A steak dinner and a comparative tasting of four bottles of Nebbiolo – yes, please!

Please note, that some of the wines in this post were provided as media samples. No other compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

One of the great things about tasting with a group of friends is that you can open and taste a lot more bottles simultaneously without worrying that the wine will go to waste. If those friends are willing to go along with you on a wide-geeky ride, it’s also a perfect chance to do some comparative tastings. I admit that I often force friends to join me in conducting these types of experiments. Luckily, when we head off to the Culinary Cabin, only the lightest arm twisting is required.

The Culinary Cabin is the loving name we’ve bestowed on our friends’ family vacation house in Tahoe, and the weekends we spend there tend to be all about food and wine experimentation. During our most recent trip, I “forced” my friends into a comparative tasting of four Nebbiolo-based wines “for science.” The guys in the group prepared a steak dinner to accompany the wines. Everyone was very upset.

NEBBIOLO

Nebbiolo is Piedmont’s superstar red grape. It’s the grape behind this northern Italian region’s blockbuster wines, Barolo and Barbaresco. The grape’s trademark aromatic signature is notes of “tar and roses.” That tells you something about the combination of delicate and rustic elements this grape tends to bring together. Tart cherries, leather, anise or licorice, earth, mushrooms, leather, and herbs are all also common flavor elements in Nebbiolo wines. I personally also often get a little orange peel in the mix.

In addition, the grape tends the show super racy acidity and grippy tannins. While the wines tend to be deeply flavored and highly structured, the body of the wines is often sleek and can be anywhere from medium-bodied and translucent in a way that belies the punch the wines can pack in, to deep and full-bodied, depending on how it’s made and where it’s from.

The wines often show orange color even when they’re young, but thanks to the mix of high acidity, alcohol, and tannin, the wines can easily age for decades in the bottle. In many cases, particularly in the case of Barolo and Barbaresco, the wines really need that time to chillax and can taste super tight otherwise. They’re kind of like a person that’s super anxious and wound-up in their youth, but learns to unwind and relax with age. If you don’t have the time to wait for your Barolos and Barbarescos to age in a cellar, you’ll at least want to decant them with plenty of lead time before dinner. I’ll often decant them hours in advance when I manage to think of it. The high levels of tannins and acidity also mean, in my mind anyway, that these wines are best served with a meal as these elements smooth out when enjoyed with a hearty meal. Enjoy these wines with foods that are meaty or have some fat, like creams or cheese, as these will help to calm the tannins.

We’ve taken a look at this grape several times before. Check out this post for more on the grape and this one for more on the history of Barolo.

Nebbiolo can be a fussy grape to grow, a fact that contributes to the high prices some Nebbiolo- based wines tend to command. Nebbiolo is thought to take its name from the Italian nebbia (or nebia in Piedmontese), meaning "fog," and it really seems to relish the foggy conditions of its home region as it doesn’t seem to express itself with quite the same complexity anywhere else. (The name might also be a reference to the bloom that appears on ripe Nebbiolo berries.)

However, while it likes that fog, it also needs a good balance of sunshine as well to ripen fully, so it’s typically given the prime spots on hillsides that get the most sun exposure. It’s a diva.

Map borrowed from Winefolly.com.

Barolo and Barbaresco might be the celebrity icons of Piedmont, however, they’re not the only show in town. It’s grown across Piedmont, as well as in Valle d’Aosta and Lombardy. While Barolo and Barbaresco tend to be pricey, thankfully, there are other Piemontese appellations making Nebbiolos that are both easier on the wallet and are approachable at a much earlier stage. Here are three:

Roero DOCG – This region is just across the Tanaro river from Barolo and has sandier soil. It’s known for making high-quality Nebbiolos that tend to be lighter and a bit fruitier in style with less intense tannins.

Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC – This zone covers much of the territory of Roero but then extends further, crossing the Tanaro south of Alba to Diana d'Alba. It has similar characteristics to Roero.

