A Night of French Wine and Grass Fed Beef

This is the last post of the month, and Pris and I went out with a bang.  I picked up some grass fed NY strips I picked up at the Farmer's Market here in Brownsville.  To go with the mild steaks we selected Chateau Le Nuda 2006 Medoc.  The rich French wine was a great mellow selection for a pair of incredibly flavorful steaks.

The Chateau Le Nuda had a great bold nose that was loaded with cherries and oak.  While this French blend had a great bold nose, it was an exceptionally mellow wine on the palate.  This is of course thanks in large part to the aging process, but there has to be a solid wine to work with for this to happen.  On the palate this blend was all silky blackberry, raspberry, and cassis.  As expected, mild tannins facilitated a mellow finished that did not linger for long.

I know people had talked about how great grass-fed beef was, but I was skeptical about the hype.  However, after tasting the goods I am happy to say the grass-fed steak was everything we were promised.  The beef has a lower fat content, and like the Medoc we were working on, was mellow and flavorful.  The wine and the steak went well together, and I was thankful the wine was lighter and mellower than a Cab or Malbec.  Anything stronger might have been too much for the steak and overpowered the perfectly medium rare beef.

Unfortunately we don't have any information on where we picked up the 2006 Chateau Le Nuda Medoc or how much we paid for it.  It retails for about $15 online, and it appears that several sellers still offer it.

A Change of Pace with Oniro

If you're a regular follower of our blog, you know that Pris and I consume a fairly sizable quantity of beef.  Or rather we tend to pair more of our wines with beef.  We can't help it that we're from Texas, and grew up with the commercials that said "Beef, its what's for dinner."  Still, I decided to switch things up a bit the other night and grilled up some lamb chops.  To go with the change of pace Pris selected a bottle of Oniro's 2009 red.

The Oniro is a Spanish red that is a blend of Monastrell ,Cabernet, Garnacha, and Syrah; and it was a great selection to go with our dinner.  The wine is made up primarily of the Monastrell grape, and it really showed in the flavor.  The aroma was heavy with deep dark berries and herbal undertones.  The Monastrell dominated the palate with full ripe raspberry notes followed by anise and mineral on the mid-palate.  The wine finished nicely with mellow tannins and the full fruit from the Monastrell.

We paired Oniro's red blend with a pair of grilled lamb chops and an orzo salad made with feta, cucumbers, olives, mint, lemon juice and olive oil.  The wine went very well with the earthy lamb and the citrusy salad.  The full fruit was a great compliment to the well seasoned meat.  It also managed to even out the richness of all the olive oil in the salad.  This would be a great wine for barbeque on the weekends as the fulll fruit seems tailor made for a rich barbeque sauce.

I picked up the Oniro at Feldman's here in Brownsville.  It costs under $10, and last I checked it was still available.  It was a great wine for the value.  Unfortunately I was not able to find a website to offer more information on this wine.

Simply a Stunner: Cameron Hughes Lot 136 Cabernet Sauvignon

Last weekend was a good weekend for eating and wine drinking.  While the Franciscan Merlot was good, the Cameron Hughes 136 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon was one of the best wines Pris and I have had in quite some time.  This was one of the last of our Cameron Hughes stock and it was a good one. 

This was a great rich Cab.  The first hint of what was in store for us was the deep dark coloration of Lot 136.  On the nose, the Napa Cab was dark berry with subtle undertones of oak.  On the palate this wine exemplified everything that is great about Napa Cabs.  Deep rich fruit, blackberries, and cassis all melded together in perfect harmony.  Understated oak provided a nice backbone to the rich fruit.  Full tannins provided a great full bodied finish.  This Cab was superbly balanced and a joy to drink.

We opened the Cameron Hughes Lot 136 on a Sunday to go with our standard Sunday beef dish.  Initially I was just grilling up a sirloin, but the wine called for something a little grander.  In order to match the wine's sophistication I roasted some prosciutto wrapped fennel and prepared a bacon/blue cheese/butter for the steak.  The resulting meal was fantastic, and the wine was a perfect match.

Unfortunately Cameron Hughes' Lot 136 is now sold out and gone forever.  If you happen to find it at a Sam's or Costco buy it quickly.  If you're offered some at a dinner party, accept and enjoy.  You can find out more about Cameron Hughes wines and even get some suggestions on similar offerings at: www.chwine.com.

A Merlot for All Occasions: Franciscan Merlot

Seeing as beef prices are currently experiencing a rather precipitous rise in price, Pris and I are trying to enjoy as much beef while we can.  A couple of weeks ago I finally got around to cooking a dish I've been I've been wanting to for some time: bacon wrapped wine braised brisket.  To go with this fine meal Pris selected a 2006 Franciscan Merlot that we've had since before moving to Brownsville.

 
In a prior post, I touted a Franciscan Cab as a great wine that was consistently good across the different vintages.  It was great to find out that this was equally true for Franciscan's Merlot.  The usual plum and cherry aromas were present and it appeared as though the wine would probably be a fairly standard Merlot, but that estimation changed once the wine hit the palate.  The cellaring definitely agreed with this Napa Merlot.  While it was as juicy and jammy as any Merlot out there, the aging mellowed this wine sublimely.  Full dark fruit slid effortlessly over the palate, grounded by mild herbal notes.  Incredibly mild tannins allowed for a mild and slightly sweet finish.

This wine paired superbly with the wine braised brisket.  The brisket was braised with a nice helping of garlic, onions, carrots, celery, and fennel.  The sweet anise in the fennel was a great compliment to the sweet fruit in the wine. The salty and savory bacon and brisket were countered very well by the same fruit. 

I'm not sure where we bought the 2006 Franciscan Merlot, or whether or not anyone will carry that particular vintage.  However, you can get Franciscan wines at H.E.B., Jones Liqour, Feldmans, and pretty much anywhere decent wine is sold.  Generally the Merlot runs a dollar or two less than its Cab counterpart, and you can find it for around $18 a bottle.  You can find out more about Franciscan and their wines at: http://www.franciscan.com

Of Flank Steak and Malbec: 2009 Lamadrid Malbec

 Last weekend we opened our final bottle of the month,  Lamadrid's 2009 Malbec from the Argelo region of Argentina.  We opened this bottle to go with a nice flank steak and a great little home-grown side dish.  Like the last Cab I reviewed, this wine was a little lighter than most that we've enjoyed, but thankfully still worked very well with dinner.

The Lamadrid had a great full nose loaded with berries and spice.  This was an exceedingly smooth wine that had great notes of blackberry, raspberry, and cassis at the front of the palate.  As the Malbec progressed more spice made its presence known. The Lamadrid offered a languid finish with supple tannins rounding out this flavorful wine.  While not as full bodied as a most Malbecs, this was not a drawback thanks to the great flavor and easy drinkability of this wine.

We paired the Lamadrid Malbec with a flank steak, which I've really enjoyed cooking because they're so versatile and flavorful.  I paired the flanks steak with some tomatoes and basil from our garden, and topped them off with homemade mozzarella. The whole affair was then drizzled with a chimichurri sauce cobbled together from herbs from the garden.  The steak and Malbec were a perfect pairing with the richness of the flank steak working well with the ripe berry and spice of the wine.  The fruit in the wine cut through the acidic sauce nicely and offered a great counterpoint. 

I picked up the 2009 Lamadrid Malbec at H.E.B. Central Market on one of our trips north last year.  It was $14 at Central Market.  I've seen it occasionally here in Brownsville at the H.E.B. on 802 and Paredes Line.  You can find out more about Lamadrid and their wines at:  http://www.vinodelsol.com/thewineries/lamadrid.html

A Light Cabernet for June: Alambrado's Gran Seleccion Cabernet Sauvignon

June has been unseasonable hot this year, so I'm going to blame the weather for our lack of wine drinking this month.  Sadly we've only opened two bottles, and both of them were from Argentina and were enjoyed fairly recently.  The first bottle was Alambrado's Gran Seleccion 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon, one of our few remaining Wall Street Journal Wine Club selections.

This was an extremely light Cab, which made it better suited to the inhospitable heat.  The wine started off like most Cabs with a nose that was lively and rich with the proper dark berry and cherry notes.  However, the lightness was immediately noticeable on the palate. The usual fullness found in most Cabs was absent, but that wasn't entirely a bad thing.  Cherry and currant strike first followed by nice undertones of smoky oak.  Light tannins rounded out this easy drinking summer wine.  The Alambrado opened up very nicely the second day.  The flavors became richer, but it was still lighter than your standard Cab.

We opened the wine to go with a couple of NY strips that H.E.B. had on sale.  While the wine did not go as well as a deeper and full Cab would have, the Alambrado still did passably well with the nicely charred beef.  If you're a fan of traditional full Cabs, this wine is not for you.  However, if you're looking for a decently priced lighter red that is more akin to some of the Spanish and Italian reds then this is a great wine for you.

This was a Wall Street Journal Wine Club wine that is no longer available on their site.  You can still find it available at a few online retailers for about $13.

Château Geneau: A Bordeaux That Won't Break the Bank

Since it was a longer weekend I was able to grill up a bit more beef than usual.  On Monday night I whipped up a quick sirloin, a deconstructed wedge salad, and savory rice.  Since the previous Malbec was quickly finished, Pris decided to open a bottle of Château Geneau 2009 Bordeaux that we picked up from the Wall Street Journal Wine Club. 

The Château Geneau was a great bold Bordeaux that paired well with the meat.  It was a prefect blend of Cabernet and Merlot that incorporated the best of both varietals.  Aromas of plum, blackberry, and dark berry hinted at what was to come in this garnet hued wine.  Plum and dark ripe fruit dominated the palate with loads of juice and flavor.  Light oak and a touch of mineral provided a nice counter point to keep the wine from becoming too fruity.  Supple tannins provided a long and savory finish.

This Bordeaux was a great wine to pair with the heavily peppered sirloin I prepared.  I'd recommend it for any rich and savory meat heavy dinner, particularly beef or lamb.  Lately some of the WSJ wines have fallen a bit short of their predecessors in the taste area, but the Château Geneau is easily one of the best wines we've tried from the wine club.  Well balanced with great full fruit flavor this is a wine to be savored with a great meal.

The Château Geneau 2009 Bordeaux is no longer available on the Wall Street Journal WIne Club's site.  But you can still pick up the 2010 vintage which also has great ratings.  The 2010 vintage retails for $15 a bottle or less depending on the number of bottles you order.  You can get more information on this Bordeaux at: http://www.wsjwine.com/jsp/product/productDetails.jsp?productId=prod740027