Not exactly a bargain, but a very good, bold bottle of red wine in a style that Parducci mastered long ago. Calls for red meat, barbecue and pasta.
Gutsy and bold, but just refined enough. Deep colored, full-bodied, with lots of grip in the texture from tannins, and lots of blackberry flavor to balance it out. Hints of smoke and black pepper add complexity.
Zinfandel in Four Courses
Chef and winemaker Michael Chiarello celebrates his go-to wine
By Michael Chiarello
Years ago, as a young chef at Tra Vigne Restaurant, I was privileged to partner with some of the pioneering winemakers in the Napa Valley as to jointly create a world-class wine region from its nascent stage. As one of the first chefs here, I was challenged to create tasting menus for many of these Napa Valley founders as they worked tirelessly to get their wines tasted and their brands established. Together, we hosted hundreds of dinner parties and events large and small, and forged an ever-growing clientele of gourmands and enthusiasts as they came back year after year.
My menu usually consisted of a table full of seasonal antipasti: from Pizzette with Cambozola Cheese and Roasted Garlic to Roasted Polenta with Balsamic sauce; from “Just-Made” Mozzarella with Oven-Dried Tomatoes to Bruschetta of Cured Sardines with Roasted Peppers and Calabrese Chili Vinaigrette. A pasta course, sometimes two, would follow, and an entrée such as Brined, Smoked and Braised Shortribs with Polenta.
My particular challenge came when choosing the right wines. I typically like to offer a white and a red for the antipasti and red wines only for the remainder of the meal. However, my co-hosts for these dinners were Cabernet Sauvignon producers and my food was not as tightly organized from a flavor standpoint as Cabernet demands for a perfect pairing.
I call Cabernet a one-course wine. It is perfect for any one course, typically a red-meat-centered entrée, but it can be fairly inflexible with other foods. My cooking has always been known for intense flavors, varying greatly from course to course. And I love serving family-style for the first two courses; it is much more social and engaging. All this just added to my dilemma. By cooking my way, I was not able to ensure our guests' every bite would work perfectly with the Cabernet du jour. Finally, I took a stand and began to serve the varietal I grew up drinking and loving -- Zinfandel.
Zinfandel is the Golden Retriever of wine. It loves just about anyone and just about any dish. You can load up the table and pass around the bottle and it will wag its tail at almost any flavor you try with it. In turn, Zinfandel drinkers bring a new meaning to the term “enthusiast.” They tend to be more like cult members. The anti-establishment flare found in both Zinfandel consumers and producers establishes it as the people's grape.
Many styles of Zinfandel exist today. White Zinfandel is the butt of many a wine snob's joke. But done right it is a classic rosé wine and I love a well-made rosé. In Amador County, where old-vine Zinfandel abounds, you tend to find a very ripe, prune and raisin character and a very distinct, almost barnyard aroma. Sonoma grows supple Zinfandels in Alexander Valley and burly ones in Dry Creek. Napa County is equally diverse.
As a food-centric wine-maker, I was so enamored with Zinfandel that I decided to grow it on 8 of my 20 acres in St. Helena, from which I make Chiarello Family Vineyard wines. I actually planted 4 acres of new Zinfandel, seven years ago, right in the heart of Cabernet country. The other 4 acres are a wonderful 94-year-old granddaddy of a vineyard. I figured that if I was going to make wines to keep pace with my food, at least one or two of the vineyard blocks must be Zinfandel. For the record, I love Cabernet Sauvignon, and grow a few acres of it. In addition there’s a sweet 94-year-old Petite Sirah vineyard I cherish as well. But it’s Zinfandel that inspired me to get into the wine business.
If I were to create an all-Zinfandel feast, it would go something like this. Start with the often misunderstood but historically significant white Zinfandel to lead the charge. Follow her up with one or two full-bodied, ripe and modern style Zinfandels; and finish the night with a bang -- starring a blockbuster, hang-until-they-drop, really, really old Old-Vine Zinfandel.
