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friends coming for dinner and you are planning to prepare some beef,
or chicken, you can't go wrong with a nice Merlot. Merlot is always a
crowd pleaser when it comes to wine and food. For one thing, it has a
soft, supple taste to it without most of the bitter tannins that can
overpower food. It pairs very nicely with a wide variety of meats in
light to heartier sauces and I think it is a fantastic complement to any
Italian thick or red sauce dish.
Merlot has another ace-in-the-hole food pairing that is sure to deliver
with the ladies. Maybe you have had Merlot wines countless times
and never realized this, but one common flavor in many Merlot wines
is Chocolate. Sometimes it is very subtle, but often it is a very
prominent flavor profile in Chocolate. At this month's Merlot Tasting
Review, I whipped out some dark chocolates for our tasting panel to
indulge in with our five wines. At first they were skeptical, but all
agreed in the end that they matched marvelously with the wines,
especially the two from California. Don't take my word for it though,
give it a try yourself!
When matching Merlot with food, make sure you match the thickness
of the food with the wine. Merlot tends to mostly fall in the
medium-bodied range with a few examples on either end of the
spectrum. Generally speaking, the nicer the Merlot, the fuller the
body is to the wine. Also remember to be aware of the common
flavors in Merlot with the foods you are trying to match them to.
Merlot has variety of flavors that include; plum, cherry, black cherry,
black currents, mint and chocolate to name just a few. Remember
these simple rules and I'm sure you will find it easy to match your
Merlot wine with dinner!
Here are some recipes to get you started!
Recipes
2 small red onions, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
2 cups of Merlot wine
1 (12 ounce) jar chokecherry preserves
2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
4 dried chipotle peppers, ground (about 2 tablespoons)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Put oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and jalapeno peppers and cook until
soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add Merlot, increase heat to medium high, and reduce by half. Add
chokecherry preserves and cook 5 minutes more. Add tomatoes, chipotle, salt and pepper. Bring
back to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Add soy, Worcestershire and vinegar.
Simmer another 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings. Let sit overnight.
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ham. The pan juices become delicious sauce and believe it or not, this goes extremely well with Merlot!
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
3 tablespoons dried marjoram
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 9 to 10 pound fully cooked bone-in-ham (shank or butt end)
2 1/2 cups Madeira (Spanish wine)
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram or 2 teaspoons dried
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix first 6 ingredients in medium bowl. (Can be prepared 1
day ahead. Cover and refrigerate)
Line large roasting pan with double layer of foil. Trim any tough rind and fat from upper side of ham,
leaving 1/4-inch-thick layer of fat. Using long sharp knife, score fat in 1-inch-wide diamond pattern.
Place ham in prepared pan. Pour Madiera and 1 cup orange juice into bottom of pan. Bake ham until
heated through, about 45 minutes.
Remove pan from oven. Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread mustard
mixture generously over top and sides of ham. Return to oven and continue to bake until mustard
coating is golden brown, about 35 minutes.
Transfer ham to platter. Skim fat from pan juices and discard. Pour pan juices into medium saucepan.
Add marjoram and bring to boil. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Slice ham into
1/2-inch-thick slices. Serve with sauce.
Serves 8.
Epicurious Food © 2003 Conde'Net Inc. All rights reserved.
soy sauce and honey marinade. Pour a nice Merlot with it and you will experience
perfection!
1/2 cup olive oil
4 1/2 tablespoons honey
6 large garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried
1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 2 1/3-pound flank steak
Mix all ingredients except steak in 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Add steak and turn to coat.
Cover and refrigerate 2 hours, turning occasionally.
Prepare barbeque (medium-high heat) or preheat broiler. Remove meat from marinade; discard
marinade. Grill steak to desired doneness, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare.
Transfer steak to work surface. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut across grain into thin strips, arrange on
platter and serve.
Serves 6.
Epicurious Food © 2003 Conde'Net Inc. All rights reserved.
7 1/2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
11 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large eggs, separated
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
Ganache:
6 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 10-inch round cake pan. For the cake: Melt the
chocolate and butter in a double boiler (or in a bowl or smaller saucepan placed over a saucepan of
boiling water). Set aside to cool. Beat the egg yolks until light and fluffy. Slowly add the sugar and
continue beating until mixture is pale yellow. Fold in the melted chocolate. Sift the flour over the
chocolate mixture until it just disappears. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks
form. Fold egg whites into the chocolate mixture in 2 parts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and
tap on the counter to remove air bubbles. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean
(see Note). For the ganache: Place the chopped chocolate in a mixing bowl. Place the cream in a
saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the hot cream to the chocolate and stir until all lumps are gone. Let
the ganache stand until it reaches room temperature, then pour it over the cooled cake and spread
with a spatula.
Note: For a thicker cake, double the recipe and bake for 35 minutes.
Copyright © 2003 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved