A Medicinal Pinot Noir this evening!

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Steve Shipley

I am still a bit unfit, from having been quite sick with a viral infection in my lungs (of which I still have some remnants) and now have a bit of a toothache, even though rubbing the tooth will alcohol really does seem to make the pain subside! Therefore, I have opened a ‘medicinal’ Pinot Noir for the evening. It is lighter in taste and more elegant than a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Shiraz – I can actually visualize drip-feeding a Pinot Noir directly into my blood stream! I also know my bride is bringing home some beautiful leftover pasta from an amazing lunch she had with co-workers today. The pasta is a spaghetti with blue swimmer crab and tomato, and could have gone nicely with an aged Riesling, but I really wanted my ‘medicinal’ Pinot Noir tonight and believe it will match extremely well with the pasta.

I have opened a bottle of the 2006 Bannockburn Pinot Noir from the Geelong area in Victoria. Year-in, year-out, Bannockburn makes exceptional Pinot Noirs. I was first introduced to the 1998 vintage of this wine which was an exceptional and unusual Pinot Noir. I finished off my last bottle (thank God I had two dozen to last!) about a year ago and it was still magnificent. Very few Pinot Noirs will last this distance, but the 1998 Bannockburn Pinot Noir just went on and on!

This wine (the 1998 vintage) is very complex, full flavored and combines berry flavors with some musky, almost musty flavors but in a very positive manner. This wine would go very well with a mushroom ragout, eggplant or any other dark vegetable. I can see myself smoking a fine Cuban cigar while sipping this wine! The 2006 is similar, but a touch lighter and not quite as complex. However, it is still a truly wonderful wine. I purchased two dozen of both the 2005 and 2006 vintages of the Bannockburn Pinot Noir, but enjoy the 2006 more. It will also last longer. However, taste is a matter of ‘courses for horses’ and I know several people who prefer the 2005 vintage.

The 2006 Bannockburn Pinot has a very light but tart chokeberry or elderberry taste combined with flavors from the dark, moist forest floor. Yet, the different flavors are highly integrated, the texture smooth and perfectly balanced, making an excellent wine. I am drinking it on its own as I write this and it fills the senses! It also is serving its purpose as a medicinal wine to reduce the ache in my tooth and pick up my spirits overall! I am excited to have this wine with dinner in about 30 minutes!

A lot of people rave about New Zealand Pinot Noirs, but I need to look no further than Geelong, Victoria for my favorite Pinot Noir in Australia and New Zealand. (I have had slightly better Pinot Noirs from France, but at two to three times the price of the Bannockburn.)

What authority do I have to write a wine blog? – Part 1

Posted on August 12, 2012 by Steve Shipley

With the Internet and social media, there now exists a global forum for distributing and sharing information. Everyone can become a writer, a blogger, or an educator. Unfortunately, just providing the medium to communicate, does not make everyone a good communicator – in fact, far from it. Too many people now can publish without the filter of an editor, a reviewer or a publisher. While this has allowed for the success of a few great writers who would not have otherwise been found, it has mostly just added pages to the web of limited or no value.

There exists a lot of crap on the ‘net, some of the material incorrect or worse, misleading, and some of it vitriol and hurtful, if not downright shameful. The Internet provides a public forum, and recreates a town hall setting where issues can be raised and debated. I find this exciting and a leap forward – not backward – in communications and relationships. Yet, too many people hide behind an avatar, or feel they can be disrespectful in addressing others 12,000 miles away without recourse. This sometimes turns the public forum into the ‘pubic’ forum unfortunately.

I thought about writing a wine blog for almost a year before actually writing my first entry. My bride who writes DAZ in the Kitchen asked if I would consider being a guest blogger as she did not have time that week (almost 18 months ago) to write her post. With trepidation, I agreed and 30 minutes later had an article which at least would help my wife avoid the need to write something herself that week. What was exciting was that two people commented positively on the entry and provided me encouragement that maybe I did have something of value to share.

