Pair Up with La Sommelierre - June 2011
Pacific Northwest
Californians are lucky to live so close to the waters of the Pacific Northwest. The bounty of the ocean provides the perfect starting place to create a wine-friendly meal. The Northwest also offers fresh blueberries as a sweet ending to your delicious evening.
Shrimp ceviche is a cool way to start. I like this recipe because the shrimp are partially cooked in boiling water first and then finish ‘cooking’ in the citrus juices as they marinate. Serve this recipe in a large bowl in which to dip tortilla chips or portion individually in cocktail glasses with a few chips perched on the side for crunch. A great wine partner for a spicy ceviche is a slightly sweet, slightly tart Washington Riesling. The wine’s bright citrus flavors are complemented by pear, kiwi and white peach.
You can keep the seafood theme going with Pacific Northwest sockeye salmon as your main entree. Salmon is wonderful grilled and is one fish that defies the white wine with fish rule. Try out an Oregon pinot noir to pair with the salmon. The slight smoke from the grill will blend nicely with the oak flavors the wine takes on as it spends time in the barrel. Furthermore, the high fat content found sockeye salmon will be complemented by the fuller body found in a red wine.
The finale to this great summer meal is a dessert bursting with flavor. Blueberry Glacé Pie is made in the style of a fresh strawberry pie since the blueberries are not cooked inside the crust. It is amazingly simple to make and always gets great reviews at my house. Personally, I don’t find that sweet desserts, especially those with whipping cream, pair well with wine. My best suggestion is dark, rich coffee. We will need to depart from the Northwest for this and perhaps choose coffee beans grown in Kenya or Ethiopia.
So, go on. Pair Up!
Find recipes online at www.lasommelierre.com
