Home-Cookin’ Chez Strecker
We love cooking together at home. For us it’s relaxing to come home at the end of the day, pour a glass of wine, sauté some onions, and make something yummy for dinner. Doesn’t need to be fancy. Our motto is simple, fresh & good!
Here’s what we are serving up. And here’s what we’re pairing with it:
MEATLOAF
As the weather cools down and the days get darker, the desire for meatloaf increases. At our house, this meal is Jens' specialty, which he usually prepares for Sunday dinner. It is so delicious! Tender and tasty, he usually adds olives in some form to the recipe. Our conventional sides are mashed potatoes & peas. Here we’re enjoying cauliflower purée & sautéed vegetables.
WHAT TO PAIR?
Meatloaf is tasty, but not rich. We usually go with a medium-bodied red with good fruit, good acidity (note that ketchup on top!) and soft tannins.
We recommend: Côtes-du-Rhône or Languedoc-Roussillon reds, Zweigelt (Austria), Gamay (Beaujolais), Carmenere (Chile), Pinotage (South Africa), Pinot Noir (California), Monastrell (Spain), and on.. and on... and on....
So many wonderful options. Stop by. Let's talk....
HASH
Weeknight dinner for one.... or two!
Hash is what we call it, and it entails whatever veggies you have in your refer sautéed up with some bacon. In this case, it's served over leftover cauliflower purée. Not a mistake.
PAIRINGS:
Delicious table wines abound. Right now we're hooked on our two wine club wines from Italy's Marche region - a Verdicchio (white) & a Sangiovese-Montepulciano blend (red). Both are fresh, easy-drinking food wines under $20/bottle. We have tons of other similar type wines. Pictured above is an Alvarinho from Portugal & a Malbec from Vin de Pays d’Oc in southern France. Super tasty.
Need more suggestions? Stop by....
PAN-FRIED TROUT
We get excellent fresh trout from Idaho. Do a quick pan-fry with a little olive oil & butter, salt & pepper, then squeeze some fresh lemon over the top and serve it up with homemade pesto, sliced summer tomatoes & boiled potatoes. Simple, fresh & good. Great way to enjoy your garden treasures before they’re gone for the season.
WHAT SHOULD YOU PAIR?
A beautiful white -- light & minerally or a littler lusher in style -- with good acidity!
We suggest:
Domaine Turpin 2022 Menetou-Salon • Loire Valley, France • Reg $26.99 | Mixed Case $21.59 • Minerals, crushed stone with a hint of grapefruit on the nose. Flavors of white grapefruit, pink grapefruit, lime on the finish. A little herbal. Great acidity on the finish. Enjoyed with Trout Almondine. Heavenly.
PALA 2022 Soprasole Vermentino • Sardinia, Italy • Reg $22.99 | Mixed Case $18.39 • Crunchy apricot & nectarine, wet stone on the nose. Add in citrus, pear, apple on the palate. Medium-bodied. Minerally finish. Just dynamite! Great with all seafood and much more.
Catena Zapata 2022 White Clay Semillón-Chenin • Mendoza, Argentina • Reg $27.99 | Mixed Case $22.39 • Blend of 60% Semillón & 40% Chenin Blanc from the appellation of Luján de Cuyo. Elevation 3117 feet with clay rich soils. Aged 7-8 months on the lees in neutral oak. Deeply aromatic, like you're walking through a Meyer lemon grove, note of peach. Flavors add in citrus and a clay-minerality. Medium-bodied. Good acidity. But soft. Wonderful wine. Drink now to 3 years. Enjoy with halibut sautéed with butter, herbs & asparagus. Or trout!
Santa Venere 2021 Ciro Bianco • Calabria, Italy • Reg $19.99 | 25% OFF = $14.99 • 100% Greco from the sub-region of Ciro. Ripe citrus fruit (lemon, lime, tangerine), white peach, thyme, wet stone. Beautifully acidic. Seafood across the board!
We have many more wonderful wines to pair with a dinner like this. Stop by...
LOCAL MUSHROOMS
It's the season for locally foraged mushrooms, each variety with its own flavor and texture. These wacky little things – cauliflower mushrooms – were like nothing we had ever tried. Sort of had the consistency of ground beef with a meaty, nutty flavor. Sautéed them in butter & olive oil, then added in chickpeas, spring onions, and spinach. Served it over socca flatbread. Tasty!
