December 10th Wine & Dine Wrap-up

December's wine and dine featured a food and wine pairing. The group sampled a flight of eight of the worlds most famous wines, four reds and four whites. Each wine was paired with a portion of the meal that would best bring out the flavors of the wines. Each guest was asked to bring a rather specific food to pair with a particular wine. The pairings were:

• A dry Riesling paired with a shrimp seafood appetizer
• Sauvignon Blanc paired with artichoke dip
• Chardonnay paired with clam chowder
• Pinot Gris paired with a salad containing apples
• Syrah with a salad with cheese
• Pinot Noir paired with pork
• Merlot paired with pork
• Cabernet Sauvignon paired with salted carmel brownies

Pairings at the beginning of the evening were most favorably received, eliciting such comments as "wow, this wine really does taste better after having some of the dip" and "I cant believe how much the food actually helps the wine." Such comments were fewer as the night wore on, due as much to the consumption of wine as the copious amounts of food. The evening's favorite seemed to be King Estates's Next (the Riesling). Other wines, such as Bearboats Pinot Noir, were enjoyed more for their label (really, you should check it out.)

Overall it was a great night of fun and friendship and learning about different types of wine.