Poizin your guests this Halloween with Zinfandel

Wine to die for….serve this Zinfandel at your next Halloween party. POIZIN by Armida Wines of Sonoma is perfectly poised to be a deep ruby hit this time of year.

POIZIN, Zinfandel (plus Petite Syrah), Armida Wines, Sonoma, CA, $22

The wine features a deeply dark and inviting color. The nose is pure fruit- think cherry and plum. The flavor is pomegranate to me, on the brighter side of the grape. The texture is more medium-bodied than many examples of this style. There is an appreciated and subtle linger of vanilla in the finish. There is a bit of Petite Syrah added which accounts for some fairly strong tannins.

As a party wine this would pair well with spicy and even smokey foods because of the bright fruit- buffalo wings, ribs, those stupidly good meatballs simmering in something tangy and fruity. For a meal I would serve this with any lamb dish, certainly anything Middle Eastern because of the surprising pomegranate hit, and even the more hearty Asian dishes like General Tso’s or a curry from any cuisine.

You can have a lot of fun with the cool bottle this time of year. Slurp up a syringe-full at your next Halloween gathering.

A perfect pairing for Summer

Though we swing for the fences every day, sometimes you hit it out of the park. Andy created an utterly delicious bbq sauce that we've been enjoying all summer. About a month ago a new wine came through the store- Lapostolle's hearty Chilean pure Syrah.

The collision of this wine and this bbq sauce slathered on a grilled pork tenderloin pretty much happened because of circumstance.  We had all three, and so we made the best of it.  If you're a home cook you might understand how this went.  And the result was truly a perfect pairing.

We liked this combination so much we tried it the following two weekends, just to be sure it was the heavenly combination we discovered the first time.  It was...

The sauce is the perfect balance of tangy and fruity.  The wine is fruity, slightly spicy and voluptuous even though I'd describe its viscosity as medium.  The weight and complexity of the mineraly Syrah supports the slight smoke of grilling the tenderloin.  If you want to experience how a delicious wine and a well-balanced dish can pair to elevate both, make this dish and buy this wine!  

SYRAH- Apalta Vineyard, 2012, Lapostolle, Chile, $18
The Lapostolle family has been producing industry recognized wine and spirits for centuries- this is the family who created and produces Grand Marnier. Yeah.  Their Chilean plantings produce delicious wines.  You can taste the old world vines, meeting new world soil- this means hearty fruit balanced nicely with minerality.

The wine is medium-bodied, but offers a voluptuous mouth feel.  The first taste is fruit- plums, even blackberries, followed quickly by some spice- pepper and allspice, a touch of smoke, and even some menthol.  The taste lingers nicely.  The first sip offered light tannins that seemed ideally balanced to the smokey and earthy flavor.  It was a very pleasant sip.

ANDY'S PEACH BBQ SAUCE

5 c peaches, peeled and sliced (we use fresh when available, but frozen works, too)
1 large onion
1 c brown sugar
1 c apple cider vinegar
1/3 c soy sauce
2 T garlic, minced
2 T ginger, minced
1/2 t chipotle powder
1/2 t liquid smoke
1/2 t Worcester sauce
1/4 t black pepper

Sauté onions and peaches, salt lightly, until soft.
Add remaining ingredients.  
Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and let it simmer for 10 min.
Using a hand blender, pulverize to desired consistency.  (We tend to leave it slightly pulpy.)
Remove from heat.  Let it sit for 30 min or longer, allowing the flavors to merge.

GRILLED PORK TENDERLOIN with ANDY'S PEACH BBQ SAUCE

2 lbs of pork tenderloin, (2 small tenderloins work nicely)
Andy's Peach BBQ Sauce

Bring the tenderloin(s) to room temperature. Salt and pepper the pork tenderloin.  Spray lightly with olive oil. Start the tenderloin on the hot side of a gas or charcoal grill. Cover. Start looking at the grill side after 8 minutes, depending on the size of your tenderloin.  You're looking for caramelization and a little color.  When you're satisfied, turn the tenderloin over. 

Slather a healthy dose of the BBQ sauce on the grilled side of the tenderloin. After 8 minutes, again check for caramelization. Once you're satisfied, turn the meat over again, and move the tenderloin to the cool side of the grill, slathering this newly grilled side with BBQ sauce.

We tend to repeat this action a few times.  Make sure the hot side of your grill is hot enough to create an oven effect.  We keep up this process until the sauce is nicely caramelized on every part of the tenderloin.  Make sure you're grilling the tenderloin until it reaches at least 140 degrees.
A general guide- Medium-rare  145 to 150; Medium 150 to 155; Medium-well 155-160. But remember that cooking will continue, meaning the temperature will keep rising, as the meat rests.

Let it rest, covered with foil for at least 10 minutes before slicing.  

This recipe produces enough sauce to slather a couple pounds of tenderloin, leaving plenty to serve with the completed dish, and some leftover you could use on chicken thighs, chicken breasts, or more pork. 

If you try this combo, send us a pic and any comments.  We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

3 Funky Summer Reds Under $20

Telling me I can't drink red wine during the summer is like telling me what time I have to go to bed.  If you enjoy some depth in your glass from a red sipper on a warm summer day, just drink one!  And often a medium to light bodied red is the perfect compliment to nearly any food that comes off a grill.  That is certainly true for the three wines I'd like to introduce to you today. All of them are medium to light bodied and would be great choices for relaxing on a summer day, with or without a nosh.

1.  LOVELY LILLY, 2014, Pinot Noir, Shelter Winery, Germany, $19
This was a delicious find. It is a lighter, easy sipper which offers strawberry tones on the nose, a bit darker berry in the taste, and lovely slightly earthy finish.  I tried this with a variety of substantial cheese, and it complimented everything from hearty aged gouda to a simple local goat cheese.  A wonderful wine with food, and certainly a pleasant sipper with nothing but you and a sunset.

2. THE UPRISING-RED WINE, Red Blend aged in Rum Barrels, 19 Crimes Winery, Australia, $10
This is an immediate fix.  Often criticized by the snoots for its....wide appeal.   The wine is juicy and cherry flavored, but the funk comes in the 30-day rum barrel aging it accepts nicely.  The nose is firstly rum.  Definitively rum.  Every sip offers cherry and raspberry flavors with a distinct rummy finish. I wanted to be less accepting, but we drank the bottle in record time.  As a summer party red wine, this is an obvious and easy choice. And the company's app for your smartphone will offer a fun twist. Its even more fun after the second glass....

3. SHOOTING STAR BLUE FRANC, 2013, Blaufränkisch, Steele, Washington State, $14
You don't have to pronounce it, just drink it!  An excellent example of the diverse offerings of Washington state grapes, and the creativity of Steele vineyards. This grape may be new to you, but it has been around awhile, even in the Pacific Northwest.  It is lighter-bodied, and nicely balanced with cranberry tartness, mint and wild blueberries and raspberries.  It brings a vanilla, woodsy and slight smokey finish.  Its a unique wine, but why not try something that might be new to you?  The food pairings are endless.  I'd recommend it with anything grilled- lamb, pork, chicken, veggies, especially.

Have you tried any of these wines?  Are there other 'summery reds' you could pass to our peeps?