Yet, through having done a lot of wine topical reading, it was clear that (1) I was not a professional writer as many are who make it their career, and (2) I am not as knowledgeable on wine topics as many others are that I admired such as Jancis Robinson, Campbell Mattinson, or James Halliday. These individuals are great writers and experts in their field. I read a brilliant article yesterday entitled “Halliday’s last O’Shea” by Mattinson in Voracious: The Best New Australian Food Writing edited by Paul McNally. It was so powerful, I was shaking and delighted in every word Mattinson shared with us about the unique dinner and wine drinking experience that he, Halliday and others partook in. (Halliday’s generosity also comes through on wanting to share such a great bottle with friends which in my opinion makes Halliday a wine enthusiast instead of a wine snob as judged in my article “Wine Snob versus Wine Enthusiast – which one are you?” even though in either case, Halliday must certainly be considered a wine expert! Expertise has nothing to do with being a snob or enthusiast – attitude does!

But these individuals – Robinson, Mattinson and Halliday – have written multiple books, write about wine as a full-time profession and are absolute experts in their field.

So the question remains, “What gives me the authority to write a wine blog?”

First of all, I actually do not need authority. I am not requesting anyone to buy anything, or to even take the time to read my posts. That is clearly and entirely up to them. And the number of posts and comments continues to grow, so I feel good that it appears to be of value to a community of like-minded readers out there.

I write because I enjoy writing and it helps me organize and challenge my thoughts and views with regard to wine. I also provide a “common man’s voice” which strikes an accord with my audience (you don’t need to worry about me providing non-essential information to the 99.999% of us who will never, ever be able to try the ’27 LeTache!). Therefore, there does seem to exist an audience who is interested and finds value with what I have to say, at least to the point of them investing several minutes to read what I write.

2009 Molines Chardonnay and SAZ in the Cellar messy desk

And I have some areas of expertise that even the experts mentioned above do not have that I can share. I have a place in the Hunter Valley, and have made some great and intimate relationships there and have drank wines from the private cellars of the best Hunter Valley wineries and wine makers, and have learned much of the lore and unique aspects of the Hunter Valley and its characters. The wine pictured above that I am drinking while I write this post is a 2009 Molines Chardonnay. This wine is a beautiful medium bodied Chardonnay that is the product of Robert and Sally Molines (proprietors of one of the very few Hatted restaurants in rural Australia called Bistro Molines) chardonnay grapes from their property, crafted by wine make PJ Charteris who until recently was the chief wine maker at Brokenwood, and is annointed as one of the six famous “new generation Hunter Valley wine makers.” (Chateris nows has his own winery in New Zealand which produces great Pinot Noirs which is also taking more of his time and is worth checking out.)

The only way to get any of this great Molines Chardonnay is to either buy it through the restaurant or become friends of Robert and Sally and get some directly from them. Robinson, Mattinson nor Halliday will be able to describe this wonderful wine to you, explain where and how to get it, etc., but SAZ in the Cellar can! Therefore, while certainly limited, I can educate others in a few areas that world renown experts cannot!

In part two of this post, I will be reviewing discussions I have had with Dr. Ian Harper who has published “Economics for Life” and Blake Stevens who published just last week “Still Stupid at Sixty” on their assessment of the authority they have to write. Both questioned if it existed, both questioned if they had a story worth telling and the ability to tell it, yet both have created riveting and useful books that are of great benefit to many others. Their authority rings through loud and clear.

I am taking my authority from the growing number of page views and good comments, plus the fact that I do this as much for myself as I do for others, and from the wines I drink and the stories they tell me.

[Note: There was an error when trying to link to Halliday’s Wine Companion, so once that is resolved, I will update this entry to provide that link.]

Should you decant wine?

Posted on August 10, 2012 by Steve Shipley

In my opinion – “Yes, most of the time.” I am a believer that spending some time with air after opening a bottle helps to finish the wine and make it closer to its optimal drinking state. This is not always the case, but should be considered most of the time. Plus the ritual of decanting a wine can enhance the sensual pleasure of drinking wine. I am not big on “form over function,” but do get joy out of decanting a bottle, watching the wine spiral down the decanter and the smell rising up as the wine breathes. Check out my recent blog post “Wine Foreplay and Sensual Pleasures” to find out more on how sensual, almost erotic decanting wine can be!

