Food Pairing - #3

 

The three wines that I chose were a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot, and a Shiraz. I had never tried a Shiraz before so this was exciting for me! 

The three courses consisted of an appetizer of spinach and artichoke dip with tortilla chips, a pasta and meat sauce, and for dessert some mini eclairs. 

To begin by discussing the wines on their own. The Cabernet Sauvignon smelled very dark, it had notes of dark ripe cherries and it was very pungent smelling of alcohol (understandably because it was a 2$ bottle from Kroger). This is a wine I would use for a chuck roast and I can already tell it would pair nice with red meat. The taste is extremely overwhelming for just having it on its own. It tastes heavily of alcohol but the dark fruit notes of cherry and maybe a little acidity from red currants. For the Merlot, it was definitely not as heavy smelling as the Cab. It smells of cherries but not that dark red cherry of the Cab. It is quite sweet and has notes of red apples, like the red delicious kind. It also tastes of blackberries, the juicy overripe ones. The Shiraz surprised me. The first smells, I could only smell alcohol. Tasting this wine, I felt like I went through the 5 stages of grief. As first I thought it was pleasant but then I got hit with a spiciness that I was not expecting. It tasted like black pepper, very reminiscent of a red Zinfandel. Then I got flavors of musk and old leather, like you're chewing on an old shoe. My first thought was that the Merlot is my favorite out of the three because of the mellow and more complex fruit flavors that it has. 

Now on to the appetizer! Spinach artichoke dip has to be my favorite appetizer to exist, I even make this recipe for dinner sometimes because it is just that good. But to begin with the Cabernet Sauvignon. The brininess of the artichokes does compliment this wine, the creaminess cuts through that dark red overpowering fruit flavors and makes the wine more suitable to drink. The salty and sweet pairing does well to compliment and it tastes almost as if I am having some fig jam with some creamy cheese. I knew the Merlot was going to be my favorite and I was right. The mellowness of the Merlot pairs perfectly with the creaminess of the dip. The little acidity the wine has does well to cut down on the sharpness that the parmesan has in the dip. The wine retains its sweetness, it's even elevated by the salt and the cream of the dip. I did not have high hopes for the Shiraz. The peppery and spiciness of the wine really works against the dip. It feels like I put two things that should never go together in my mouth. The red fruit flavors do nothing to improve the dip, the dip almost turns sour with this wine. It tastes bitter and the creamy dip almost curdles in the mouth. 

For the main course, I made my favorite comfort meal of pasta with meat sauce and LOTS of parmesan cheese on top. I chose all red wines to go with the heaviness of the carbs and acidity of the sauce for this pairing. To begin, the Cabernet Sauvignon was very pleasant with this dish. The heaviness of the wine swirls to mix with the acidity of the tomato sauce and both become sweet in the mouth. The sweetness of the sauce compliments the sweetness of the dark cherry flavors and it's very reminiscent of having a nice roast. The Merlot was once again my favorite pairing. The mellowness of the wine does well with the acidity of the sauce. Both wine and food do not clash, but work to bring out more flavors in each. I used a lot of onion and garlic in making the sauce and the sweetness of the onion is brought out while the wine takes on a riper, fruity flavor. The sharpness of the parmesan cheese is cut down by the sweetness of the wine. The Shiraz was my least favorite, I think I just do not like this Shiraz... Anyway, the spiciness of the Shiraz overpowers the sweetness of the sauce and it turns a bad acidic, like the aftertaste of throw up. The spice flavors of pepper in the wine do little to bring out the black pepper I used in the sauce which I had been hoping would remedy the Shiraz for me. But alas, any of the red fruit flavors of cherry disappeared and all I could taste is that astringent flavor. 

Finishing off with the dessert, I absolutely love eclairs. I bought mini pastry shells and made my own filling for the eclairs which was a process of its own... custard is hard to make! But I think I did a pretty good job! The Cabernet Sauvignon was pleasantly surprising as the dark chocolate I used as the eclair topper paired extremely well with the dark fruit flavors of the wine. The chocolate worked to bring out the jammy and fig flavors of the wine. The custard filling also cut through the alcoholic taste and softened the harshness of the tannins in the wine. The Merlot was again a favorite. Wine Folly has "fruit cake" (page 132) listed as a possible flavor note of Merlot, and this is very accurate to how the Merlot tasted with he chocolate covering. The custard also cut through any of the "cheapness" of the wine, by cheapness I mean that these cheap red wines all have a very strong alcoholic flavor. The Shiraz was again a disappointment. I do have to say this was my favorite pairing for the Shiraz but it still was not great. The spiciness is cut down by the custard but the red fruit flavors turn almost rotten and too ripe, like biting into an overripe strawberry, it just has that taste. The chocolate does well to pair with the first sharpness of the wine and cuts down the wines acidity. 

To conclude my thoughts, the next time I try a Shiraz I think I will have to have someone more experienced pick out a bottle for me to try. Red wine has always been a little heavy for me and I do not often drink it but I think when I cook with red meat, I would rather have a red wine than a white. Overall, the Merlot exceeded my expectations and I would buy that bottle again.