Super Bowl Wines

Coming up on Super Bowl LXIX, we thought we'd update a post that still rings true four years later. Sure, we have pigskin picks to vinify your Super Sunday, but first a few food facts about the super-snackdown day of the year. Any idea what this statistic means?

1,200

No, it's not the number of excuses offered by the Pats to explain Deflate-gate. Incredibly, it's the amount of calories Americans will tackle this Super Bowl Sunday, even gut-busting Thanksgiving Day, the defending pig-out champion. The average fan is set to scarf 1,200 calories and 50 grams of fat from game day snacking alone – and that doesn't include any regular meals that day. 

Unless you plan to walk around a football field for three hours, no amount of fist-pumping and pogo-cheering is going to burn off those calories. Backfield in motion, baby, and bring out the tape. Or, as comedienne Elaine Boosler would say, why not just rub that stuff right into your thighs?

Worse perhaps is that so many bowl day foods are close to awful. Can we get a holding foul here? Burgers, fried funkitude and chip-dip combos that scream out for an aspirin-nitro-statin garnish hardly seem worth the angina – or agita either, for the Italians out there. I mean, if you're gonna Hail Mary, doesn't a nice plate of lasagna or a juicy rib-eye off the grill sound more appealing than something that stinks of cilantro or singes your palate? Yuck.

Bottom line is that many Super Bowl food flavors + wine = false start. Chili, thick dips and weighty or fried foods are hard hits for lighter reds and oaked Chardonnays. In the red zone, Cabernet tannins come across as too harsh when combined with super salty foods. Even bigger or bolder reds such as Syrah or Zinfandel can get crushed in the pileup by four-alarm barbecue sauces or hotly spiced wings. 

Unfortunately, there aren't many takers for the alt idea of super Sunday: flip on the crockpot in the morning and uncork a favorite bottle over a real meal during halftime break. No worries about delay of game or missing the halftime show – odds are it'll be as lame as ever, with or without a nip-slip. Bah humbug. So with a shrug to mega-snacking as the official play of the day, here are wine picks sure to score big with the gang:

Riesling

Riesling racks up huge yardage for how well it goes with a wide range of foods, especially spicy dishes, sausage, salads and smoked fish. Many Rieslings are low-alcohol too, to help keep guests safe and under-the-limit. Look for Dr L by Loosen Brothers in the tall, teal screw-cap bottle, under $15 at Dan's Wine Shop and Trader Joe's. Another pick is Chateau St. Michelle, which reliably makes great Riesling from bone dry to a range of sweetness levels. Buy six or more at local grocers to get the best price. 

Box Wines

The space-saving eco-packaging by Octavin Home Wine Bar holds three liters, equal to four bottles of wine. With a convenient pour spout, these tasty, good quality wines will douse a couch-full of thirsty fans. Find them at Albertsons and Ralphs grocers, better still when they're on sale. Kickoff reds worth a runback are the low-tannin Pinot Evil Pinot Noir or Big House Red. We hear good things about Black Box, on our list to taste.

Rosé

If you think real men don't drink pink, food-friendly rosé will rock your manly man's playbook. Go with New World rosés made from heartier red grapes instead of more delicate French and Provençal rosé styles. Give it a good chill and watch for conversions. Try screw-capped Tapiz Rosé of Malbec from Argentina (BevMo!), Barnard Griffin Rosé of Sangiovese from Oregon or Mulderbosch Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon from South Africa (World Market Cost Plus, Dan's). 3rd Corner in Palm Desert is another source for tasty rosés.

Let us know if you find Super Bowl wines that score big, especially if they beat the odds.  

More Thanksgiving Wines

Chef Dave Schy’s savory and delectable dishes rocked the crowd at our November food and wine dinner this past Sunday at Cooking with Class. The energy buzzed around the demonstration kitchen as guests kept Chef and I busy tossing around Thanksgiving tips, ideas and stories.