The visual and nasal aspects of decanting are both enjoyable, and it builds anticipation for the liquid to hit your palate!

Minimally, all wines should be opened and given several (5 – 10) minutes for any odors that may be still captured in the head space (the air at the top of a bottle of wine regardless if under cork or screw top) of the bottle should be given time to flow out. This will improve the drinking experience by removing any intervening unpleasant smells.

It is difficult to determine the absolute optimal time to open a bottle of wine. Fortunately, many good wines can be drunk over a several year period where they are truly outstanding. However, it is often the case that when we open a bottle, the wine is still a little tight, and exposing it to air for 30 minutes up to several hours can really help the wine. The transformation includes the wine becoming smoother in texture and more mellow in taste. The little bit of remaining tightness is gone or significantly reduced.

In general, decanting a wine for 30 minutes up to two hours should do the trick. However, some really complex and very well structured wines that demand to be in the bottle for 10 – 20 years, may require a decanting period of two to three hours or even longer. The 1987 Lindemans Pyrus for example, should be decanted for 6 – 8 hours to provide optimal drinking pleasure. This is because of the nature and role of the Cabernet Franc grape as part of the blend. This is a complex grape which evolves over a very long period of time, making some of the 20 – 25 year old Pyrus a truly magnificent drink. Yet, it needs long exposure to air to really complete the process.

I tasted this wine a while back at Lindeman’s after it was open only two hours and while I liked the wine, I felt it had bit of an aftertaste, so had a difficult time committing to buying much of the wine. My bride though who has a much better palate than me, loved the wine and insisted we go back the following day to get some more. (This was a $90 bottle of wine, but because the bottle had been shortfilled at 747 ml instead of the full 750 ml, they were going for $30 per bottle). The bottle had stayed open over night and when I tried it the following morning, it was absolutely brilliant! We ended up buying the last four bottles and I am really glad we did as we only have three bottles left now. This is a complex wine that is 25 years old, and it needs a lot of time to breathe! But most bottles require far less decanting time to finish off nicely.

However, be very careful and I suggest not decanting very old and fragile wines for too long. They lose flavor far too quickly and will become tepid or even flat. While many wines can be drunk over several days, older, fragile wines should be drunk within an hour after being opened.

Most people only think of decanting red wines, but I have found great benefit in decanting really large, robust white wines also. 5 – 20 year old aged Chardonnay, Semillon and other whites deserve an hour of decanting to really bring out the flavor, as does truly great Montrachet wines.

And in case there is any doubt, do not decant a Champagne! It will quickly lose its bubbles! Drink Champagne right from the bottle!

Gewürztraminer with Thai Food

Posted on August 8, 2012 by Steve Shipley

Last night we had five people around for Thai food. We do this every couple of weeks and it provides a good opportunity to try a number of different wines matched to the food. Of course, what is Thai food? For four to six people, we would have about eight different selections of food, including noodles, seafood, beef curry, chicken, pork along with springs rolls, rice, etc. Therefore, the most important thing to remember is that if we have multiple dishes and types of food, we need either (1) multiple wines, or (2) a wine that will match easily with many different dishes.

In my second ever wine blog written on 29 March, 2012, I wrote about what wine to have with Thai food. That evening we had a Riesling which matches up well because Riesling usually has a bit of sharp edge to it and works well for a white wine with ethnic food, especially Thai food in my opinion where I like a bit of sharpness to start with and then followed by a smoother Shiraz with some of the other dishes.

If we have a few people over though and a few dishes, then I would like to have maybe two whites and one red wine to go with Thai. That way you can vary what you want to achieve with the whites and I usually would choose a Hunter Valley Shiraz, which is not too heavy (like the big Barossa Valley Shirazes) and contain more peppery or spiced flavorings for the red.

However, a few of us were still recovering from having been sick recently and one was not drinking, so we only opened one bottle of a white wine. It was the 2008 Gewürztraminer from The Little Wine Company. This is a spectacular wine and has aged beautifully in the several years since I bought it and a perfect match for Thai food, especially tonight as we had several seafood dishes on the menu.

