10 Green Food & Drink Matches for St. Patrick’s Day at NatalieMacLean.com You don’t need the luck o’ the Irish to find great green food and drink pairings this St. Patrick’s Day, according to Natalie MacLean, who offers a new Drinks Matcher widget. “Just look for complementary flavors and textures.” “Green food and green wine go together, so veggies dance with wines that have herbal, grassy aromas, such as New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc,” Natalie adds. “In fact, if there were an award for Veggie Wine of the Century, it would go to this one. Not only does it have complementary […]
Month: March 2011
Poutine & Wine
Much thought is given to pairing wines with gourmet dishes or the choicest selections of meat, fish, and poultry. But what about more plebian fare like fries and gravy? As I headed out of town last week, sommelier and wine writer Natalie MacLean (www.nataliemaclean.com) asked for my ideas on the best wine to pair with the Quebec specialty known as poutine. Poutine is the name given north of the border to a concoction of French fries, brown gravy, and melted cheese. Of course, back home in New Jersey, we have our own name for this artery-clogging treat: disco fries, that […]
Investing in Wine
Buy now, drink later Prices for great wine are soaring. But by ordering tomorrow’s best bottles today, you can ensure you’ll never go thirsty.By Pamela Young If you are passionate about wine, well-supplied with cash, and very, very patient, now may be the right time to stock up on Château Ausone 2005. Ordering this blue-chip Bordeaux on the “futures” market while it is still aging in the barrel will set you back $1,395 a bottle, or $16,740 a case. Of course, you won’t be able to collect this robust yet ethereal red at your local liquor store until 2008 — […]
Canadian Wines 3
Here’s my idea of a holiday: a ski trip with my family to the charming little town of Sutton, just north of the U.S. border in Quebec—and an opportunity to sample the local wines. This annual Presidents Week ski trip is also a pilgrimage of sorts to the wonderfully quirky Auberge Agnes Horth where we reconnect with friends who are also drawn to this area, a former outpost for British loyalists that later attracted artists and free spirits. Our hosts at the inn, Ray and Carla, offer their guests a laid back, family atmosphere and a belly full of gourmet […]
Chocolate & Wine 1
If a box of chocolates is your gift choice for that someone special this Valentine’s Day, put some adventure into it and pair it with a bottle of wine. Just be the sure it’s the right wine. “Ideally you should choose a wine that is sweeter than the chocolate,” says Natalie MacLean of Ottawa, an accredited sommelier, wine writer, speaker and judge. “Otherwise the wine will taste bitter by comparison.” She says that no matter what kind of chocolate you’ve got, there is also richness which comes from high alcohol. MacLean suggests taking a piece of dark chocolate which is […]
Chocolate & Wine 4
PERFECT MATCH Want to seduce someone this Valentine’s Day? Just share a glass of wine (or three) with your sweetheart. Wine is liquid sensuality: its heady bouquet stimulates the appetite and its velvet caress soothes that desire. What other drink is described as both voluptuous and muscular? And when you pair wine with the mouth-coating luxury of chocolate, the combination is impossible to resist. We asked Natalie Maclean, author of Red, White and Drunk All Over and the woman behind the food-wine matcher at www.nataliemaclean.com, to give us her romantic suggestions of chocolate pairings with California wines. Here’s her top […]
Wine Tastings
Several years ago I organized a wine tasting night, hoping to take advantage of my neighbor’s expertise in that area. Everyone brought a bottle of red wine, each one wrapped in a brown paper bag so we could taste without being influenced by the label or price. The least expensive bottle on the table, a California Zinfandel, won raves. It surprised those of us who splurged on a $20 bottle – about twice the price of the winner – thinking that more expensive meant better quality. That’s only one of a few good reasons wine tastings exist. Milwaukee native Michael […]
Steakhouse Wine Lists
Don’t be surprised if it’s easier this month to get a reservation at Smith & Wollensky. The reason: With the economy in decline and expense accounts under increased scrutiny, businesspeople may be skipping the steakhouse–and the overpriced wines that flow there. That appears to be what’s happening at Morton’s and Ruth’s Chris. In the last year, Morton’s stock has dropped 75%. Ruth’s Hospitality Group, which owns the Ruth’s Chris chain, has followed a nearly identical downward trajectory. In Depth: Most and Least Pricey U.S. Steakhouse Wine Lists “There are two major problems facing both of the steakhouse operators,” says Chris […]
Internet & Wine 3
As my close friends know painfully well, I’m not exactly good at making decisions. At the wine store, I’m the customer who gets asked “Can I help you?” twice by the same salesperson because I’ve meandered between shelves for so long that they have forgotten our first encounter. Then I usually say something brilliant like, “Can you help me find a red wine that tastes…you know, tasty…um, like the one I bought a few weeks ago…I think it was French…?” It’s not that I’m a complete oeno-idiot. I know most of the major regions and varietals, and my palate can […]
Economy & Wine 4
Looking ahead to 2009 seems to be a scary proposition if you listen to the economists. Stocks and the housing market haven’t hit bottom, they say, while uncertainty about jobs and a new president are adding to our jitters. While it isn’t fun to live with uncertainty, it is fun to talk about wine. This time of year, it’s especially fun to make educated guesses about what trends are afoot. For their insights, we asked Guy Stout, master sommelier for Glazer’s distributing; Ray Ayala, wine specialist with Republic Beverages; and Natalie MacLean, wine expert and author with a popular newsletter, […]
