You Scratch My Back...
I was helping a coworker (I'll call him "R") out when he told me that he would hook me up with a bottle of wine if I could solve his problem.
R: "What do you like, whites or reds?"
Me: "I'll drink anything that matches the food I'm eating."
R: "What's your favorite region? Do you like French, or...?"
Me: I wracked my brain for a region that might throw him off. "Actually, I like Barolos." (I just can't afford them! heheh.)
R: "Barrrrolo, huh?" he said, rolling the r's. "Do you like Riojas?"
Me: "Eh, it's not my favorite. I don't know. It's been a long time since we've had a Rioja."
R: "Well, if you help me out, I'll give you a Rioja that'll make you change your mind about Riojas."
Me: What could I say to that? "Sure!"
Now what?
Today I walk into his office and he hands me this bottle of wine:
2001 Bodegas LAN Crianza Rioja
"Let me know what you think of it," R says.
My first thought is, what food can I eat with this? All that pops into my head is paella, that classic Spanish dish. We've done paella before, with fairly good results. But I wanted to do something different. How about a vegetarian paella? Naaaah.
So, what then?
Here's where you readers come in. Help us out! Leave a comment and tell us what you think we should cook to go with this 2001 Bodegas LAN Crianza Rioja! If you have a recipe to share, even better.
Whosever suggestion we go with, I will blog about it, give you the credit, and put your blog (if you have one) in my blogroll (oooooOOOoooooh!). It's a WIN-WIN!
Low whaaaa--?
Here's something that caught my eye when I was checking out the backside label. It's titled "IDEAL CONDITIONS FOR STORAGE". It has some common suggestions like "DARKNESS" and "NO EXTREME TEMPERATURE CHANGES". But check out the 2nd suggestion on the left: LOW NOISE LEVELS. Whaaaa--???
What the heck does noise have to do with storing wine? Does wine go bad if you run power tools in the next room? Would living under the flight approach to an airport turn wine into vinegar?
I think they just put the line in to make the columns look balanced.
Anyway, let's hear your Rioja pairing suggestions!
Aloha, Nate
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3 Comments:
I don't eat meat, but it might pair nicely with a dish that includes serrano ham and manchego cheese or another type of hard sheep's cheese. Just a thought.
@Gillsnthrills - Good suggestion. Continuing your thought: figs! We've got a black mission fig tree in our yard that will be producing ripe figs in about a month. Ham, cheese, figs, wine...mmmmm...
With a Rioja, you can enjoy a lamb dish or almost any kind of game meat. It is good with red meat, but like with Zinfinadel (red: the real stuff) being great with barbecue, Rioja is great with game meat.
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