I would describe this wine as off-dry or semi-dry, with a beautiful sharpness to it that goes really well with Thai food. It should really be classified as a dry wine, but a bit of sweetness from the citrus flavors and almost candy-like drops or chews comes through to make it appear semi-dry.

One of our friends is having us over for Malaysian and Indian food in a couple of weeks and I have set aside another few bottles of this great wine to share with them.

The Gewürztraminer is a secondary white grape and there is not a lot of it to be found in Australia. Most of the Gewürztraminer I drink comes from the Alsace region (like the Hugel Gewürztraminer). I have had a few Gewürztraminer’s in Australia and the 2008 Gewürztraminer from The Little Wine Company really stands out! This is a magnificent wine for the money.

As a side note, Suzanne and Ian Little are really nice people (as are most of the people in the wine industry in the Hunter Valley!), and I remember a most special night two years back where we had a 5-course degustation meal with matching wines at the Little Wine Company, with Suzanne and Ian Little, Andrew Thomas, Andrew Margan, and a few other great Hunter Valley wine makers where each wine maker rotated tables with each course. The food, the wine, the company and the discussions that evening were special!

Wine Foreplay and Sensual Pleasures!

Posted on August 5, 2012 by Steve Shipley

Yesterday afternoon I had my first wine in three weeks. As mentioned in yesterday’s post “My first wine in three weeks!” I drank the 2006 Coldstream Hills Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, a beautiful wine to drink on its own while blogging and also to go with dinner, an exceptional mince and cheese casserole that my lovely bride made.

While I was looking forward to the wine drinking with some enthusiasm, I was not prepared for the sensual experience that came from the ‘foreplay’ or preparation. The excitement started to ebb by making the choice of what wine to drink, and increased as I proceeded to open the bottle. Since the bottle had a screw top (instead of a cork), I did not have the sensual pleasure of removing a challenging cork which some of the ‘more mature ladies’ use in protest of one’s advances!

However, things quickly picked up again when I decanted the bottle through a filter and aerator. What a joy to visualize the rich, almost purple color of the beautiful liquid spray out through the aerator and cascade down the side of the decanter. The smell of wine drifting upward as the liquid trickles down providing a tingling to multiple senses.

As the wine continued to decant, I approached my selection of Riedel glasses, choosing to go with the Cabernet Sauvignon Vinum Extreme (a slightly more sensual stem over the Vinum!) and brought it back to the counter. The excitement mounted as I poured the wine from decanter into glass to the perfect height (the widest part of the globe) and tenderly and slowly swirled the wine to further speed the aeration process and watch the magic liquid go around and around, like the CERN particle accelerator in (very!) slow motion (crikey, I am sounding like I should be writing “50 Shades of Red” or something!)

As I walked to my desk, anticipating my first sip in three weeks, I was trembling and had to be careful to not spill the wine onto my clothes or the floor. I then placed the glass on my desk and stared at my prize, my possession that I was about to consume, being in total control of the situation.

My God, I am breathless again writing this as I remember the pursuit and the anticipation more than the act itself! This is the closest I have been to comparing the wine drinking experience to an erotic sexual experience. However, for now, let’s just leave it that drinking wine can be something sensual!

On a final and true physiologic note, what makes wine drinking truly sensual is that it fills and satisfies all of the senses from sight to smell to taste to feeling (the texture of the wine on your palate) and even in some cases hearing (by listening to the decanting and swirling processes). And you can’t do many things that excite the senses more than that!

My first wine in three weeks!

Posted on August 4, 2012 by Steve Shipley

Yesterday, I wrote about being ready to “come off the wagon” and have my first wine in three weeks after an extended period of illness and treatment of antibiotics. I also mentioned the pressure associated with opening ‘just the right bottle.’ I had pretty much selected the wine (for reasons mentioned in yesterday’s post) as a Cabernet Sauvignon, and I was leaning towards the 2008 Stonefields Vineyard Arbitrage Cabernet Sauvignon from the Wrattonbully region of South Australia. However, when I was over at my cellar retrieving some wine this morning, I decided to bring back and try either the 1999 Zema Estate Cabernet Sauvignon or the 2006 Coldstream Hills Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and brought a bottle of each back to the apartment.