Langhe Nebbiolo DOC – Langhe is the hilly subregion of Piedmont where Barolo and Barbaresco are located. ("Langhe" is the plural form of langa, a local word for a long, low-lying hill.) Grapes that go into Langhe Nebbiolo might come from areas just outside the borders of Barolo and Barbaresco. The wines might also be made from grapes from younger vines or from less favored plots that lie within the two famed appellations. Wines not adhering to all of the requirements of the two prestige appellations might also fall into this classification. As such, these wines are sometimes thought of as “baby” Barolos and Barbarescos. Given this, prices on Langhe Nebbiolo can vary quite a bit.

Since we’re going to look at a bottle of Langhe Nebbiolo further down, we’re going to go a little deeper here. Production rules are meant to give winemakers more flexibility than they have in making Barolo and Barbaresco, so there are no minimum aging requirements and the wines will tend to spend less time in oak than in the other two. (Basic Barolo must be aged for at least three years with 18 months in oak, and basic Barbaresco is aged for a minimum of two years with at least 9 months in oak.) Winemakers might also leave the juice less time macerating on the grapes than in the case of the other two, making a less extracted, easier-drinking style. Sometimes, winemakers use the Langhe Nebbiolo appellation simply to make declassified Barbaresco and Barolo wines, allowing them to sell more wine without compromising their elite labels. Production rules also allow for up to 15 percent of other indigenous grape varieties, like Barbera and Dolcetto, but most are also made entirely from Nebbiolo.

THE FOOD: A RIBEYE CAP STEAK DINNER

The guys did most of the cooking on this particular trip. One of our hosts, Northern Drew, was the head chef, Greg and Southern Drew were the sous chef. (Each Drew is so-called dependent on where in the state of California they live.)

On this particular evening, they made a feast centered around Northern Drew’s favorite cut of beef: ribeye cap. This is the outer muscle of the ribeye roll, which is the source of ribeye. It’s richly marbled and also super tender, so it’s kind of like a ribeye crossed with a filet mignon. (For more on this cut, read J. Kenji López-Alt’s ode in its honor.) The guys prepared it sous vide and finished it on the grill, seasoned with salt and pepper.

In addition, they made a slew of veggie sides including grilled asparagus, roasted cauliflower topped with gremolata, sautéed cabbage, and roasted sweet potatoes. We also had horseradish sauce to enjoy with the beef.

It doesn’t directly relate, but there might’ve also been a Basque cheesecake prepared by my friend Dee for dessert.

This meal did not suck.

THE WINES

We had two Barolos (both were decanted), one Langhe Nebbiolo, and a bottle from California with this fabulous steak dinner. Here’s what was in the line-up.

Massolino Barolo 2016

Average Price: $55 (sample) | ABV: 14.%

The Massolino family’s history in the commune of Serralunga d’Alba dates back to 1896 when Giovanni Massolino founded the estate. Giovanni was the very first person to bring electricity to the village. His son, Giuseppe, built their wine cellar, and he along with his sister Angela, extended the estate. Giuseppe was also one of the founders of the Consortium for the Defence of Barolo and Barbaresco in 1934. Giuseppe had six children and three of them – Giovanni, Camilla, and Renato – followed their father into the family business. They continued the estate’s expansion and purchased three of their cru vineyards: Margheria, Parafada, and Vigna Rionda. Franco, Roberto (both oenologists), and Paola represent the current generation. Their vineyards are farmed sustainably.

Winemaking: Their Barolo DOCG represents a blend of their vineyards, each bringing different characteristics offered by each terroir. There is a blend of soils with a tendency toward limestone. This is traditional Barolo with long fermentation and maceration in oak fermenters (“tini”) at temperatures around 30°C; the wine is aged in large Slavonian oak casks for up to 30 months before being left to mature in bottle. Additional details can be found in the tech sheet here or here.

Tasting Notes: This is a classic Barolo showing the characteristic “tar and roses,” along with cherries, white pepper, and licorice. This wine showed an elegant and pretty side of Nebbiolo, showing a pleasant bright, tangy quality to the fruit, accompanied by the structure grippy tannins. One of the Drews noted that it tasted like his mental image of what he wants Barolo to taste like. In comparison to Langhe Nebbiolo that we’ll see further down, the fruit quality was deeper, rounder, and plusher.

