Tuesday, December 8, 2009

#12 - Wine Can Chicken and Two Wines


So...another Wine Can Chicken.

It's important to note that each Wine Can Chicken has been decidedly different. The first one was intensely herbal. The second one really kicked up the hoisin angle and this one...

All apricot and dill.

Most importantly, I don't want chicken any other way after having WCC.

On another note, if you're going to have something outside of red meat, duck and some other odd bird/game/beefy goodness, WCC is the answer nine times out of ten.

Who needs another rendition of pork?

Food: Apricot/Dill Wine Can Chicken with Asparagus, Baguette and French Butter

Simple meal. Easy to make for Mrs. Ney after a dinner with the family the night before.

Chicken had the usual sublime flavor with the apricot fully infused into it and the dill working with the chicken skin, standard asparagus serving as a good green vegetable with Trader Joe's baguette, something that's become as good as a fresh-baked baguette in many ways (it's frozen, made to throw briefly in the oven).

Wine: 2007 Domaine Giachino Altesse & 2007 Turkey Flat Rosé

Two wines because I'm a boob and chilled the wrong Giachino three days ago.

Domaine Giachino is an interesting story. It's wine from the Savoie (all the history that comes with tales of Savoy), the French Alps mountainous area on the southeastern border, a region that feels it's quite autonomous from France proper and do things a bit differently. The Vin de Savoie wine usually doesn't make its way to the U.S. but recently, we've seen a few bottles here and there (Whole Foods even has one now).

I chilled the Altesse, which is made from the grape of the same name that's indigenous to the region. Nobody else in the world makes it. Descriptions mention peaches and almond. Maybe. I got pears with a hint of herbs and an ever-so-slight hint of oily dryness. Simple. Pleasant enough.

I meant to chill the Abymes, which is made from the Jacquere grape, also indigenous to the region and only grown there. It's aged in its lees for a bit and imparts an oiliness that so pronounced and so absolutely great, I really should buy a case. All. Oil. Totally new to us up until six months ago.

C'est la vie (look at me! I speak French!).

Well...the Altesse didn't do much with the food. So we opened the Turkey Flat Rosé. It's Mrs. Ney's favorite rosé and is definitely in my top three, probably because I'm still uncertain whether I like Grenache or not.

It's mostly Grenache with some Shiraz, Cabernet and Dolcetto. Bit of strawberry in this one with maybe some watermelon. Got some tannins initially but it went away. Definitely a tad floral. Pretty. Interesting. Changes. Goes down wonderfully.

Pairing: Solid with the rosé, not with the Giachino

Settled on the rosé and messed around with the Giachino.

Mrs. Ney brought some peri-peri sauce to the meal and it became a great example of what certain wine does with certain food. With the sauce, the rosé was perfect. Subtle and played at the perfect pitch in the background with the right level of fruit coming to the fore. Without the sauce, it was merely good. Nothing wrong with it at all, but just merely good. A very approachable wine overall. Great wine by itself and always fun. And great when it isn't so...Grenache-y (read: A bit gnarly).

Giachino bordered on a dull white. Bland in most every sense. Drinkable and technically a fine little wine, just not interesting with this food.

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