Recipes for Zinfandel and the ‘shoulder’ season
Grilled Avocado and Tomato Salad with “Green Goddess” Dressing
Buehler White Zinfandel Napa Valley
Lasagna of Roasted Butternut Squash
Eberle Zinfandel Paso Robles Remo Belli Vineyard
Giant Bean Cassoulet with Fennel Spiced Chicken and Roasted Vegetables
Chiarello Family Zinfandel Napa Valley Giana
Big Cheese and Big Wine -- a Grand Finale
Bella Vineyards Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley Lily Hill Estate
To showcase this all-American wine I have devised a menu that will bend the rules a little, and prove out my claim of Zinfandel's diversity in food pairing, and its place as my chef's number one go-to wine.
This menu celebrates the "shoulder" season between the hot summer and very cool fall. As it gets cool outside some of the best tasting tomatoes are coming to market but we also crave some of the richer flavors of fall. So I like to blend both during these transition times of the year. To start things off, a salad, consistently one of the hardest foods I have found to pair with wine. In this case I have chosen a Grilled Avocado and Red Onion Salad with a Green Goddess dressing. The key to this recipe and its graceful pairing with wine is grilling the avocado. Grilling imparts a woody, caramelized character that is a perfect bridge to the brightness of white Zinfandel. As a general rule, I like tart bright wine with dishes that share that same character, and in this case, a dry white Zinfandel delivers perfectly.
The next three courses are designed to move up the intensity scale of Zinfandel, from medium bodied, to fully extracted, port-like wines. A general indicator of a wine's body and type is the alcohol level; a red wine in the 12 - 13% range can be considered light to medium bodied; 14% more full-bodied; and in the 15 - 17%, you are looking at a highly extracted, ripened-until-the-bitter-end, very big wine.
For the pasta course, I've chosen a more decidedly fall-oriented, but still fairly light pasta to pair with a medium-bodied Zinfandel, one with enough acidity left intact, which is critical to its pairing with my Butternut Squash Lasagna. This is one of my few dishes to use cream. The acidity of the wine cuts through the cream and lifts the roasted butternut squash flavor dramatically. (Note: Roasting here, like grilling in the previous course, aids in the pairing with Zinfandel. Alternatively, I could easily bake the butternut squash and pair this dish with a Chardonnay.)
For the entrée, I went old school by re-inventing a French classic cassoulet and serving a full-bodied Zinfandel, the kind in the 15-percent-alcohol range. These wines are extracted but not overly so, ripe but not raisiny. The dish is Giant Bean Cassoulet with Fennel Spiced Chicken and Roasted Vegetables, featuring giant white runner beans, cooked twice, once alone and the second time with seasonally perfect fennel roasted free-range chicken. As a twist, I actually look to the beans to provide my bridge between the dish and the wine, when most people use the protein of a meal as their guide. I have only found one other wine that loves beans as much as Zinfandel does, and that is Sangiovese. (It's no accident that beans are a huge local favorite in Tuscany where Sangiovese is traditional. Funny how that works.)
To finish us off for the evening, perhaps literally, I say skip the hassle of making dessert and pair one of those wildly rambunctious, notoriously ripe and raisiny, press-be-damned, over-the-top, ultra-ripe, highly concentrated, borderline Port Zinfandel wines with two cheeses. I've served an amazing Point Reyes Original Blue drizzled with warm honey and served with walnut bread crostini along side big messy chunks of the real deal, imported, aged Parmigiano-Reggiano. These wines tend to push aside a typical entrée and stand on their soapbox, alone, screaming, “I'm fine here on my own!" Just a little cheese needed to help wash it down.
Zinfandel is a wonderful wine for cooks to use in pairing wine and food. As things slow down this fall, try throwing your own Zinfandel dinner. Your friends will be very thankful even if they had to brush twice to bring back the whites of their teeth.
Remember … there is no sin in loving Zin. Salute!
Michael Chiarello is owner & vintner, Chiarello Family Vineyards (
); founder & CEO, NapaStyle; Emmy award-winning host of “Easy Entertaining” on the Food Network; chef, restaurateur, and award-winning, author of At Home with Michael Chiarello (
).
RECIPES
Recipes Copyright 2005 Michael Chiarello, and excerpted from At Home with Michael Chiarello (Chronicle Books, Fall 2005).
