On Jan 27, 12:25�am, Mark Lipton wrote:
Tonight, Jean decided to cook a meal out of Charlie Trotter's Kitchen
Sessions cookbook: pork loin stuffed with dried fruit, roasted potatoes
and braised radicchio in a bacon/shallot vinaigrette. �In the book, he
suggests a wine pairing of a Ridge or Ravenswood Zin, the reasoning
being that the acidity of the dried fruit demands a spicier wine, to
which I replied with a resounding WTF? �Actually, I said that I agreed
with his analysis but not with his conclusions. �In response, I said
that I thought that it'd pair best with a spicy, full-bodied white or a
ros� or light, high acid red. �Since we were being joined by some
red-only friends, I went with the latter category. �So, on to the
Celebrity Wine Pairing Smackdown:

2004 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
nose: ripe, black cherry fruit, minerals
palate: medium body, good acidity, lush and smooth

2002 Ridge Ponzo Vineyards Zinfandel
nose: jammy berries, oak, cedar
palate: medium-full body, low acid, lush

In the end, the two wines weren't as different in style as I might have
hoped, but the pairing still revealed major differences. �The Ridge Zin
simply overwhelmed the food, whereas the Lapierre Morgon provided a
decent foil to the food, with the food helping emphasize the fruit in
the wine. �Neither match was superb and I still wish that I could have
brought forth the '06 WSJ Bone-Jolly ros� for this meal, but
nonetheless, I feel that my choice was vindicated. �However, the two
women at the meal preferred the Zin, so who knows?

Mark Lipton
--
alt.food.wine FAQ: �http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

Agree with your conclusions, but wonder what a more restrained Zin
with acids like Dashe? I'd still bet on the Beaujolais, but might be
fairer fight.

Nice notes.