECIPE

CARAMELIZED SHALLOT GRAVY