Pairings: This wine was generally friendly to the food on our table. No surprise, it was stellar with the steak, but it was also surprisingly ok with the asparagus, which is not a wine-friendly vegetable.

The winery also offers the following recommendations: “It achieves its best expression when served with red meats, particularly game, and with dishes dressed with truffle. It is also excellent with fresh egg pasta and meat sauce, and with risotto, as well as medium-mature cow’s milk and goat’s milk cheeses.”

Kirkland Barolo 2017

Price: $20 | ABV: 14%

Since Costco doesn’t share the details of the winery behind the wines, there’s no background info to share. However, as has been my general experience with their wines, this was a very solid representation of the style at a price point that can’t be beaten. The fact that it says “Kirkland” on the bottle might rule it out as an option to take to most dinner parties, but it should definitely not keep it from showing up on your dinner table. The price makes Barolo a possibility for a weeknight dinner. This is also a great option if you’d like to get an idea of what Barolo is all about without breaking the bank.

Tasting Notes: This wine displayed the earthier side of Nebbiolo. It was the earthiest of the bunch. I picked up a little bit of brett when I first opened it up, but this quickly blew off, and then the nose became a bit shy. It showed notes of cherry, bay leaf, mushrooms, and thyme on both the nose and palate, all lifted by bright acidity. Unsurprisingly, this wine didn’t show the finesse of the Massolino Barolo, but it definitely delivers good value at $20.

Pairings: Of course, this wine liked the steak, as they all did. However, I failed to take notes on how it went with the various veggies. This wine should also go with anything involving mushrooms.

Massolino Langhe Nebbiolo 2017

Average Price: $29 (sample) | ABV 14.5%

The grapes for this wine come from several municipalities. As you might guess, it’s made for earlier consumption.

Winemaking: The wine undergoes a medium period of fermentation and maceration (approximately 15 days). It ages in large Slavonian oak barrels for over a year. Additional details can be found in the tech sheet here and here.

Tasting Notes: A good representation of the fresher side of Nebbiolo. It showed notes of bright strawberries, cherries, and even a hint of cranberry on the nose and palate, along with floral notes and freshly tilled earth and stony minerality. While this was certainly a lighter expression in comparison to the Massolino Barolo, Nebbiolo’s structure wasn’t lacking and the wine still showed good density and grip.

Pairings: Good with the steak of course, but this one paired quite well with bites involving horseradish as well. It was also quite good with many of the veggies. The wine became lighter and brighter alongside the roasted cauliflower with gremolata.

Here are additional pairing recommendations from the winery: “Ideal throughout a meal but at its best when served with rich, tasty dishes, ranging from fresh-egg pasta with meat or vegetable sauces to grilled or roasted red meats. It is also excellent with soft and delicate blue cheeses.”

Lepiane Nebbiolo Alisos Vineyard 2015

Price: $49 (sample)

I’ve shared a couple of wines from Alison Thomas’s Lepiane line in the past, so I’ll refer you here and here for more details on this one-woman operation in Santa Barbara, California. To be honest with you, I’m not typically the biggest fan of California Nebbiolos, but I thought it would be fun to have one in the line-up and this is usually one of the better examples, IMHO. Sadly, the wine wasn’t showing so well on this particular day, but I don’t really think it was its fault. I’d Coravin’d this bottle to AGES before and I think the gas cartridge had been running low because the fruit in the wine was a little flat, it was a touch oxidized, and overall, it lacked the vibrancy I’d previously experienced with it.

Winemaking: Elevage occurred in a 600L neutral barrel for 33 months before being bottled without any fining or filtration. An additional 20 months of bottle aging allows this wine to show its beautifully complex nature. Organically farmed. Additional details here.

Tasting Notes: Since the wine wasn’t showing so well this evening, my tasting note is from my previous tasting of the wine. The wine reminds me of fall with notes of dried flowers, orange zest, and cranberries on the nose. The fruit is bright on the palate and joined by notes of black pepper, herbs, and the characteristic “tar and roses.”

Pairings: It was good with the steak, of course. It was also good with the sweet potatoes, but it did not like the cauliflower.

