Online ‘Combinations’ celebrates the marriage of food & wine
By Andrew Barrow
Here, on these pages, I had a rant a few weeks back. Basically I got all het-up about the . Many bloggers plough hours of writing and research and the cooking on a dish or a series of dishes and never mention which wine they served with it.
I think (or was it ) has the answer — and this covers why few people leave comments on wine blogs too: lack of knowledge. You eat food from the moment you are born (or near enough) and thus have accumulated enough confidence to wax lyrical on the subject. Wine is different; you generally have to learn stuff after you reach a certain stage of adulthood.
Even the most lowly Chav can make a judgement over two piles of chips; give them two glasses of wine, though …
So was born Combinations. A simple idea to take a recipe, make the dish, and find a wine to accompany — and write about it. So far we have had
- (as selected by )
- (an odd but delicious Austrian dessert)
It is a monthly event, and this month the baton is handed to for some recipe ideas. Beau has adapted the concept a touch by listing various herbs that should be used in a recipe rather than a recipe itself. So we have parsley, cilantro, thyme, rosemary, tarragon, chives and basil. Three from the list should be used.
With all that herb action I thought of Sauvignon Blanc. The herby quality of many SB’s lends itself immediately to matching with herbs. But then there are a host of Italian whites, from obscure varieties, that might be more interesting. But of course it all depends on the dish. Is cream to be involved? (then perhaps an unoaked Chardonnay or Pinot Blanc would be better) Or it could be a herb crust over a leg of lamb (now thinking Bordeaux or Loire red). The possibilities are almost as numerous as the number of wines.
Beau asks that all entries be blogged and sent to him by the 30th July.
