Author: Peter Eppig

Fillet Mignon with Wild Mushrooms in a Wine Reduction … Elegant and Romantic with Pinot Noir

~ Peter Eppig ~ 1 Comment

Pairing: Fillet Mignon with Wild Mushrooms (Cepes and Bi-color Boletes) in a Wine Reduction Sauce Paired with a 2016 Ata Rangi Martinborough Pinot Noir (New Zealand).

Food: When celebrating a special occasion, one likes to “pull out all the stops.”

Fillet Mignon with Wild Mushrooms in a Wine Reduction Sauce served with Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus

For many people, a special occasion calls for a night out, dining in an elegant setting, maybe dressed to the nines, and, having someone else (preferably someone who really knows what s/he is doing) cook a fantastic meal. Some of us, however, really to exercise our own culinary prowess and create an extraordinary meal cooking side by side with that special someone. Here’s the setup.

The ingredients ready to go … minced garlic and shallot, oil, butter, beef stock, wine, crushed black pepper, Kosher salt, fresh rosemary, the cooked still-warm fillets, and … the crowning glory .. cepes and bi-color boletes foraged in our own property.

Preparation. Saute the mushrooms in butter and keep warm. The fillets of beef (one and one half to one and three quarters inches thick) are first rubbed thoroughly with crushed black pepper and Kosher salt, then pan-seared in a hot pan with a small amount of oil and butter. Three or four minutes or so on each side should produce a nice crust and a done-ness of rare to medium rare. Transfer the meat to a 300F oven while you make the sauce. Deglaze the pan with some of the wine, add the garlic and shallots, cook to just translucent. Pour in about 3/4 cup of the wine you will be drinking with the meal. Simmer until reduced to about 1/3 of a cup. Add 3/4 cup beef stock. Simmer until reduced again to about a third of a cup of liquid. Strain the liquid, pour back into the pan. Add about a Tablespoon of chopped fresh rosemary, and a Tablespoon of butter. Swirl around until the sauce is nice and silky. Fold in the already cooked mushrooms. Plate the beef with the sauce over or under the beef. (sigh) … Incredible. And a lovely Pinot Noir is the perfect companion to the beef. Enjoy your night “in”.

Wine: When ‘Pinot Noir’ is mentioned, the question arises, “Grown where?” The premier Old World versions are from Burgundy, ever since the Ark. Now the Pinot Noir grape is grown the world over. Martinborough, the source of our wine, is located in the Marlborough Wine Region on the north end of the South Island in New Zealand. Marlborough is the largest wine region in New Zealand. At Ata Rangi, they have been making wine since 1980. This family-owned winery has grown from a small beginning [“Ata Rangi” means “new beginning”] in a sheep pasture to being known for the their Pinot Noirs.

Tasting Notes: The color is a medium red. A nose of cherry gives hints of what is to come. On the palate, the cherry notes continue, joined by red fruits. Do not think that this describes a terribly fruity wine, as New World wines can be. This Pinot Noir was made by people who know what they are doing, so the wine is balanced and elegant. A Pinot Noir like this is the one you want to serve for a special dinner with a special someone.

Other Wines That Pair Well with Beef Tenderloin: Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec (France or Argentina), Tempranillo

Other Foods that Pair Well with New Zealand Pinot Noir:  roast chicken, duck confit, smoked salmon, game birds, mature cheddar cheese

Views of the Marlborough Region: https://www.winetourism.com/wine-region/marlborough/

A Source:  www. klwines.com

It’s January … There’s Snow on the Ground … and I’m Dreaming of Summer Gardens … and Corn (!!?)

~ Peter Eppig ~ Leave a comment

Pairing:  Bay Scallops with Corn and Orzo Paired with a 2018 Brewer-Clifton Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay.

My Dad passed away almost fifty years ago … I still think of him often. My love of good food and cooking came, I’m sure, from his DNA. We recently enjoyed a meal that featured two of his favorite foods … bay scallops and fresh corn (well … frozen fresh corn). One could say that Dad was a pediatrician by profession, and a gourmet cook and gardener by avocation. Although Mom prepared (and quite nicely) the vast majority of our dinners, Dad took charge of the kitchen when something special was in the offing. Bay scallops, broiled in butter, was one of his most memorable creations. And, in the months of August and September, our monstrous vegetable garden yielded a cornucopia of delights, the highlight of which was corn. Sweet yellow corn. Seneca Chief. Being the youngest of the family, my job was to stand ready to race out to pick the corn at the moment when a huge pot of water on the stove was set to boil. I had to work fast. Pick the corn, shuck it clean and present it to the cook for inspection. Strands of silk stuck to the ears were frowned upon and … God forbid there be any bugs or worms hidden in the cob. Summer in those times was delineated by when the corn was ripe. And, boy, did we eat a lot of it. 

With that bit of family lore, let’s move on to this present day meal … an absolutely fantastic creation featuring bay scallops, corn and orzo. What are bay scallops and how are they different from sea scallops? Bay scallops, as the name implies, live in bays and estuaries along the east coast of the U.S. Whereas sea scallops are found in much deeper ocean water (around 500 feet) and more widely distributed in the world’s oceans. Bay scallops are smaller, around a third of the size of sea scallops, more tender and sweeter. We based this dish on a recipe from the Cooking section of the New York Times. Cook the orzo. Pan-sear the scallops, deglaze with a bit of the water that the orzo was cooked in. Add some garlic to the pan along with some lemon juice. Add the corn and scallions. Cook until the liquids evaporate. Combine all ingredients and finish it off with some grated parmigiana and basil. A truly amazing combination of flavors.

Wine:  The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is a well regarded wine sub-region within the large Central Coast Wine Region, noted particularly for the quality of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah wines being made in what is referred to as a cool-climate viticultural area. The lower temperatures of this area are due to the steady breezes coming in off the cold Pacific Ocean on three sides of the vineyards here. Film buffs take note … the hit movie, Sideways, was shot in the Rita Hills region.

The Brewer-Clifton winery produces only wines that are made from single vineyards that are each determined by the unique geography, geology and climatic conditions of each vineyard. We look forward to the time when we can visit the winery to sample the wines crafted from this interesting environment.

Tasting Notes:  A lovely pale gold color. A clean aroma, reminiscent of a Granny Smith apple. Floral and green field grass accents, including white clover, distinguish the nose of this wine. The flavor merges green apple with citrus fruits (lemon and lime). “Clean” and “crisp” also come to mind as descriptors of the taste. And a long, very pleasant finish lingers on the palate. The pairing of this wine with the bay scallops and corn dish is inspired. 

Other Wines That Pair Well with Scallops and Corn: Sauvignon Blanc (California), White Bordeaux (France), White Burgundy (France), Chenin Blanc (South Africa), Champagne (France)

Other Sea Food That Pairs Well with California Chardonnay:  Dungeness Crab, Lobster, Halibut, White Fish in a Cream Sauce, Salmon

Photos and Maps of the Sta. Rita Hills Wine Region:  Sta. Rita Hills AVA

A Source:  www. klwines.com