Friday, March 7, 2008

Ten perfect matches

Maurice's and Laura's blogs made my mouth water. So, even if i was not explicitly invited, i go on participating to the meme titled "Ten perfect matches", that is the list of ten perfect gastronomical pairing.

I decided to choose pairings that do not require any cooking preparation, but are served in their simplicity, so that the tastiness is not hidden by the skill of the chef. No offense so to my favorite cheff (my wife), if i don't include in this list any plate she made.
The theory wants that pairing foods one promotes the choice within the same territory, and i think that this is a good way. Nevertheless in this list there are matches of products coming from far apart... they look anyway to me perfect.

There are my ten choices.
  1. Spicey gorgonzola with grapes ambrosia (a kind of syrup) and Passito from Pantelleria Salvatore Murana.
  2. Tuscan bread with some extra virgin olive oil and some grain of coarse salt with Chianti Classico.
  3. Walnut bread with Chevre and a glass of Alsacian Gewürztraminer.
  4. 99% fondant Lindt chocolate with Barolo Chinato.
  5. A slice of toasted wholemeal bread with parcially melted Brie, a slice of Speck Alto Adige and a Chimay White Cap.
  6. Slice of Munster with cumin seeds and Bonne Esperance beer.
  7. Raw breton oyster with Guinness just tapped off (with also the clover drawn on the foam).
  8. Pienza Pecorino aged in walnut leaves with Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Marina Cvetic.
  9. Bruschetta (toasted bread) with melted Bagoss and a slice of Colonnata Lard with Masi Campofiorin.
  10. Tuna sashimi with soy sauce and wasabi and a glass of Greco di Tufo Feudi di San Gregorio.
  11. Epoisses spread on still warmish baguette with Chateauneuf du Pape.
Oops... i listed eleven. I should delete one, but i cannot decide which one... well... i'd better stop thinking, otherwise i will end up adding some more.

There we are. Now i should "pass" the meme to other people. I virtually pass to anyone stop by reading this blog. If you accept it, please link this blog and put a comment, so i link yours back and we don't break the chain.

Here the friends that cought the ball:
Mistral

6 comments:

tychecat said...

I've always been partial to Champagne (I prefer Perrier-Jouet NV) and Beluga Caviar even though they aren't supposed to match very well. Russian Black caviar is not readily obtainable any more.
How about good Stilton and vintage Port? I have a bottle of '77 Taylor Fladgate that's about ready to decant -but good Stilton is hard to come by here in North Florida

Rowena said...

These are all very sublime matches. Funny how perfect food pairings have a way of being like that. If this had been a match of anything else (colors, pieces of clothing, Hollywood couples) it wouldn't be as provocative or interesting, or in the case of Hollywood marriages, feasible. ;-)

tychecat said...

I've been a life member of a wine society for many years, but for medical reasons, have given up collecting. (We drank too many of those bottles)
The rule has always been:
Sell with cheese, buy with fruit.
Matching wine with fruit is sometimes a challenge - what would you match a Friuli with?
How about a "five putos" Tokay or a good Sauternes
A really good Barolo?
A Zinfandel or a Montepulciano?

dario said...

Uhm...
I guess with Tokay you mean the Friulan Tokai... few weeks ago European committee imposed a change of both the Italian denomination Tokai Friulano and the French Tokay d'Alsace in something like Sauvignon Vert, because of a cause sued by the producers of Hungarian Tokaji, which is commercialized in the rest of Europe with the name Tokay, although it is a completely different thing.
I never tried French Tokay, but i guess it is something similar to the Friulan one, being it is produced with the same race of grapes.
Kind of strange the task to match a wine with fruit, but interesting... let's see...

I would match the Tokai with ripe strawberries.... well... i like ripe fruits in general, but for strawberries in particular, raw ones taste sour, and i wouldn't find it a really good match. Mmmmh.... i tried, as an appetizer, a strange food match: it was a strawberry with a filet of sardine rolled around and a toothpick to keep them together... Yes, i would match it with a Friulan Tokai. Mmmh... i guess it would go with a Sauterne too.

About the good Barolo... well... i think the perfect match is a "brasato di lepre" (="hare braised"?), or just like that, as a meditation wine. I would also match with dark chocolate... but if need to match with fruit... i would choose a fruit with a resolute taste, a sweet one.... mmmmh.... i would match with a ripe banana, maybe with melted chocolate on the top... or red figs... or a very ripe peach, although this last would be maybe ruined by a shade of sour.

With the Montepulciano or the Zinfandel i would match a steamed pear, maybe with a vanilla sauce.... that should match the sweet of the desert with the tannine of the wine... Also the ancient taste of the pear could well combine with a possible back-taste of wooden barrique of the wine...

It looks i chose unusual fruits uh? Kind of fruits that do not really taste like fruit.
I think it's a problem of acidity. Fruit is acid, so it should match with a non-acid drink.

tychecat said...

No, I was thinking of Hungarian Tokaj. 5 puttos is fairly high-priced and served in very small glazed containers. It is sold in a weirdly shaped 50cl bottle with a long neck. It is a dessert wine with quite a distinct taste - almost honey.
Somewhat like Chateau Yquem sauternes.
I've never had the Western European counterpart.

dario said...

I never tried Hungarian Tokaji, but i guess that it's all another thing