Go forth and explore the many sides of Nebbiolo!

*****

For more posts related to Nebbiolo, check out these posts:

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The writers of the Italian Food, Wine, and Travel (#ItalianFWT) blogging group have been exploring the wines of Langhe this month. Check out their posts here:

Wendy Klik highlights Beef and Pork Ravioli, A Book Review and a Nebbiolo from Langhe on A Day in the Life on the Farm
Camilla Mann pairs Spicy Mussels Chorizo + 2017 Villadoria Bricco Magno Langhe Nebbiolo at Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Linda Whipple entices with Of Nebbiolo, Salami and a Langhe Farmer’s Dream at My Full Wine Glass
Jen Martin gives us a glimpse with an Overview of the Langhe Wines at Vino Travels
Gwendolyn Alley introduces us to the “Queens of Langhe: Mother Daughter Duo Anna and Valentina Abbona of Marchesi di Barolo” on Wine Predator.
Host Cindy Rynning entices us to Explore a New-to-You Wine – Nas-Cëtta from the Langhe in Piemonte” at Grape Experiences.

Additional sources used for this post and extra reading:

Today we're exploring Old World and New World versions of an aromatic grape that was once all the rage, but isn't so well known in the modern world: Malvasia. While it might masquerade around in different forms and under different names, it's effusive, quite perfumed, and has a lot to say.

This post contains wines that were provided as samples. No other compensation was received for this post and all opinions are my own. It also contains affiliate links from which I might gain a commission at no cost to you.

Imagine you’re walking through an orchard. This orchard has not one, but many fruit trees – peaches, apples, pears, and oranges. You’re holding a bouquet of flowers as you walk, and notes of honey and ginger also waft your way as you walk. This is kind of what it’s like to sniff a glass of Malvasia.

Well . . . it depends on the glass of Malvasia. This is one of those ancient grapes that has moved around and changed quite a bit, so it’s hard to generalize. Rather than just one grape, it’s really a family of grapes, but it’s a family that also has a lot of pretenders. According to Ian D’Agata in Native Grape of Italy, in Italy alone, there are eighteen official varieties that have Malvasia in the name. Some of them are genetically related but many aren’t. It appears to be one of those names that got doled out a lot throughout Italy whenever a grape in one spot bore a passing resemblance to a grape in another. Originally, the word is thought to have come from the name of the medieval Greek port Monemvasia, through which dessert wines made from the grape were commonly passed en route to various destinations throughout Europe. (The grape was commonly thought to have come from Greece, but that theory has largely been discredited.)

Monevasia was eventually conquered by the Venetians and became an extremely important trading port for the city-state. The Venetians exported so much of the wine that many wine shops, taverns, and street names were named after it. As a result of all of this Malvasia flowing throughout Europe, the wine earned international acclaim and was in extremely high demand. Legend has it that in 1478, George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence, was found guilty of treason for plotting against his brother King Edward IV of England, and when given the option of how to die, chose to be drowned in a butt of Malmsey (Malvasia) wine. The scene is captured in Shakespeare’s Richard III.

Image borrowed from Wikipedia.com

Despite Malvasia’s renown as a wine worth dying for in the 1400s, it’s not at all surprising if you haven’t heard about it in the modern world. Maybe it took a cue from its association with Venice, because this is a grape that has a tendency to masquerade. In addition to Italy, you’ll find it grown all around Europe, but you might not recognize the name as it has tons of different synonyms. On top of that, it’s often a part of white blends in regions where you might not see the name at all like in white versions of Chianti in Tuscany and in white Rioja in Spain. It’s also grown in the US.

In addition to moving around quite a bit, this grape is also made in many different styles – dry, still, sparkling, and sweet. There are even red versions of the grape –– so basically, all of the styles of wine. It’s used to make vin santo in Tuscany and passito wines in many places in southern Italy and its islands. In Portugal, it is used in making white Port, as well as Maderia, where it goes by the name of Malmsey (a personal favorite).

