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newhunterette
04-23-2008, 02:27 PM
Everyone loves Merlot. It is a marvelous drinking wine. It is smooth and rich, it has a universally likeable flavor and texture that goes with any medium flavor food. It is at its best with beef and lamb and can also be used with venison, antelope, elk, sheep, duck, goose and squab. But would not use a Merlot with strong tasting game such as moose or caribou.

A Sirah is generally lighter and fruitier that a Cabernet, and like a Cabernet Sauvignon, you can say that any light tasting red meat game goes with this wine. Is preferred above all others for the finer cuts of venison, antelope and of course duck, pigeon and dove. Goose, has a somewhat heavier flavor therefore a heartier red is preffered with it. But realy, any of the lighter red meats goes well with a good Sirah. It is a favorite red with fine cuts of game but this is a matter of personal preference.

Chardonnay is an extremely versatile food wine and is best taken with seafood and poultry dishes, particularly those with distinctive flavors like Chicken, Pork, Veal, Turkey, Wild Turkey, Quail, Partridges of all kinds, lobster, crab, tuna, red snapper and also with light mild cheeses.

Zinfandel may be one of the most unusual grapes around. It is a wine, widely grown in California whose origins are really unknown. The best Zinfandel grapes grow in cool coastal locations. They yield dry, full-bodied, intensely flavored red wines with substantial tannins. Premium Zins are rich and peppery, with a lush texture and ripe fruit flavors. It is delicious with goose complimenting its somewhat heavier flavor than duck. It goes best with game stews, and more highly flavored meats like elk, bear, Boar, Caribou and Moose.


Riesling is the most popular German wine. Its exact origines are unknown but the vine probably originated in the upper Rhine in the 16th century. After 1500 it was the vine of the Rhine and Mosel. Over 500 years influenced the wine as well. Its taste has many variations and the possibilities to describe it are endless. It is an elegant wine, lively, fresh, full of flavour and fragrant.

There are many grades of Riesling from the fine Kabinett to the noble Auslese. The Riesling goes with light meal like chicken, veal, pork, fish, Wild Turkey, Quail, Pheasant and fresh cheese. But you can serve a dry Spätlese with stronger tasting meals, too.

Shiraz is a full bodied wine, rich, dark, full bodied, heavy in tannin and peppery, with a lush texture and ripe fruit flavors, it is delicious with lamb beef, duck and goose complimenting their somewhat heavier flavors. It also goes with and more highly flavored meats like Elk, bear, Boar,Sheep, Caribou and Moose.

Sauvignon Blanc (also called Fume Blanc) is one of the great white wines. It is an extremely versatile and drinkable wine In France, Sauvignon Blanc is the mother grape Pouilly Fume has the capacity to enoble plain, simple seafood, and will hold up nicely to herbal preparations (thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, coriander and white meats such as chicken, veal, turkey and pork. The wine has vibrant flavors that go surprisingly well with spicy and ethnic cuisines, as well as traditional French fare.

Bow Walker
04-23-2008, 09:12 PM
...and then along came the Pinot Noirs, and the Malbecs, and the Gamays and all their friends and relatives.:wink: 8-)

Blainer
04-23-2008, 09:20 PM
Syrah and Shiraz are the same grape.
They typically call it a Shiraz in Australia and Syrah in France and North America,unless it was bottled in Australia.
Pinot Noir is my personal favourite,and hardest grape to produce.

moosinaround
04-23-2008, 09:30 PM
I like the sparkly ones, like baby duck. Any wines you don't need a cork screw for, I can never find one, and usually have to push the cork into the bottle. Budweiser seems to go well with all the meats, cheeses, veggies, pork rinds. Moosin

mpotzold
04-24-2008, 01:05 AM
I’ve been a red wine drinker for over 30 years. I don’t drink wine with food because it spoils the taste of wine. As I write I’m enjoying a glass of Merlot. This flowery description of wine (smooth, rich, fruity, full bodied, peppery, dark, elegant, lively, fresh, full of flavour , fragrant, drinkable(what a surprise), vibrant …are words that only a “fruity” artsy-fartsy person would dream of. IMO( redundant nonsense).It reminds me of some rich old lady at a modern art expo describing what she sees in a picture(probably drawn by an elephant)
Pinot Noir is a great wine(tastes like fermented red grapes & is very healthy(highest in resveratrol content of any red wines –a fact)

Stone Sheep Steve
04-24-2008, 09:55 AM
I have kind of developed a love/hate relationship with wines:?.