PAIRING IDEAS:
Tons of medium- to lighter-bodied reds with good earthiness would pair nicely: Barbera, Dolcetto, Negroamaro, Nebbiolo, Bordeaux blends, Southern Rhône blends, Gamay, Zweigelt, Grenache & more. Hard to screw up, actually. Prefer a white? A little bit more luscious style like the Oregon Pinot Gris above would be delicious.
SOCCA CRÊPE, FRIED EGGS, CHÈVRE & TOMATOES
It looks fancy, but it’s not! That socca crêpe is ready faster than toasting bread. Seriously. We keep the batter (1 cup chickpea flour, 1 cup water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2T olive oil) in a jelly jar in the fridge, and then cook up fresh crêpes on demand in minutes. Toppings can be whatever is in your fridge. We enjoyed fried eggs with chèvre (added at the end of cooking), sliced farmers market tomatoes, green onions & cilantro on top. That meal was ready in under 10 minutes. Now to the important part….
WHAT TO PAIR?
This meal is not picky about which wine you can enjoy with it. Bubbly with brunch would be delicious. Vermentino and other Italian varietals (Arneis, Pinot Grigio, Fiano & more) would taste great. Viognier (with its luscious freshness) would also be tasty, as would Chablis, Grüner Veltliner, Sémillon & Chenin Blanc. Rosé… take your pick. Prefer a red? Tread lightly. Soft, light, low-alcohol reds would be your best bet: Alsatian & Loire Valley Pinot Noir, Vernatsch, Monica, Gamay & more. Stop by and we’ll hook you up with whatever wine sounds good to you.
SALAD NIÇOISE WITH GRILLED TUNA
Could this be the apex of the easy, delicious, summer dinner? Oh my.... it was so good! Jens was in charge of grilling the tuna. (He says: 550 degrees – 3 minutes side 1, 2 minutes side 2.) The rest is just classic salad niçoise from our local PNW farmers market = green beans, tomatoes, green onions, arugula, eggs.
PAIRINGS:
Drink red if you must, but this meal is made for white & rosé. And from there, you have a lot to choose from: 1. Fresh, citrusy & acidic (Sauvignon Blanc from Pouilly-Fumé would be great), 2. Fresh, fruity, burst of flavor (try the Anselmi blend of Garganega, Sauvignon Blanc & Chardonnay… and then hold on to the rails!), 3. Fuller-bodied, flavorful whites with a salty note on the finish (Big Salt is an obvious choice, but higher-end Albariño would also be great), or 4. The rosé of your choice from dry & minerally to fuller-bodied & fruity… and everything in between.
And if you must drink red… we’ll recommend our lightest, freshest options: Monica (from Sardinia), Schiava/Vernatsch (from Alto Adige) or Gamay (from Beaujolais). Cheers!
SUSHI
Nothing like a quick trip to Uwajimaya Seattle for a light, fresh share plate of sushi & sashimi for a summer meal.
WHAT TO PAIR?
Vinho Verde (Portugal) • Muscadet (Loire Valley) • minerally Pinot Grigio (Alto Adige) • Sauvignon Blanc (your choice) • Gavi (Piedmont, Italy – just got a new one in... it's what we had with the meal, and it was choice!) • Picpoul de Pinet (classic oyster wine from Languedoc) • Albariño (world class fish wine from Galicia, NW Spain) • Grüner Veltliner (Austria antes up with a delicious option!) • Chablis (minerally, unoaked Chardonnay from Burgundy) .... and the choices go on..... and on..... Seriously. Stop by. We'll get your set up for this beloved PNW meal.
PORK BURGERS
This post is titled Pork Burgers, but it could just as easily be titled Roasted Beets & Carrot Salad (served warm with pepitos & chèvre). It was a killer dinner. Simple & super tasty.
To make the pork burgers, you need to start with good pork. We use Sky Valley Family Farm. Lovely people, and their pork is out of this world. To make the burgers, sautée some garlic, turn off of the heat and add sliced scallions & cilantro. Add veggies to 1 lb of ground pork + salt, pepper & ground fennel. Make patties. Grill for 5 minutes each side.
For the salad, peel beets & carrots and cut to desired size. Toss in olive oil and roast until veggies are desired doneness (about 12 minutes under the broiler). Add in chopped beet leaves (if fresh) for the last 2 minutes. Add roasted nuts and cheese to plated salad if desired.