Today we’re going to take a closer look at still examples from Collio in northern Italy and from near Santa Barbara in California, alongside a couple of different pairings. Both of today’s bottles today were very expressive and aromatic in a way that jumped right out of the glass. They’re the type of wines that tend to lend themselves to pairing well with very flavorful foods, so I tried them with dishes from a couple of different cuisines and flavor palates.

While the wines had a lot in common with each other, there were also the differences you’d expect to find in an Old World/New World comparison. To be more specific, the Italian version showed more minerality and the bottle from California showed riper fruit notes. I should say, even riper fruit notes, because the Italian version certain wasn’t lacking on this point.

The Food

Over the course of two evenings, we paired our bottles with a couple of very different dishes. On our first evening, I made a Spicy Jerk Potato & Pineapple Hash with Shrimp. I adapted the recipe from one I found on the BBC’s Good Food website below. I absolutely love the combo of big flavors here, but it's a type of dish that’s often tricky to pair with wine thanks both to the heat of the jerk seasoning as well as the sweetness of the pineapples. I thought Malvasia might be up to the task.

On the second evening, I made Wenchang Chicken and Rice (aka Hainanese Chicken and Rice). I think of this dish from the island province of Hainan, China, as a comforting meal, which could be viewed as more simple, since it involves poaching a chicken in a ginger-infused broth, both of which are then served over rice. It’s certainly a bit more subtle in comparison to the Jerk Hash. That said, it does still have a mix of flavors including ginger, white pepper, and chiles. This version from Saveur also gets an extra vibrant pop from a sauce made with calamansi. I thought the ginger and citrus sauce would resonate well with Malvasia.

Wenchang Chicken might not be the most photogenic of dishes (or maybe it's just my rendition), but it is super soothing and soul-satisfying.

Both wines worked solidly well with both dishes, but each wine won a round of competition, as we’ll see below.

If you’re looking for additional pairing suggestions for Malvasia, a round-up of recommendations from around the internet includes: Cajun Dishes such as etouffee and gumbo, moo shoo pork, pad Thai, salads with fruits like a Waldorf salad, fruit kabobs or fruit-based salsas, seafood dishes, Gorgonzola pizza with walnuts and pears, seasoned vegetable dishes, and a chicken sandwich with gravy. Basically, much like Riesling or Gewurztraminer, this is a good contender whenever you have foods that have intense seasonings or if you have a dish with widely different elements to bridge together.

The Wines

Both of today’s wineries can be found in the Slow Wine Guide. If you’re interested in wines that are conscientiously made, Slow Wine is a great resource when looking for wineries from Italy and the US “that respect and reflect their local terroir and practice sustainable methods that benefit the environment.”

For more on the Slow Food & Wine movement check out this post from Gwendolyn of Wine Predator.

Venica & Venica Pètris Malvasia Collio 2018

ABV: 13.5% | Average Price: $21 (this bottle was gifted to me by a friend)

This wine comes from the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia in northeastern Italy, right up against the Slovenian border. This region is very hilly (collio is derived from the Italian word colli meaning “hills”) and it experiences maritime influences as well since the Adriatic coast lies just 25 kilometers away. (For more on Friuli, see this post.) It’s also only about an hour and a half from Venice, so it’s not surprising that this grape would have taken up residence here. The version of Malvasia we find here is Malvasia Istriana (which is truly genetically part of the family), and it’s been at home here since at least the 13th century. Malvasia is part of the traditional white blend of the region, along with Ribolla Gialla * and Friulano.

The Venica family has had their winery in the region since 1930. They’ve made sustainability a key focus of their operation and have laid out many of their practices on their website, including the methods to prevent wasting water and recycling raw materials. You can also find a full sustainability report on their website.

Tasting Notes: On the nose, there was a bouquet of flowers with honeysuckle and orange blossoms, which were joined by fruit notes of baked pears and apples, apricots, melons, and orange zest. On the palate, these notes were joined by beeswax, ginger, and creamsicle, with traces of minerality. The wine was textured, with medium acidity (which is typical for the grape), but balanced with a dry finish.

Additional details on the 2019 vintage of this wine can be found here.

Pairings: We particularly loved this wine with the Wenchang Chicken and Rice. The notes of ginger and citrus were echoed in the wine. Both the food and the wine had an interesting blend of delicacy with a pop of vibrant flavors and they matched each other beautifully on this level.