The 1999 Zema Estate, however, is one of the truly magnificent Cabernet Sauvignons I have had over the years and I only had three bottles left. It is a wine to share with great food and great friends. Having even fonder memories of the 2006 Coldstream Hills Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon than the the 2008 Stonefields Aribtrage, I decided that would be by bottle to “come off the wagon with.”

The reason I decided to switch to the 2006 Colstream Hills Reserve Cabernet was various, including:

It was slightly lower in alcohol (14% versus 14.5%) than the Stonefields Arbitrage.
It reminded me of the gracious individual and the “heart and soul” of Lindeman’s for 12 years, Damien Harrison, who sold it to me and is a legend in the wine industry and the great wine times we have had together.
I did review with my bride, Deanna Lang, who writes DAZ in the Kitchen, what we were having for dinner tonight which is a minced meat, cheese and elbow pasta casserole dish for which I thought the slightly more complex (but not overly complicated for the casserole) wine would go better with, considering the extra onions, garlic and other spices she tends to add into most recipes, and I am expected she will tonight also!

Therefore I made the switch to the Coldstream Hills Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and glad I did! This wine cost about $50 per bottle (even though I was able to get it at a stock clearance for $30 per bottle). Upon decanting, it appeared slightly flat and a bit tight, but within ten minutes had opened up nicely, became more flavorful, and had a strong taste of blackcurrant, slight taste of black olive tapenade, and a bit of leather which appears to be as much a matter of texture as taste.

I personally love the smell of leather and find a wine to be more enjoyable when it is a bit leathery on the tongue and palate. (I have only met one person in my life who hated the smell of new leather, but that’s a different story!) I also surprisingly loved the ritual of decanting and serving the wine and was shocked at how much I missed the ritual and experience during the last three weeks, but that’s the topic for another post.

Now that I have had a glass while writing this blog (and ‘no’, I did not make it to the library to read!), I am going to wait until dinner to have another glass with the mince casserole! Back to the good times of enjoying great food and great wine!

What wine to come off the wagon with?

Posted on August 3, 2012 by Steve Shipley

After three weeks of being sick, taking antibiotics and generally suffering, I am almost ready to have a bottle of wine again. This puts some pressure on me! Should I have one of the truly greatest wines in my cellar to celebrate? Probably not, as I am not sure how well my taste buds are working yet and if my tasting palate is functioning at 100% or not. I certainly do not want to waste a great wine if that is the case.

Should I have the wine with a meal and if so, should I be concerned about matching the wine to the food on offering? That seems to be a bit restrictive . And given I am coming off of illness, I should probably have a red instead of a white wine or sweet wine as there is documented evidence of the slightly further health benefits of red wine! (Or at least I can use that as an excuse to drink a good red, not that I need any excuses!) Should it be an organic wine to ensure I do not have any lingering reaction to sulphar dioxide or other additives in the wine?

I certainly do not want it to be one of my ‘last’ bottles of a particular vintage of limited stock as it is not that special an occasion. I expect I will open the bottle before dinner, sometime in the afternoon and have my first sips while sitting in my reading chair, relaxing after a morning of errands. Or if my bride is watching an afternoon movie, I may bring the glass of wine to our apartment unit library and read – that is always a special treat!

The common library in our apartment unit

Yes, I think that will be the venue – sitting in the common library with a good book on food writing “The Table Comes First” by Adam Gopnik. And the wine will be an Australian Cabernet Sauvignon. While I love my big tannin wines – especially Shiraz – I believe a slightly simpler and lower alcohol Cabernet Sauvignon is the way to go. One possibility is the 2008 Stonefields Vineyards Arbitrage Cabernet Sauvignon from the Wrattonbully region in South Australia. Wrattonbully has some of the best Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in the world! I have had numerous great bottles of Wrattonbully Cabernet Sauvignon for around $20 – $25 per bottle. I have had a few bottles of this particular wine before, so I know it will be good. (However, in reading the label on the bottle, I see the wine has a 14.5% alcohol content which is higher than I was expecting.)