The wine picks for our holiday-themed dishes were Secateurs 2012 Chenin Blanc from South Africa, Commanderie de la Bargemone 2012 Rosé from Aix-en-Provence, California’s Block Nine 2012 Pinot Noir and Torbreck 2011 Cuvée Juveniles from Australia’s Barossa Valley, a Grenache-Shiraz-Mataro blend.

Even though the food pairings showcased the versatility of these four wines for turkey day, we’re betting some guests will still be tempted to open an oaky Chardonnay or big Cab tomorrow. Resist! Stash them away for next month’s big holiday dinner, where those wines will match up beautifully with rib roasts and sing with other wintry foods.

Since we’ll all be eating leftovers the rest of the week, consider a few more Thanksgiving wine tips as opportunities to try something a little different.

Lambrusco

A slightly sweet and fizzy red from Emilia-Romagna, Italy that bubbles with holiday cheer. It’s easy on the wallet and sure to please. Look for “Grasparossa di Castelvetro” on the label for a sure bet.

Riesling

A no-brainer white that can tie together the sweetness and spice of holiday dishes. Find great choices at 3rd Corner Wine Shop and Bistro or pick up Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Kung Fu Girl Riesling for just under $10 at Dan’s Wine Shop.

Beaujolais

Low in tannin and big on fruit, this French red pairs beautifully with turkey and fixin’s. Find nice selections at Dan’s Wine Shop and LA Wine Company in Palm Desert.

Norton

For a taste of Americana, look to Norton, a native American red wine grape.

We found one we like at the Palm Desert Total Wine from Virginia’s Horton Vineyards.

Merlot

California and Washington vintners make deliciously soft and smooth Merlots to suit any budget. An excellent value pick from Washington is the Barnard Griffin 2011 Washington Merlot you can find at Dan’s Wine Shop: 760.674.0305.

With thanks for all your support – best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving!

Idaho Wines are Hot Potatoes

Vacation brings discovery, and that includes wine. On a summer break to postcard-pretty Jackson, Wyoming, we looked west for an exciting wine discovery – Idaho wine.

In the late 19th century, French and German immigrants brought grapes to the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley of Northern Idaho, where they founded the first wineries in the Pacific Northwest. While these vineyards produced notable wines, Prohibition brought an end to Idaho winemaking. Despite repeal of the Volstead Act in 1933, Idaho grape growing didn’t resume until 1970. Today, wine production is concentrated in the north, southwest and southeast portions of the state.

Despite its legacy as the birthplace of Pacific Northwest wine, the Gem State is the least familiar of the four wine-producing regions. Unlike Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, Idaho has no shoreline. However, the state shares ancient geologic history with its neighbors, including Ice Age floods and soil types that range from sandy and wind-blown to volcanic. Idaho’s southwestern winegrowing region possesses basalt soils and a growing season marked by warm summer days and cold nights, as in Washington’s Columbia Valley. The 40-degree day-to-night temperature variation allows grapes grown at higher latitudes to mature and ripen during long, sunshiny days while the chilly nights help preserve grape acidity.

The Snake River Valley was Idaho’s first American Viticultural Area, designated in 2007. At more than 8,000 square miles in area, it is nearly the size of New Jersey and the third-largest AVA in the western United States, extending into two easternmost Oregon counties. Winegrowing regions range from 1,500 to 3,000 feet in elevation with about 1,800 acres under vine. The AVA is home to most of the state’s wineries, including Idaho’s largest family-owned winery, 3 Horse Ranch Vineyards. Founded in 2003, the sustainably and organically farmed winery has been on an upward trajectory. With nearly twenty years’ experience making Idaho wine, Greg Koenig (who also makes wine and spirits – including huckleberry vodka – under his own label) knows how to elicit finesse and typicity from 3 Horse Ranch Vineyards' Rhône varietal rootstock plantings. Winery owners Greg and Martha Cunningham are etching their marks in the rocky terrain and rolling foothills with a petition for a proposed Willow Creek AVA that would encompass their vineyard lands north of Eagle, Idaho.