PAIRINGS:
This is another meal that is not hard to pair wine with. Any rosé would be great. We picked a fuller-bodied, flavorful, minerally rosé from the black slate soils of Roussillon to balance the creamy, earthy flavors of roasted beets.
Whites would also be a great choice with the pork. Again, a wide range of medium-bodied whites with good acidity would work: Gavi, minerally Pinot Grigio from Alto Adige, Vermentino would be fun, Alvarinho from Portugal, Southern Rhône blends & more. Pinot Gris from neighboring Oregon would be a perfect match with the mild flavor of pork and the earthy, creamy beet salad.
Prefer a red? Don’t go too heavy or too oaky. We enjoyed the meal with a medium-bodied Tempranillo from (yes) the Texas Hill Country. Other great options would be Austrian Zweigelt (made for brats off the grill) and Grenache blends from France & Australia. Washington GSM blends would also be good as long as they aren’t too big and overpowering for the meal.
FAVA BEANS
Another seasonal delight! And be fast as the season is over in a flash. These beans come in a huge, thick, sort-of-furry husk. Shell the beans out of the husk, blanch them for 1 minute in boiling (salted) water, cool for 5 minutes, then you’ll have to shell them again, spitting the bright green inner bean out of a thin, cloudy shell. I know, I know. Lots of work. I do it once a season, because it’s a pain in the butt. But the rewards are great. The inner bright green is not only a stunning color, but it has a creamy, nutty, buttery, softly vegetal flavor. They are an amazing legume. Don’t miss them.
For preparation, we keep it simple. Serve the beans sautéed in a little butter with parmesan over pasta. We added some bacon for extra flavor. Not a mistake!
PAIRINGS:
Fava beans on pasta is not tricky to pair. Pretty much your white of choice would be delicious. We picked a flavorful Chardonnay from southern Burgundy and a Fiano from Puglia that’s full of seashells and yellow fruits. Any rosé would be great from fresh and minerally to more luscious in style. Prefer a red? Go light with silky smooth fruit. Monica is a little-known red grape from Sardinia that will knock your socks off. Stop by! We’ll get you set up.
Cheers to fava beans! —Julie, co-owner, Portalis Wines
MORELS
In season in Seattle from March thru June, these locally foraged mushrooms are a delicacy at our house. Simplicity is our answer to enjoying the intense, earthy goodness of morels. We clean them with a light soak in salty water, dry them off, slice and then sautée them in a little olive oil & butter. Add in freshly cooked pasta (with a little pasta water), fresh herbs (if you like), a drizzle of cream (if you like), sea salt, freshly cracked pepper and some freshly grated parmesan. Tah-dah!
PAIRINGS:
So many wonderful options….. Champagne would be a delicious way to celebrate the amazingness of nature! If you prefer a white, I like Chardonnay. It’s got some body and flavors that would pairing nicely with morels. You can go unoaked (Chablis), lightly-oaked (Mâcon) or fully-oaked (California) Chardonnay. All variations would be tasty in their own right. Want something different? Riesling Spätlese has a richer body, is full of flavor, and the off-dry middle (before the dry, acidic finish) would taste great with the earthy goodness of the morels over pasta! You could also do a bright, minerally Sancerre. That would cut the richness of the dish, freshen it up a bit. Delightful!
And finally, red wine would be the classic pairing, especially Pinot Noir — medium-bodied in style with forest fruits and pleasant earthiness to match the dish. Bordeaux would be an other good choice. Reds from Piedmont (Italy) — Barbera & Nebbiolo — are made for mushrooms. A little fruitier but still with good earth is Grenache. Really, it’s hard to go wrong. Just avoid full-bodied, heavily oaked reds as they’ll overpower your beloved morels. Cheers! —Julie, co-owner, Portalis Wines
LEFTOVER GRILLED SALMON NOODLES
So…. whenever we have salmon, Jens buys a large piece, often a side of salmon, and we grill it with several meals in mind. The first night we enjoy the fish straight off grill. On night #2, we usually serve the leftover, slightly under-grilled fish (so that it’s still moist when re-heated) with pasta and whatever veggies we have in the fridge. I usually sautée onions, add in good quality anchovies and garlic for flavor, and then the vegetables. This time we enjoyed it with red & orange peppers, kale & Moroccan dry-cured olives. It was killer. Not gonna lie. —Julie
PAIRINGS:
When in doubt, look to wine lands where fish is core to the local diet. That will for sure lead you to wines good for fish dinner. Think northwest Spain (Albariño), Portugal (Alvarinho, Vinho Verde), around Barcelona, the French Mediterranean (Provence rosé, Southern Rhône white blends, Languedoc-Roussillon), and up and down Italy’s long coastline — Puglia, Sicily & more!