As Blainer mentioned Syrah and Shiraz the same variety of grape. You can take the same grapes and handle them two different ways and make two different styles of wine.

French style Syrah typically starts with the best grapes from the best vineyards with nice ripe flavours and tannins.... ususally fermented in small oak vats or small stainless steel maceration tanks.....extended skin contact at the end of fermentation to release those ripe flavours/tannins....aged in French oak which is typically more soft and subtle, again, allowing the fruit to show through.

Australian Shiraz is typically fermented in staniless steel and aged in American oak....typically a more bold wine than syrah.

Another note....Fume Blanc is made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes but it is fermented/aged in heavilly toasted oak barrells to achieve a nice complex smokey flavour......not quite the same flavour as some grapes aquired from the fires of 2003:wink:. Our first and last vintage of Fume blanc was waaaaaay back in 1983 and was one of my favorites back when I first started in the wine business.

One wine the Ali forgot to mention is "Meritage", a blend of the biggest and best varieties (typically Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and sometimes Petite Verdot and a couple of others). Usually, these are the "best of the best"....wines so big that you have to chew them:wink:. These are typically among my favorites.

Moosin-Don't let screw caps fool you. There's been a big movement with white wines to go back to screw caps. Fruit-forward white wines don't benefit from slow oxidation that corks allow. Wines will stay fresher and maintain their "fruitiness". Also, by using screw caps, the risk of having a wine spoiled form cork taint is completely removed.

More complex/higher-end whites still use and can benefit from corks(although I personally prefer to drink my whites as young as possible).

Reds are a different matter as a cork will allow slow oxidation(ie. maturation) and softening of "edgy" tannins.

SSS

newhunterette
04-24-2008, 10:31 AM
y'all are great - please add to the thread - there is so much to learn about wines and how it works with different foods and the little venture I have in the works :) - once I get it in motion I will be asking for a little info from y'all.

Alison

huntergirl270
04-24-2008, 12:42 PM
Mmmmmmmm good timing for this post Ali.... I am bottling my batch of Zinfandel tomorrow a.m. I'll be starting a batch of Merlot then. I'm thinking the Zinfandel will only end up being "trunk" aged like the last batch. :) Can't wait!

Fosey
04-24-2008, 01:43 PM
Try a little Chilean Carmenere, South African Pinotage or Argentinean Malbec, they are all great wines.

BiG Boar
05-15-2008, 07:11 AM
Favorite white today is Gwertz by thornhaven in summerland, close second to grey monk. As far as mixing wine and game, I have yet to enjoy the two of them together.

newhunterette
01-24-2009, 10:36 PM
more information on wine with game meats

Game meats like buffalo, ostrich, rabbit, fowl and venison are often leaner, especially when taken from the wild or grown under conditions that mimick the wild. But the real interest in game meat is in its richer, sometimes spicier taste profile. The perfect liquid accompaniment to the richness of game meats requires a good degree of flavor and structure; think wine!

The best wines to pair with game come in three colours: red, white and rose. And the best within each colour category offer full flavors that are sometimes spicy, like the ginger/lychee qualities of Gewurztraminer (white wine) (from Alsace, along the French Riviera) or the crisp, full, fruity qualities of Riesling (Germany or Austria).

Austria's version of white wine for game meat is Gruner Veltliner, a wine with the taste of white pepper. This wine also is one of the rare wines that matches with rich vegetables like asparagus.

The dark pepper-like sensation of Shiraz/Syrah (the same red grape variety under two names) is a fine example of wine for lamb, but even finer with many game meats. Blended wines that combine Grenache, Mourvedre or Cinsault with Syrah/Shiraz heighten the wine's ability to match game meats.

Some northern Italian wines like Barbera, Barbarseco and a wine called Schiopettino often pair quite well with game meats

Some Grenache wines come in dry rose style; they are wonderful with game meats, especially when both the meat and the wine are slightly chilled, as for a picnic. Other rose wines made from Pinot Noir can also be good with the spice of game meats.

newhunterette
01-24-2009, 10:44 PM
this website gives a great list for our BC wineries

http://www.winebc.com/wineries.php