The wine wasn’t a bad match with Jerk Hash, but the intensity of those flavors did drown out the flavors of the wine a bit.

Lepiane Malvasia Bianca Happy Canyon 2019

ABV: 13.9% | Price: $28 (sample)

I spoke with winemaker Alison Thomas and wrote the Lepiane entry for the 2021 Slow Wine Guide. It’s a testament both to her wines and to Coravin that the bottle that I tasted from for that guide was still showing beautifully when I finally actually opened it earlier this week! (It was stored in a wine fridge, which I’m sure helped preserve it, but it is also the reason that the wine was out of mind for so long.) I really dig her wines and previously shared her Barbera in this post. I think she does a really great job with Italian varieties in California. Her wines have a way of both showing the typicity of the grape and their California-ness at the same time.

Alison’s career has blended a love of science and an appreciation of enjoying time at the table that she picked up from her parents. She found a way to bring it all together in wine and in the process she spent quite a bit of time working in amazing wineries in both Italy and California before starting her own project.

The grapes for this wine come from the Happy Canyon sub-region of the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County. Happy Canyon is a tiny and young AVA, having achieved its status in 2009. It’s in the eastern end of the Santa Ynez Valley and it has rolling hills with a rocky mix of mineral-rich soils that tend to give concentrated wines. It also gets hot here – 100°F days are not unusual in the summer. Thankfully, those temperatures plummet by 40 to 50 degrees at night, and mornings can be foggy. That wide diurnal shift in temperature is a magic combo that leads to ripe grapes with lots of flavor, but with enough acidity to keep them from tasting flabby. This wine is a perfect example – it tastes like sunshine on a spring day but has a bit of tanginess to show it still has a spring in its step.

Tasting Notes: There are lots of flowers on the nose – jasmine, orange blossoms, and vanilla – along with tropical fruits like pineapple and mango, as well melons, apples, and peaches. That heady mix of fruit continued on the palate. This is an opulent wine with lots of texture, and while the acid’s medium, there’s enough to keep everything bright and lifted. All of that ripe fruit gives the perception of a bit of sweetness.

Additional details on the wine can be found here.

Pairings: We dug this with the Jerk Hash. All of those concentrated fruit flavors were able to stand up nicely to big flavors in the food. Not an easy feat. The wine also provided a refreshing counterpoint to the spice.

It also worked well with the Wenchang chicken, however, the intensity of the fruit with all of its tropical notes felt a little less balanced with the lighter flavors in that dish.

*****

More Malvasia

Here are a few more bottles of Malvasia we've had and enjoyed, to keep an eye out for.

Paul Lato Boogie Nights Malvasia Bianca Ballard Canyon 2016, Laventura Malvasia Rioja 2014, and Day Wines Mamacita Petillant Naturel Willamette Valley NV includes Malvasia as part of the blend.

And a pairing for Rodaro Malvasia Colli Orientali del Friuli Friuli-Venezia Giulia.

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A post shared by Nicole Ruiz Hudson (@nibblinggypsy)

And for more posts in which Malvasia makes a cameo, check out:

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Thes rest of the Italian Food, Wine, Travel (#ItalianFWT) blogging group will be exploring Slow Wines from Italy. Be sure to check out their posts:

Jennifer shares “Slow Wine and Food of Madrevite” on Vino Travels .
Deanna delights with "Montenidoli Il Templare White Wine + Wood Fired Pizza" on Wineivore
Camilla offers "Buono, Pulito, e Giusto: Lemon-Stuffed Chicken, Preserved Lemons, and an Umbrian Chardonnay" at Culinary Adventures with Camilla.
Nicole goes on "Old World/New World Explorations of Malvasia"
Wendy does "Spezzatino d'agnello and a G.D. Vajra Albe" for A Day in the Life on the Farm.
Terri pairs "Grassfed Meatballs and Caiarossa Toscana" on Our Good Life.
On Wine Predator, we argue that "Organic Famiglia Febo Deserves to be in Slow Wine Guide Italy"

Additional sources used for this post and extra reading:

We have a love story in honor of Valentine's Day, paired with a delicious Pinot Grigio from Longevity Wines and Crab Cakes.