GRILLED SOCKEYE SALMON
It is one of the greatest pleasures of living in the PNW…. enjoying the quality of our amazing local salmon. And after 25 years of practice, Jens is a master-griller of this delicious fish. The side is roasted broccoli & brussels sprouts served over Dijon rice, a simple sauce of Dijon mustard, soy sauce & a squirt of Sriracha, made to taste and stirred into the rice for a little flair.
PAIRINGS:
We enjoyed this meal with the Villa Tonino, a simple, little, table Nero d’Avola (Sicily). Tasted great. Pinot Noir is always a classic salmon pairing, and the silky-smooth Joseph Cattin (Alsace) hits the spot. Whites with a little body are also a sure bet. We love the Anselmi San Vincenzo, a Garganega/Chardonnay blend from Veneto. Full of flavor and interesting! Last, keep rosé in your back pocket… pink with pink. The Muga is a rosé from Rioja (Spain) and is luscious & tasty with great acidity. Delicious with salmon.
GRILLED HANGER STEAK
It's spring, but some days are still cold! This quick, easy meal hit the spot. Jens got hanger steak from our friends at Beast & Cleaver. It was sort of chewy in a really pleasant, make-you-think-about-it way and full of flavor. Not overly lean. Really nice. We enjoyed it with mashed potatoes, caramelized onions and roasted kale.
PAIRINGS:
A nice everyday Bordeaux (Haut-Médoc has more Cab and is a little drier) would be great as would a Tempranillo, Nebbiolo, a Portuguese red blend & more. The key is that this cut of meat is rich and so the wine needs to have some tannins/acidity for balance. Makes the wine taste smooth and the meat not so fatty.
ROASTED TOMATOES & FETA
In honor of our last farmers market of the season, we roasted tomatoes with shallots, elephant garlic, a jalapeño, fresh feta & olive oil. Served it with brats off the grill and kale chips. Delicious! Goodbye, summer…
PAIRINGS:
Lots of great options for wines that would be tasty with this dish. Main tips to keep in mind: 1) the body of the wine should match the weight of the dish, so not too heavy, and 2) tomatoes are acidic and need acidic wines for balance.
That said: Bubbles would be great! The Garganega (white grape) above has a medium-body with great offsetting acidity. Other good choices would be Sauvignon Blanc, Bordeaux blends, minerally Pinot Grigio, and with fall in mind… a Riesling with a nice acidic finish would also be delicious. Reds? Medium- to lighter bodied Italian reds with pronounced acidity would be our choice: the Corvina above would be a nice off-the-beaten-path selection as would a young, fresh Nebbiolo as a more traditional choice. Cheers!
MARCELLA HAZAN’S FAMOUS TOMATO SAUCE
Tomatoes (canned or fresh), an onion, and half a stick of butter = the simple, world-famous, 3-ingredient recipe from the amazing Marcella Hazan, who taught so many of us Gen X-ers the basics of (central) Italian cooking.
PAIRINGS:
Although she was from Emilia-Romagna and her recipes were from central Italy, the dish pairs beautifully with medium- to lighter-bodied Italian reds with good acidity across the board -- Dolcetto, Barbera, Nebbiolo, Vernatsch, Sangiovese, Nerello Mascalese & many more. Made for tomato pasta!
Pasta photo includes fresh, handmade, Lagana pasta, available at Sunset Hill Green Market in Ballard.
Vineyard photos: (first) Azienda Agricola Uccelliera Sangiovese Grosso harvest 2021 (Montalcino, Tuscany) & (second) Tenuta delle Terre Nerre, Nerello Mascalese vineyards near Mount Etna (Sicily)
QUINOA BURGERS
Great end-of-summer lunch or light dinner. We make a big batch and freeze it. Comes in handy.
PAIRINGS:
Both of the white wines above (Graves Reserve & the Pinot Grigio) would be great. They've got comparable body, good acidity and flavors that enhance. Rosé from light and minerally to fuller-bodied and fruity would also be good.
