Yesterday was Valentine’s Day.
You knew that already.
Did you also know what Kara and I drank to celebrate?
If you followed @JeffIsRad on Twitter, there’s a chance that you did.
For the rest of you, here’s what we had…
This wine was given to us as a wedding gift from Jan and Dr. Jan Krupp of Krupp Brothers and Stagecoach Vineyard way back in 2010. We decided that Valentine’s Day was as good a day as any to break this puppy open and see what it had in store.
So… we took the bottle down to our favorite sushi restaurant, CreAsian, to have a taste…
Here it is. Black Bart’s Bride.
The wine is a blend of 70% Marsanne and 30% Viognier from the L2 and 14B blocks of Stagecoach Vineyard. The wine was barrel fermented on its native yeast, went through 100% natural malolactic fermentation, and was aged sur lie for 9 months in 85% new French oak. It has an awe-inspiring 14.9% alcohol. The Wine Enthusiast gave it a 93. Needless to say, this is a wine geek’s dream (Do you hear that, Wine Geek?).
Color: Super yellow golden straw in color.
Nose: White flowers, honeysuckle, and dried apricots.
Taste: This wine is ridiculously big in its mouthfeel. In spite of its big, oily viscosity, the Bride has a nice, crisp acidity to go with it. The palate is all flowers, honey, petrol, and mineral.
Score: I really like this wine, but I’m not one to slap a 93 on it like the Enthusiast. I’m going 89.
Now…
The write-up in the Wine Enthusiast warns that this wine may be a difficult one to pair with other foods, and I agree…
But…
If it’s gonna work with anything, it’s gotta be Asian.
My feeling was that the oiliness of the fish would bring out secondary flavors of the wine.
Sure enough… as we got into the meal, it’s the crisp acidity that continued to be highlighted in the Bride. It’s that same acidity that helps make the flavors in the food just pop.
Speaking of food…
Here’s what we ate at CreAsian…
Seaweed Salad
Sashimi Tacos. My favorite!
My Soy Sauce, Ginger, and Wasabi. You gotta dip your sushi in this, but I’ll show you what I like to do in a little bit…
Clockwise from top left: Mount Fuji Roll, Lemon Drop Roll, and Morgan Hill Roll
Miso Soup. Me so happy!
Godzilla Roll. The Bomb Dot Net!
I always like to finish my meal by dumping my Soy Sauce, Ginger, and Wasabi over a bowl of rice. Mmmmmmmmm!!!!!
Of course, Ice Cream ain’t a bad way to finish things either. *Warning: Do Not Pair this With the White Wine! Yuck!*
And that was Valentine’s Day!
Of course, if you followed @JeffIsRad on Twitter, you probably already knew that.
Stay Rad,
Jeff
Leave a comment below, and tell the world about your Valentine’s Day Food and Wine Pairing.
Find wine and wine-related products on Amazon.
Tags: CreAsian, Food and Wine Pairing, Krupp Brothers 2008 Black Bart's Bride White Wine, Marsanne, Morgan Hill, Sushi, Valentine's Day, viognier
Stay Rad 
February 16, 2013 at 1:24 pm |
“Do you hear that, Wine Geek?” No, I don’t ― I’m just reading. 😉 You should know, Mataro Man, the guys at Wine Enthusiast are very softhearted. So when I see 93, I think 90. And you know what? I’m right. 😀 http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1256616
February 16, 2013 at 2:27 pm |
Word.
February 28, 2013 at 12:04 pm |
I love this Valentine’s Day post! I too decided to come up with a Valentin’es Day food and wine pairing meal. Pairing food and wine is fun. Now, I find myself coming up with fun themed pairings (Valentine’s Day, major sporting events, Girls Night Out, Cinco de Mayo, etc)
February 28, 2013 at 12:54 pm |
Glad you liked it.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
August 31, 2013 at 8:27 pm |
[…] I just get myself some beer or some hot sake. You’ve seen me bring my own wine out to sushi here and […]