Grilled Avocado and Tomato Salad with Green Goddess Dressing
For the dressing:
2 avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and chopped
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon powdered ascorbic acid (vitamin C) (optional)
2 tablespoons fresh lime or lemon juice
Finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
For the salad:
10 tomatoes
4 avocados, halved, pitted, and peeled
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 lemons
Finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 red onion, sliced
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
Make the dressing: In a food processor, combine the avocados, basil, tarragon, parsley, garlic, and the ascorbic acid, if using. Process until very smooth. Add the lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and process until well mixed. With the machine running, add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream. If the dressing is very thick, add cold water as needed to create a pour-able dressing. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate until needed.
Make the salad: Ready a charcoal or gas grill for direct heat grilling over a medium-hot fire. Core the tomatoes, quarter through the stem end, and arrange on a large platter; set aside. Place the avocado halves in a bowl and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the juice of 1 lemon. Season to taste with salt and pepper and toss gently to coat evenly.
Place each avocado half, flat side down, on the grill and grill until well caramelized, 30 to 45 seconds. Remove and place, flat side up, on top of the tomatoes. Do not grill on the second side.
In another bowl, squeeze the juice from the remaining lemon over the onion slices and mix well. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, season to taste with salt and pepper, and toss to coat evenly. Divide the onion slices evenly among the avocado halves, draping them over the hollows left by the pits. Spoon the lemon–olive oil mixture remaining in the bowl over the avocados and onion slices. Top with the dressing, distributing evenly and generously on all sides. Sprinkle with the cheese and pine nuts and serve at once.
Serves 8 as a first course, or 4 as a main course.
Lasagna of Roasted Butternut Squash
Cooking Notes: Cutting the squash into small chunks means you can cover more surface area with the herbs and spices. Also, when you roast the chunks, you get better caramelization and more flavor.
Entertaining Notes: The morning before your party, fill the pasta sheets with the squash and cheese, arrange the rolls in baking dishes, pour the sauce over the top, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Then, 1 1/2 to 2 hours before serving, slip the lasagna, uncovered, into the oven and bake until golden brown.
For the squash:
1 large or 2 small butternut squashes, about 3 pounds total weight
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon Toasted Spice Rub (See separate recipe below.)
Finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
2 cups whole-milk ricotta cheese (one 15-ounce container)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound dried lasagna sheets (24 sheets), each 6 1/2 by 3 inches
Extra-virgin olive oil for tossing
Roast the squash: Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Cut the squash(es) in half crosswise. Trim about 1/2 inch off the rounded end of each half so you can stand it upright on a cutting board. Working with one-half at a time and using a sharp knife, cut downward to remove the hard shell. Remove the seeds and coarsely chop the squash into 1/2-inch chunks.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. In a bowl, toss the squash with the olive oil, sage, 1 teaspoon salt, and the spice mixture. Spread the squash in a single layer on the baking sheet. Roast the squash, stirring once or twice, until very soft and beginning to brown, 40 to 50 minutes.
Remove the squash from the oven and transfer to a food processor. Process until smooth. You should have 2 to 2 1/2 cups puree. In a large bowl, combine the squash puree, ricotta and Parmesan cheeses, eggs, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the lasagna sheets and cook until al dente. Drain the sheets in a colander, toss them in a little olive oil to coat lightly, and spread them on a rimmed baking sheet. Set aside.
Make the sauce: In a large saucepan, bring the milk to a slow simmer over medium heat. Adjust the heat so the milk stays hot but is not simmering. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the sage and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and the garlic begins to soften, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes to combine well with the butter. Do not allow the mixture to color. Add the milk all at once, whisking vigorously to prevent lumps. Add 2 teaspoons salt and the nutmeg and adjust the heat to maintain a slow simmer. Cook, whisking frequently, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat. You should have about 8 cups sauce.
Preheat the oven to 375˚F. Butter two 9-by-13-inch baking dishes.
Spread each lasagna sheet flat on a work surface. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the squash mixture evenly over each sheet, leaving about 1/2 inch of the sheet uncovered at one of the shorter ends. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons mozzarella cheese on top of each sheet. Working with 1 sheet at a time, and starting at the shorter end where the squash mixture covers completely to the edge, loosely roll the sheet into a cylinder. As the cylinders are formed, layer them in a single layer in the 2 prepared baking dishes. Using half of the sauce for each pan, pour it evenly over the rolls. Dust the tops evenly first with the Parmesan cheese and then the spice mixture.