I may also consider a bottle of the 1997 Lindeman’s St George, or the 2006 Coldstream Hills Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, but I would need to go the cellar to retrieve a bottle of those wines, while the Stonefields Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is right in front of me!

While I may consider a few other choices tomorrow, I believe the path has been set and it may take a bit more effort than I want to put into it to change course! I will let you know my final decision and how it tasted in a few days.

My dry July!

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Steve Shipley

It was not my intent to have a dry July. We have plenty of other ways to help raise money for a good cause that we participate in without giving up drinking. I do admire the people who have given up drinking though for a month to help raise funds, even though I know a number of them make at least one exception and are comfortable “in spirit” doing something for a good cause.

While I have not had a completely dry July, it has been three weeks now without drinking. I was just so worn down and then got sick and on antibiotics for a while. While I am feeling a lot better, I certainly am not back at full strength and not at the point where I know I would greatly enjoy opening and sharing a bottle. I had a 5 minute workout on the treadmill today just to try to force back some fitness and it was clear I tried this a few days too early. I am glad I had enough smarts to quit after five minutes even though I thought I was feeling pretty good; I was quite drained and light headed from the experience. It will be another three days before I try to exercise further.

By not drinking, it has also lessened my desire to write about wine (and certainly removed the reason to write about what wine has been matched up with what food), so I have had a bit of a lull the last few weeks, even though I have got a few decent posts out. I also thought it could be good opportunity to recycle some of my earlier posts as they only had about ten page views when I was getting started four months back.

I hope to be back into opening and sharing a bottle by this weekend as I really miss thinking about a meal as the complete package including the matching wine. I read recently that it was only in the 19th century that wine and food matching came into vogue. I find this hard to believe as cooking has been around forever blending many different ingredients into amazing recipes. Matching up particular types of grapes and flavors of wine to enhance the eating experience seems like a natural extension to cooking and certainly seems like it should be something that has been around forever or at least as long as food has and wine has existed! I guess there are “somethings new under the sun!”

Because we were sick, we had to cancel one dinner party with a Masterchef and some great wines and I am looking forward to rescheduling it soon. But first I am anxious just to get a good glass with some meat or pasta! Maybe by tomorrow or the next day! I certainly want to be a “winner’ (or winer) again soon!

The Secret Ingredient in Wine

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Steve Shipley

Wine is made from grapes, and there is a basic process for how white wines and red wines are made. Yeasts are used to start the process in almost all cases. Many wine makers use sulphar dioxide to help the process along, while others use organic techniques. And the grapes are effected by their terroir, which provides unique characteristics to different grapes from different regions with different growing conditions. But none of these are the secret ingredient in wine.

The secret ingredient in wine is the fellowship and company with which the wine is drunk!

“Eating is an intelligent act, or it’s merely an animal one. And what makes it intelligent is the company of other mouths and minds,” says Adam Gopnik from The Table Comes First. Well said indeed! I believe that applies equally well to a table of food and wine and to just sharing a bottle with friends. In my earlier blog post “Wine Snob versus Wine Enthusiast – which one are you?” I point out one of the differences between a

Wine Snob

They bragged about the excellent wines they had, but never found the opportunity to share the wine with friends or to give a bottle to a friend

Wine Enthusiast

They are happy to share wine, either by contributing a bottle, or by asking all who share to chip in for a special bottle of wine, or by setting some rules to have each person bring a bottle according to the rules established

Wine (and food) goes better with people, and the better the people, the better the wine tastes!

We have a lot of work colleagues away from home during the week, so we regularly have a ‘singles and strays’ dinner to get them together and make sure they get both some good company and a good home-cooked meal.

When I was at (a Catholic) university, I had a priest teaching an honors course who said that “if you cannot find time to break bread and enjoy a meal with family or friends, then something is drastically wrong with your life.” I believe this to be true and and something ‘busy’ American families and many others do not appreciate. We tend to grab a meal on the run, getting our daily bread where we can find or buy it, and each family member does so according to their own schedule.

There is great joy in sitting together, drinking together and eating together which is the essence of life. We have made a point to have people over regularly, to find reasons to commune over a good meal and wine. We are all better for it, and the wine taste better because of it!