Prefer a red? Go light. Fruity notes (L'Esprit des Pères de L'Eglise 2021 Vin de France Rouge would be perfect, and you can taste this wine Saturday if you are interested) and/or soft earthy notes (see: Wine of the Month) would be delicious. Main thing with a red wine is you don't want to overpower the dish.
MEDITERRANEAN INSPIRATION
With socca bread (below) or rice (above), olives, pepperoncini, hummus and grilled veggies (eggplant, zucchini), and/or add a little lamb (with garlic!) and you’ve got a fast, easy, delicious and not too heavy dinner.
PAIRINGS:
Lots of choices: a little fuller-bodied white with good acidity (think minerally Pinot Grigio, Washington State Sauvignon Blanc, Entre-Deux-Mers white blend from Bordeaux, and Italian varietals such as Arneis and Falanghina). Red wine would also be lovely. Medium-bodied with some good earthiness is our suggestion: Nerello Mascalese from the slopes of Mount Etna, Grenache, Chianti Classico with a good bite would also be nice. Bubbly and rosé are your back pocket wines. They taste great with everything. Cheers!
SOCCA BREAD
Mediterranean pure! This is a flatbread made from chickpea flour. (If you think you don't like the flavor of chickpea flour, try it in socca bread. It's delicious!) We make this all the time chez Strecker... as an afternoon snack, as pizza crust or with dishes where you'd build on a tortilla.
I know the recipe by heart: 1C chickpea flour, 1 1/4 cups water, 2T olive oil, 1/2t salt. Whisk together and pour into a hot cast iron skillet with 1T of hot olive oil in it. Bake on 450 for 17 min. Enjoy. I will often sautée onions and/or garlic in the pan prior to pouring in the batter. Even tastier.
PAIRINGS:
Socca bread is so flexible! Choose anything you'd drink on the French or Italian coasts: rosé, Southern Rhône white blend, Picpoul, Verdicchio, Grillo (for whites) or light reds: Chianti, Barbera, a light, fresh, fruity Nebbiolo or a Grenache/Syrah blend. Cheers!
SEAFOOD PAELLA
Jens is the paella chef chez Strecker. He lived in Barcelona for 2 years (after finishing his mandatory military service and while waiting for a spot to study in Germany), so this dish brings back memories, plus he loves seafood! He sometimes adds meats as well, this time bacon and smoked paprika sausage.
PAIRINGS:
We usually have a red that is light to medium in body with a little smoky note. A young Rioja fits that bill perfectly. Other lighter reds include: Garnacha from around Barcelona (pictured above), Barbera (Italy), Zweigelt (Austria) & Cinsault (from Chile or France).
Prefer a white? Classic fish wines would be great: Albariño from Rias Baixas in northwest Spain (or Alvarinho, same grape from Portugal). Verdejo, an aromatic grape from Rueda (northcentral Spain) would also be lovely.
SWEET POTATO HASH
This dish is a stand-by chez Strecker, especially in winter when we come home late and don't want a big project for dinner. Sweet potato is the base (tossed in olive oil, salt & pepper and roasted on the bottom shelf under the broiler; takes about 15 minutes) adding in whatever other veggies sound good (in this case: zucchini, red bell pepper & onion). If you'd like, add meat (cooked on the stove and then spooned on the roasted veggies). We often use chorizo because it's spicy and flavorful. Top with Greek yogurt with a squeeze of harissa mixed in. It's tangy and spicy and yum.
PAIRINGS:
This dish has some heat, so you need a red with low tannins: Grenache, Dolcetto, Primitivo, Negroamaro & Gamay would all taste great. Rosé & whites with good acid would be tasty as would an off-dry white like a Riesling.
EGGPLANT
We've been on an eggplant kick this fall chez Strecker, and it's been delicious. In honor of my grandmother who was among other things: from South Louisiana (4-syllables please!), a democrat, highly-opinionated, and a good southern cook, we made several rounds of Creole Eggplant Dressing (pictured above) in her honor. Super delicious, I have to say. Her recipe calls for the "Holy Trinity" (onions, celery, green bell peppers) and to that we added poblanos, jalapenos & more) plus we used ground lamb instead of hamburger. The eggplant cooks down to add a creamy, earthiness. All in all, it's some easy, spicy, yummy, home cooking!
