Rosé. For a long time, North Americans dismissed pink wines as little more than a change of pace beverage for ladies who chug their white wine with ice cubes and debate the sexual currency of leopard pattern versus fluorescent green miniskirts. This slander is connected to white zinfandel. Sweet, sloppy and fractions from a California Cooler, white zinfandel is pretty traumatic if you enjoy dry, well-built wines.
Classic French or Spanish roses are nothing like white Zinfandel - they are clean, refreshing in their bone-dryness and very food-friendly. And we are catching on to these distinctions. I notice a full-court press of affordable Mediterranean rose at the LCBO, so everyone should be able to sample at will, and enjoy what might be the most bracing wine on the planet when the humidex turns us into soggy, lethargic animals. Tonight I'm drinking a wine from Tavel in the Southern Rhone. According to Robert Parker, this full-bodied rose is 'quintessential Tavel.' He gave it 91 points, which doesn't really mean I will like it or that you will like it, but Bob thinks it's pretty gorgeous. And that man drinks abundant quantities of wine. I'm also pretty sure he doesn't store his wine in a linen closet, so maybe I should just shut up and listen to him. Point taken. I'll be matching it with a Spanish classic. Paella.
Paella
This is the dish by which Spanish cuisine is traditionally defined. There is, however, no singular recipe. Paella is the name of the pan. It is more a method of cooking than anything else. Much like cassoulet in France, many versions of paella exist, based mainly on what is abundant and affordable in each the region. Classic Paellas a la Valenciana include rabbit and snail. Paella on Menorca is seafood based. The mainstays of each paella dish, however, are Calaspara rice (similar to arborio), saffron, chicken stock and a wide, shallow oven-proof pan, and some assortment of fish or meat. Feel free to use what you have available, which is how the dish evolved in the first place. I like the method of cooking used by Sedlack in The Main. I'm a little short on ingredients tonight, but I'm sure it will work out.
Ingredients:
- diced fresh chorizo, 3 sausages
- 1 Spanish onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
- 2 cups of arborio rice
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons saffron
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup white wine
- 3 cups of chicken stock
- 2 small tomatoes
- 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
1) Pre-heat oven to 450 F.
2) Heat oil in a large, wide, oven-proof pan on medium heat. Gently fry chorizo for 2 minutes. Add onion and garlic and sweat until onion is soft and translucent. Add rice and paprika and stir, toasting rice for 3 minutes.
3) Add saffron, bay leaf, white wine and chicken stock. Bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Add tomatoes. Place in hot oven on middle rack and roast, stirring occasionally, until rice is three quarters done. About 15 minutes.
4) Add shrimp to pan and continue to roast until pink, about 6 to 8 minutes. If the pan dries out, add additional chicken stock.
5) Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.
Tasting and Pairing Notes:
There is a natural association in my mind between pink liquids and confected sweetness - too much concentrated fruit juice/sulphites and hubba bubba as a child - so its a real surprise to taste a classic Tavel rosé. Bone-dry, flinty, minuscule residual sugar. Mouth-watering. But first things first. Nosing the 2009 Prieure de Montezargues reveals light florals, alder flower maybe, as well as hints of cherry, grapefruit, pear, peach. On the palate is where the boundaries start to shift. The wine is crisp and fresh yet round and full-bodied. Faintly medicinal - dry flowers and red fruit. This has to do with the grapes used - 55% Grenache. 30% Cinsault. 13% Clairette - as well as the process of rosé production. Brief contact of the grape juice with black grape skins during fermentation. These characteristics make it a versatile food wine, especially when matched with charcoal grilled seafood, charcuterie, and greasier foods that need some cleaning acidity for balance. Perfect summer wine. And paella is a great match. Instead of grilled steak and beer, serve a paella and bottle of chilled rosé for your next backyard meal. Become Javier Bardem for a few minutes.
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