Spectacular Shirazes with fish!

Posted on July 29, 2012 by Steve Shipley

Once again, we broke the conventional rule of “white wine with fish!”

In my recent posting “1998 Lindeman’s Verdelhao – one of the best white wines I have ever drunk”, I make mention that this wine was one of several to start a brilliant dinner party. This brilliant example of Verdelho was enjoyed with an opening cheese platter and great conversation, while the two reds where decanting.

Owen and Lucie had prepared the menu for the evening, with two fish courses to follow the cheese platter and an apple strudel for dessert. The entree was a lightly seared tuna steak with a side of guacamole (with chili on the side which we could mix into the guacamole for taste – which we all did!), with the main dish being lightly battered and fried flathead, which is a denser and meatier type of fish.

Owen wanted to impress with a bottle of 15 year-old Pinot Noir, which would have been a nice match for the tuna and gaucamole, but most Pinot Noirs, no matter how well structured they are, are unlikely to last past a decade or so. Unfortunately, this bottle was off and had to be disposed of. While we were fortunate the 1998 Lindeman’s Verdelhao was still a stunner, we were not as lucky with the Pinot Noir.

Not to be deterred, Owen had replaced the Pinot Noir with a 1997 Hungerford Hills Hilltop Shiraz and that was followed by a bottle of the 1991 Grant Burge Mesach Shiraz, which is considered one of the best Shiraz in Australia, if not the world.

The wines went brilliantly with the food because both the wines and the foods were brilliant on their own! But what really made the Shirazes go well with the fish was the following:

Both the tuna and the flathead were denser, meatier fishes instead of a lighter style and texture to the fish
The tuna flavor was enhanced by the guacamole and chili, and the seasoning in the flathead batter had some nice, bold spices
Additionally, lightly battering and frying the flathead was a push into a Shiraz instead of a more traditional choice of white – had this fish been grilled, a more traditional white wine selection may have been more appropriate

These are importance nuances of flavor and texture that allow you to “turn the tables” on what type of wine matches well with the food you are having. The slight differences in terms of the seasoning and sauces you use, the sides provided, or the texture of the main ingredient (in this case the tuna and the flathead), and the style of cooking provide you with a much wider selection of wines that match up brilliantly. Therefore, don’t be shy in terms of experimenting with a more diverse set of options for the wine. With a little practice, you will stumble upon some great combinations that will truly surprise and excite.

The wines themselves were superb and given the iconic stature of the Mesach, we started with the 1997 Hungerford Hill Hilltop Shiraz with the tuna, followed by the 1991 Grant Burge Mesach Shiraz to go with the flathead. Either Shiraz would have worked beautifully with either fish, but given the complexities of the wines, it was important to drink them in this order.

I have sampled Hungerford Hill wines over the last several years, and while I believe them to be decent wines, I must admit to not having tried their better wines or better vintages. I was amazed at the quality and beauty of the 1997 Hungerford Hill Hilltop Shiraz! It far exceeded my expectations, and has made me excited to go back to the winery and find out more. This wine is a perfect example of how you can buy an inexpensive, yet good bottle of wine and how it can turn into a great bottle of wine if cellared properly for a decade. (Beware, that is not possible with all inexpensive bottles of wine – you need to have the right grapes and structure to start with!)

The 1991 Grant Burge Mesach was superb. Frankly, by this point, I was just enjoying the wine and the flathead, and the co-mingled tastes were starting to border on being “over-satiated!” This is a truly superb wine and if you are a fan of the Henschke Hill of Grace, you will enjoy the Mesach at 20% of the price of the Hill of Grace! The Mesach is smooth, flavorful and balanced with medium to large tannins. Having had the 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994 vintages of the Mesach, I would go with the 1991 and 1994. They are superior vintages and still have some cellaring on them, whereas the 1992 and 1993 vintages do not.

To finish off the evening, we had a 2005 Château Haut Bergeron dessert wine to go with the apple strudel. This is another great example of where the a $35 bottle of wine improves with each year in the cellar. This is a great, great wine at 1/10th the price of Château D’Yquem, and most people in a side-by-side tasting cannot tell the difference!