PAIRINGS:
Wines to go with? Fruity & not too tannic: Côtes du Rhône (GSM) blends from the Southern Rhône (see our Wine of the Month!) or from South Africa would be great, as would other fall reds listed above: Barbera, Pinot Noir and/or Gamay.
Whites? Fuller-bodied with some spice would be perfect to manage this dish: a Bordeaux blend (Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon) with some Muscadelle blended in would be perfect as would Pinot Blanc from Oregon. Another great option would be Verdicchio from Umbria!
AVO-TOAST À LA NEW ZEALAND
It's spring! And yesterday our eldest turned down grilled salmon (you heard it!) for her New Zealand favorite: avo-toast. I have to admit (and I'm sometimes skeptical this time of year) that the avocado was perfect! She smashed it up NZ-style, drizzled some garlic oil, squeezed some fresh lemon, sprinkled it with Aleppo peppers and chia seeds, and tah-dah. Dinner. Paired with a Stiegl Radler. Maybe the most amazing part of the meal was the bread -- Körnerbrot -- fresh from the Kaffeeklatsch Bakery in Lake City... our family favorite!
PAIRINGS:
A wide variety of whites would go great, from a creamy Chardonnay, to a friendly, easy-drinking, minerally Pinot Grigio (Franz Haas vineyards pictured above) to a crisp Sauvignon Blanc. Rosé would be delicious, round and fruity. A Nebbiolo rosé would be a special treat. And Ramato (orange wine); don’t forget Ramato! Sparkling would also go well, cutting the richness of the avocado… maybe a soft Prosecco or a dusty, dry Cava. Reds? Probably not the best idea. If yes, go with Zinfandel. It’s velvety and on the sweeter-side of dry. Could work.
SPAGHETTI CARBONARA
It’s one of our house specialties — real deal Carbonara! Fry up bacon. Boil pasta. Scramble 1 egg in a bowl. Add enough grated parmesan to form a thick paste. Pull cooked pasta straight from the pot (don’t drain) and put into the bacon pan. Add 1T butter & toss. Add egg/parm paste and use tongs to toss the pasta. It will melt, coating the spaghetti in this creamy goodness. We add roasted vegetables to the top. Don’t want bacon? Sub leeks, the bacon of the vegetable world. Makes everything taste better!
PAIRINGS:
This dish is food flexible. White is my favorite! Go with a medium-bodied flavorful grape such as Fiano or Arneis. Both have good acidity to cut the richness of the dish. Other good options: Southern Rhône white blend, German Riesling or Mâcon-Villages (everyday Chardonnay from Burgundy).
Prefer a red? Go with a medium-bodied, juicy grape so you don’t overpower the meal. Barbera or Negroamaro would be delicious as would Cannonau (Grenache from Sardinia). Or Garnatxa (Grenache from Catalunya). Or Southern Rhône red blend including (of course…) Grenache, just a touch more earth & spice.
We’re heading into rosé season, and rosé across the board would be great as would sparkling, especially pink bubbly!
HOMEMADE PIZZA WITH CAULIFLOWER CRUST
As much as I like to cook, I HATE making dough. Full stop. I don’t know why. Just do. So, the idea of a cauliflower crust had some appeal. I made a couple that were complete disasters (I think the lack of parchment paper sealed the deal), but this recipe popped up a few days ago and aside from being simple (3 ingredients!!), it was delicious. Toppings are your choice. I used what we had on hand: mushrooms, capsicum, garlic, bacon & manchego. Voila! Killer dinner for the family.
PAIRINGS:
We enjoyed this meal with 5 Oros Crianza, one of our new wines from Spain, but it couple be paired quite deliciously with a good chunk of the wines in our shop!! Other reds: Barbera, fresh Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, Primitivo, Nero d’Avola if you want to stay true to Italy. But this has a cauliflower crust, so let’s go rogue: Côtes-du-Rhône, red blends from Languedoc, more medium-bodied Washington reds, Oregon Pinot, Chile… Carmenière would be great, South Africa… their GSM blends with their special smokiness — delicious, and so on. Whites & rosé across the board would be great a well: Vermentino, Gavi, Chablis, Bordeaux Blanc… really, you can’t go wrong. With this dinner an oaky Chardonnay would even taste great.
Cheers to surviving COVID in as good a shape as possible! So here’s to good food & good wine!
Stay tuned for more pairing ideas…
Julie, co-owner
Portalis Wines & J. Strecker Selections