Revelations on Food and Wine pairings...or not

Posted 07/31/2008 at 08:00 PM by Laura

When you have some good friends for dinner and you know you will linger on the deck afterwards, I feel it’s always worth opening something you might now otherwise drink on a weeknight. Such was the case with that ‘02 Calistoga Cellars-a pleasant surprise , since I can’t recall exactly where I got it or who gave it to me. Ends up my dinner guest and friend Jen had just recently bought z couple of bottles of the ’05 Calistoga Cellars, saying it was such a good California Cab for the price. Coincidence... in this vast world of wine.

This bottle certainly benefited from a couple of years in the bottle, still exhibiting lots of ripe fruit but the balance had also set in—tannins weren’t harsh, fruit didn’t seem like a bomb in your mouth and a little bit of dry earthiness came through. Yum, delish. Everyone at the table enjoyed it, even though I made zero attempt to pair it to the dish. But, having roasted beets in the salad, the chipotle mayo topping the chicken burgers and a sun-dried tomato Israeli couscous dish all made the meal so diverse that everything seemed good together, like a stew. And sometimes, you can have great food and great wine-independent of each other- and guess what? Everyone has a great time, complimenting me both on the food and the wine. Who cares about the pair when you have a great group sittin’ around a bountiful table on a beautiful summer night .

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