The wine included in today's post was provided as a sample. Please note that all opinions are my own and no other compensation was received.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

To celebrate, today we have a love story. Longevity Wines’ story can’t help but pull at your heartstrings. But beware –it’s a tearjerker.

Phil and Debra Long opened Longevity Wines together in 2008. Neither had a background in wine but fell in love with it after moving to the Bay Area from Southern California. They began experimenting with making their own in their garage in Livermore in 2003, and eventually, their hobby outgrew the space and became a full-time business.

Debra came up with the name ‘Longevity’ as a play on their last name, as well as their love for each other. The intricate heart-shaped design Phil created for their logo was inspired by Debra’s love of hearts –– Phil would buy her an artisan glass heart every Valentine’s Day. Within the heart design, there are more hearts entwined with grapes and vines.

Image borrowed from Longevity’s website.

Unfortunately, just as Longevity was taking off, Debra was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2016. She passed away in 2019, just a few days after it was announced that Longevity had won 2018 Livermore Valley Winery of the Year. She continues to be a major inspiration behind the winery.

Today, Phil continues to run the urban winery with his son and assistant winemaker, Phil Long Jr. The brand has continued to grow and expand, partly through a partnership with Bronco Wine Company that has allowed for their California Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon wines to be available on a much wider scale.

Phil also has been the president of the not-for-profit Association of African American Vintners (AAAV) as of January 1, 2020. For more on his role, as well as the expansion of the brand, check out this interview with Phil by Kat Réne of The Corkscrew Concierge for The Vintner Project.

THE WINE & PAIRING: LONGEVITY WINES VINTNER SELECT PINOT GRIGIO 2019 WITH CRAB CAKES TOPPED WITH SPICY PLUM MAYO

Longevity’s Pinot Grigio ($26) is a skin-contact style, so it’s a pretty copper pink color – yet another reason it’s a perfect choice for a romantic evening like Valentine’s Day. (In Italy this style is referred to as “ramato” – you can find out more about the style here.)

On the day we opened the bottle, pretty aromas of peaches and orange blossoms greeted us on the nose. On the palate, the wine was fruit-forward with lots of tropical and stone fruit flavors like peaches, apricots, and melons, as well as gold apples. The fruit is balanced with notes of ginger, as well as a light undercurrent of savory, umami notes, white pepper, and a pinch of baking spice. All of that fruit gave this wine a luscious quality, but it had enough zing to keep it vibrant. This seemed like a joyful wine to me – like a warm, late-afternoon, spring breeze.

Longevity’s website shares several delicious-looking recipes to pair with their wines, including one for Low Country Crab Cakes with She Crab Sauce & Lemon Aioli meant to pair with their Pinot Grigio. That sounded fantastic, but I thought I would take their recipe and adapt it just a bit for another spin. All the ripe fruit notes in this wine, mixed with the hints of ginger and light umami made me think this wine would work well with Asian flavors, even a bit of spice.

I gave everything just a little twist to incorporate those flavors. I thought plum sauce would work well the stone fruit notes, but I didn’t want the sauce to be so sweet that it would compete with the wine, so I mixed mayo, a bit of soy sauce, and a hint of sriracha to create a dipping sauce for the crab cakes. In addition, I roasted some acorn squash to serve alongside and flavored it with Chinese Five Spice and chili powder.

The crab cakes with the spicy mayo paired beautifully, bringing out a bit more of the wine’s savory side. The acorn squash also made a solid match, and the flavor of the Five Spice worked well, although the heat of the chili powder challenged the wine a bit, so I would recommend keeping it to just a light pinch.

OTHER POSSIBILITIES

The winery also recommends this wine with “fresh cheeses, roast turkey, seafood, or sushi.” I can also see this working nicely with duck, Indian and Thai food as well. This wine is also lovely on its own.

Find additional details on the wine here.

*****

The rest of the Wine Pairing Weekend Blogging Group is exploring wines from black winemakers in honor of Black History Month. Check out the rest of their posts here: