Pairing:  Wood Charcoal Grilled Chicken paired with a 2011 Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley Chardonnay

Food:  Everyone has a favorite grilled chicken recipe they can’t wait to use as winter lets go and the weather starts getting warmer (and the black flies starting swarming!). For years, our go-to recipe for the marinade-basting sauce was composed of olive oil, ketchup, maple syrup, worcestershire sauce, and chili powder. Good stuff … great with a Zinfandel. A few years ago, however, our younger son turned us on to an entirely different take on grilled chicken with a recipe he invented from bits and pieces found on the internet and through his own experimentation. A chip off the old block!

He combines 2 minced cloves of garlic, 1 T chopped fresh ginger, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, 2 T canola oil, 1 T honey, and 6 T fresh lime juice (3 limes). Mix thoroughly and marinate the pieces of chicken (about 3 and 1/2 pounds) for about 5 hrs in the mixture, turning occasionally. Grill over a wood charcoal fire for best results. Fantastic! Works really well with pork, too. Serve it with your favorite potato salad and coleslaw.

Wine:  The Grgich name is legendary in the annals of California winemaking. Mijenko “Mike” Grgich crafted the Chardonnay that won “The Judgment of Paris“, the famous France vs California wine competition held in 1976. The results of this blind tasting done by an all-French panel of wine experts elevated the then little appreciated California wine industry to the world-class status it holds today. Grgich Hills continues this tradition of crafting fine wines with this exceptional 2011 Chardonnay from the Napa Valley.

Tasting Notes:  A pretty golden-colored wine with a slightly greenish tint. The sweet smell of ripe cantaloupe melon infused with honeysuckle nectar. One could be content just smelling this lovely wine, but do taste it. The combined flavors of ripe melon and peaches, with a “squirt” of lime juice. I kid you not! The lime notes of both the chicken and the wine all spin together into a marvelous dining experience. Outstanding!

Other Wines That Pair Well with This Grilled Chicken: Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Sparkling Wine, Dry Riesling

Other Food That Pairs Well with Grgich Chardonnay:  Crab Dishes, Mushroom Risotto, Grilled Swordfish or Halibut or Salmon

Read About:  https://www.napavalley.com/blog/chardonnay-tasting-napa-valley/

A Source:  www.wine.com