Bake the rolls until golden brown and bubbling, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Serves 8 to 10 as a main course
Gi
ant Bean Cassoulet with Fennel Spiced Chicken and Roasted Vegetables
Cooking Notes: The caramelization of the vegetables and the roasted chicken flavors are what make this dish special. Season the chicken pieces well, because in turn they will season the beans. Cut the vegetables obliquely into wedges. It makes for interesting shapes, much better than the frozen-vegetable look. If you’re short on time, you can even use canned large white beans. Just throw out the liquid in the can and use a good-quality chicken stock for the liquid in the recipe. Add the canned beans when you are combining everything in the ovenproof pot, and use 4 cups stock and no water.
For the beans:
1 pound dried giant white beans such as Corona
1 yellow onion, quartered lengthwise
1 celery stalk, quartered crosswise
1 carrot, peeled and quartered crosswise
2 large cloves garlic, lightly crushed
1 bay leaf
4 cups chicken stock
Finely ground sea salt, preferably gray salt
12 Brussels sprouts
1 red onion
3 carrots
1 parsnip
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup Fennel Spice (See separate recipe below.)
1 whole chicken, about 4 pounds, plus 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breast halves
6 cloves garlic
1/4 pound pancetta, cut into strips about 1/2 inch thick, 1/2 inch wide, and 1 inch long (optional)
Cook the beans: Pick over the beans and discard any misshapen beans or grit. Rinse the beans, place in a saucepan, and add cold water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, cover, and remove from the heat. Let stand for 1 hour, then drain.
Return the beans to the saucepan and add the onion, celery, carrot, garlic, and bay leaf. Pour in the chicken stock and then water as needed to cover the beans by 3/4 inch. Slowly bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. (If you heat them too fast, the skins may break.) Adjust the heat to maintain a bare simmer and cook, uncovered, until the beans are almost tender, 30 to 45 minutes or so, depending on the age of the beans. Add salt to taste, remove from the heat, and let cool in the liquid.
While the beans are cooking, remove the tough outer leaves and the stems from the Brussels sprouts. Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil, add the Brussels sprouts, and boil for 30 seconds. Drain the Brussels sprouts and quickly cool them in a bowl of ice water. Cut each one in half through the stem end. Cut the onion through the stem end into 6 equal wedges. Peel the carrots and parsnip and cut obliquely into 3/4-inch pieces.
Place a deep ovenproof pot about 12 inches in diameter over high heat and add 1/4 cup of the olive oil. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the onion, carrots, and parsnip and cook, turning as needed, until lightly browned on all sides, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the Brussels sprouts to the pot and season with salt. Continue to cook, turning as needed, until all the vegetables are well browned, about 10 minutes. Season the vegetables with 1 tablespoon of the spice mixture and continue to cook for 30 to 60 seconds. Remove the vegetables from the pot, and remove the pot from the heat and reserve it.
Preheat the oven to 425˚F. Rinse the whole chicken and chicken breasts under cold running water and pat dry. Cut the whole chicken into 8 pieces, 2 breasts, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks, and 2 wings. (Reserve the back and neck for making stock.) Cut the breasts from the whole chicken and the 2 additional half breasts in half crosswise.
Put the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil into the pot used for the vegetables and heat the oil over high heat. Season the chicken pieces with the remaining 3 tablespoons spice mixture. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the chicken pieces skin side down, working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding. Cook, turning as needed, until the chicken is dark brown on all sides, about 12 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot. Tilt the pot and pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic and the pancetta, if using, and cook, turning occasionally, until browned, 1 to 2 minutes.
Discard the vegetables and bay leaf from the beans and add the beans and their liquid to the garlic and pancetta. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook to reduce the liquid until a layer of beans shows above the surface of the liquid. Add the caramelized vegetables and the chicken, skin side up.
Put the pot in the oven and roast, uncovered, until the chicken is fully cooked and the surface is nicely caramelized, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes, then serve warm.
Serves 6 to 8
Big Cheese and Big Wine -- a Grand Finale
The single most important element of serving a great cheese course, beyond buying good cheese, is the temperature of the cheese when you serve it. It needs to be only one temperature: room temperature! Set the cheese out a few hours before serving time. It really is true that a $5-cheese will taste like a $20-dollar cheese at the right temperature and a $20-dollar cheese will taste like a $5-dollar cheese at the wrong temperature. When you offer it to your guests, your Brie should be weeping, your blue stinking, and your Parmigiano-Reggiano glistening with a whisper of its oil.
Cooking Notes: Be sure to rely on a first-rate cheese purveyor. The best merchants should be able to walk you through the various cheeses and, if necessary, through any substitutes. Use any mild artisan honey, such as lavender or chestnut, for drizzling on the blue cheese.
Entertaining Notes: I like to add interest to the presentation of the cheeses and their accompaniments, such as using a retired barrel top as a serving platter. You can also serve the cheeses as a plated course by simply cutting them into small portions and arranging them on individual plates. The most elegant thing you can serve with a cheese course is a bowl of warm pistachios. They nicely occupy hand and mouth while you’re sitting around the table talking with friends and finishing a bottle of great red wine.
For the cheeses:
1/2 pound Point Reyes Original Blue cheese
1/2 pound Parmigiano-Reggiano or aged pecorino cheese
1/2 pound pistachios
3 tablespoons artisan honey
1 loaf walnut bread or other dark, dense bread, sliced
3 pounds assorted fruits such as figs, cherries, nectarines, plums, persimmons, apples, and pears, in any seasonal combination
At least 3 hours before your guests arrive, remove the cheeses from the refrigerator. Place them on a large, round tray, arranging them. Leave enough space between the cheeses for adding the accompaniments later. Cover loosely with plastic wrap.
Finish assembling the cheese tray: Preheat the oven to 325°F oven, spread the pistachios on a rimmed baking sheet, and warm in the oven for 8 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl. Drizzle the honey over the blue cheese and set some walnut bread slices nearby. Add loosely cut chunks of Parmagiano-Reggiano, pour the wine, and serve.
(Makes about 1 cup)
1/4-cup fennel seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon peppercorns
1-1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1/4 cup (1 ounce) pure California chili powder
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Toast the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, and peppercorns in a small, heavy pan over medium heat. When the fennel turns light brown, work quickly. Turn on the exhaust fan, add the red pepper flakes, and toss, toss, toss, always under the fan. Immediately turn the spice mixture out onto a plate to cool. Put in a blender with the chili powder, salt, and cinnamon and blend until the spices are evenly ground. If you have a small spice mill or a coffee grinder dedicated to grinding spices, grind only the fennel, coriander, pepper, and chili flakes. Pour into a bowl and toss with the remaining ingredients.
Toasting freshens spices, releases their oils, and makes them more fragrant, as well as adding a new dimension of flavor. Keep the spice mix in a glass jar in a cool, dry place, or freeze. Taste your chili powder and, if spicy and hot, cut back the amount. California chilies are almost sweet, not hot.
1 cup fennel seeds
3 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons white peppercorns
3 tablespoons kosher salt
Put the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, and peppercorns in a heavy pan over medium heat. Watch carefully, tossing frequently so the seeds toast evenly. When light brown and fragrant, pour the seeds onto a plate to cool. They must be cool before grinding, or they will gum up the blades.
Pour the seeds into a blender and add the salt. Blend to a fine powder, shaking the blender occasionally to redistribute the seeds. Store in a tightly sealed glass jar in a cool, dry place, or freeze. Quick Tip: Use lots of seasoning because half of it falls off during the cooking process.
Years ago, as a young chef at Tra Vigne Restaurant, I was privileged to partner with some of the pioneering winemakers in the Napa Valley as to jointly create a world-class wine region from its nascent stage. As one of the first chefs here, I was challenged to create tasting menus for many of these Napa Valley founders as they worked tirelessly to get their wines tasted and their brands established. Together, we hosted hundreds of dinner parties and events large and small, and forged an ever-growing clientele of gourmands and enthusiasts as they came back year after year.
Gi
ant Bean Cassoulet with Fennel Spiced Chicken and Roasted Vegetables
Big Cheese and Big Wine -- a Grand Finale
