Fortunately, this was a much more relaxed tasting and pairing that I could do at my own pace. This dinner consisted of a “wine flight”, where small portions of wine are served in a set and you can try them at your will. The three wines tonight were an Argentine Pinot Grigio, a Californian Rose Tempranillo, and a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. They were paired with a parmesan crusted baked flounder with mushroom risotto, garlic spinach, and tomato Hollandaise. This was a particularly interesting trio of wines because they had young vintages, but very full flavors and bouquets. They also tended to change quite dramatically when tasted with food.
#1: Graffigna Centenario Reserve Pinot Grigio, 2010, Argentina
This wine had a very tart bouquet with peach and pear aromas. There was a subtle creamy, nutty aroma as well, which created a very full-bodied sensation on the nose.
When tasted without food, this wine tasted light, but felt creamy and full. It tasted like crisp red Fuji apple, pear, and had a slight nutty aftertaste.
When tasted with food, this wine remained light, but turned slightly vegetal. It tasted like yellow pepper, but maintained fruity tones in white grape and Golden Delicious apple flavors.
Overall, I did enjoy this wine. It was almost thick in its body, but was light and very easy to drink with the flounder. I did not particularly enjoy the yellow pepper flavor that emerged with the food, but it didn’t completely destroy the flavor and, to an extent, enhanced it.
#2: Rose of Tempranillo, Match Book Vineyards, 2010, Zamora, California
The bouquet of this wine was acidic and almost unpleasant at first, but gave way to strawberry, pear, and sweet, grassy tones. There was also a Macintosh apple aroma, though it was quite light.
Without food, this wine had an initial vanilla taste, which took me completely off guard. After several more tries, I was able to pick up light raspberry, apple, and pear flavors. Altogether, quite sweet and enjoyable on its own.
With food, this wine gained a citrus tone as well as a slight ripe tomato flavor. It maintained its pear tone, but took on additional grape and strawberry fruit tones.
I preferred this wine on its own and would not pair it with the strong spice flavors of this dish. While it complemented the fish well, it wasn’t very compatible with the garlic spinach or the Hollandaise and was easily overpowered.
#3: Sauvignon Blanc, Fernlands Winery, 2011 New Zealand
This wine had the most interesting bouquet I have ever encountered (so far). It smelled very strongly of pineapple, orange, lime zest, and pear. It was extraordinarily fruity and citrusy and was almost shocking in its strength, though still quite pleasant.
This wine by itself was very sweet. It had pear and white grape flavors and I would compare it to the taste of Moscato.
With food, it kept its strong pear flavor, but became nutty and took on a Gala apple flavor, still very sweet and strong enough not to be overpowered.
This was my favorite wine. It was surprising and so different from the other two and paired very well with the meal. It was flavorful enough to stand on its own and not be washed out by the food, but it didn’t express itself too strongly over the food. It was very good with all of the spicy, salty, and vegetal parts of the meal and was enjoyable in the way that it adapted to the food.
Altogether, this meal encapsulated three different wines from three very different parts of the world paired with one complex dish that could be paired in different ways and expressed flavors from varying parts of the spectrum. This was a very pleasant experience and I believe that I would enjoy doing a wine flight again; not being rushed to taste many different wines, but try a few at a much slower, relaxed pace.
