Anyone who knows me well knows that in addition to my unwavering love of wine, I have a love of cooking. From healthy, fresh and simple to complex and elaborate meals that take an entire day, I love it all. So when I planned this meal I knew that I could do what I sometimes do which is go off and record a review of the main wine I was having but I decided instead to do a writeup so I could talk about both the food and the wine part of things at once.
So usually when I cook I like to enjoy a glass of wine just for fun so the other people I'm cooking with or for can sit/stand around with me and make the actual cooking part of things a social time. Since I was already planning to do an Tuscan dinner, I decided an italian white would be a perfect relaxing social wine. I chose the 2008 Inama Soave Classico (which rolls in at around $18) both because I remembered liking it when I had it at a tasting and because I always enjoy Garganega. What I didn't know is that I was in for a serious experience for my taste-buds. This wine offered up some fantastic floral aromas and notes of stone-fruit with a hint of hazelnut. On the palette these flavors are repeated along with lovely subtle notes of vanilla and toast and a fantastic minerality. This wine has fantastic acidity and balance and offers a wonderfully smooth and clean finish. This wine from start to finish is really a pleasure. However, it's not all roses because of a simple fact that will prevent some people from truly enjoying it. This wine NEEDS to be decanted and paired with the right glassware. Now, I recommend this for all people when they drink wine because you tend to get more out of it but this is different in that if you don't, you really do miss it. I have had this wine at 2 tastings and it was a totally different animal under those conditions. So if you really want to take the time to aerate, decant this wine for 45 minutes, make sure it's not too cold etc, you will be pleasantly surprised and rewarded. I give this wine a huge recommendation under those conditions.
Once I had my cooking/causual/fun wine sorted and was enjoying a glass, I got moving on cooking. I had already chosen a menu and a suitable wine which I'll get to in a moment. I chose to do lamb because I definitely enjoy it's flavor and versatility but also because of how well it plays with italian cooking. I did a roast leg of lamb with garlic and rosemary. It's fairly simple but a delicious way to prepare this meat. I lightly salted the outside of the leg. Then, in a bowl I combined some minced fresh rosemary, a little olive oil and a tiny bit of lemon zest and a minced clove of garlic, then rubbed this mixture on the outside of leg and baked. When it came out, I sliced it thin and garnished with rosemary as in the pic. I also made a side of what is purported to be a drunken Tuscan pasta, which while delicious, doesn't remind me tons of Tuscany, but it's alright because it paired perfectly (can't take credit for the recipe on the pasta, but if you would like to know more and see it, just google drunken pasta and check it out).
Because of the hefty nature and fattiness of the lamb as well as the heartiness of the herbs and spices in both the meat and the pasta, I knew I needed a hefty and dry italian wine to stand up to it. Of course because the underlying Tuscan theme for the meal, I immediately ran to the cellar and grabbed the 2007 Aia Vecchia Lagone, a baby super-tuscan. This wine cost around $17 locally and received 90 point scores from Stephen Tanzer and the Wine Spectator, but this actually is not the reason I bought this wine. I bought it because I had it at a tasting and loved it and knew that a time would come where this was the perfect choice, and this was that time. On the nose, this wine offers up aromas of juicy dark cherry, raspberry, spice, and slight tobacco. On the palette I got plum and currants along with a slight smoked flavor and herbal notes along with a hint of minerality. This wine is distinctively Tuscan and offers up a textbook profile on french varietals from Tuscany. At the price, it's not bad at all and is about as food friendly as it gets, especially when it comes to heavier meats like my lamb :)
Everything went to plan and an amazing meal was had by all. I really encourage people to pair up food and wine more often. If you're a foodie, start pairing wines with your dishes and if you're a wine guy, start checking out some regional recipes and begin thinking about your wine, at least once in a while, within the context of what it can pair with. I hope everyone enjoys this and that it gets you thinking about plans for your own next get together. Until next time, alla salute!