The 3 Horse Ranch Vineyards Reserve 2010 Vivacious is a lightly oaked blend of 66% Viognier and 34% Roussanne that unfolds with aromas of honeysuckle and stone fruit. Medium-bodied and complex, it delivers flavors of honeyed white peaches, apricot and orange zest and a lingering, tropical-inflected finish. A bottle of the current 2012 vintage is listed at $17 on the winery website.

A tip from the helpful staff at Jackson Hole’s Pearl Street Market led us to another find, the Snake River 2010 Riesling. This 100% Riesling from the Snake River Winery’s 30-year old Arena Valley Vineyard is an off-dry, varietally correct delight with peach, lime and honey on the palate and a crisp, mineral finish. It delivers great value too, with an online price of only $10.

Wine Press Northwest named Snake River Winery its 2013 Idaho winery of the year after its 2009 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon took platinum at the publication’s wine competition. The winery is revving for Riesling, Idaho’s most planted wine grape, with 2,000 cases produced from the 2012 vintage.

Taken altogether, Idaho wines barely comprise 0.1% of California’s production. Yet, as vines and sites mature, so does Idaho winemaking. Vintners are gaining experience and seek to match grape varietals to distinct Idaho microclimates and soils. Given their success with white wines, winemakers are exploring – and succeeding – with reds too. Idaho winegrowers can now boast 11 white and 16 red varietals, plus blends, sparklers, rosés, dessert and ice wines.

Awards aside, Idaho has shown it’s time to give their wines a nod. Take a shine to wines from the Gem State. They’ve shed their potato sacks and are due to dazzle. Vacation breaks optional. 

Super Bowl Wines

We have pigskin picks to vinify your Super Sunday, but first a few food facts. Just two days after Go Red For Women, the American Heart Association's campaign to raise awareness about women and heart disease comes XLV, the super-snackdown day of the year. 

1,200

Incredibly, the amount of food Americans will tackle this Super Bowl Sunday may gut-bust Thanksgiving Day, the defending pig-out champion. The average fan is set to scarf 1,200 calories and 50 grams of fat from game day snacking alone – and that doesn't include any regular meals. Unless you plan to walk around a football field for three hours, no amount of fist-pumping and jump-up cheering is going to burn off those calories. Backfield in motion, baby, and bring out the tape. Or, as comedienne Elaine Boosler would say, why not just rub all that stuff right into your thighs?

Worse perhaps is that so many bowl day foods are close to awful. Can we get a holding foul here? Burgers, fried funkitude and chip-dip combos that scream out for an aspirin-nitro-statin garnish hardly seem worth the angina – or agita either, for the Italians out there. I mean, if you're gonna Hail Mary, doesn't a nice plate of lasagna or a juicy rib-eye off the grill sound more appealing than something that stinks of cilantro or singes your palate? Yuck.   

Bottom line is that many Super Bowl food flavors + wine = false start. Chili, thick dips and weighty or fried foods are hard hits for lighter reds and oaked Chardonnays. In the red zone, Cabernet tannins come across as too harsh when combined with super salty foods. Even bigger or bolder reds such as Syrah or Zinfandel can get crushed in the pileup by four-alarm barbecue sauces or hotly spiced wings. 

Unfortunately, there aren't many takers for the alt idea of super Sunday: flip on the crockpot in the morning and uncork a favorite bottle over a real meal during halftime break. No worries about delay of game or missing the halftime show – odds are it'll be as lame as ever. Bah humbug. So with a shrug to mega-snacking as the official play of the day, here are wine picks sure to score big with the gang:

Riesling

Riesling racks up huge yardage for how well it goes with a wide range of foods, especially spicy dishes, sausage, salads and smoked fish. Many Rieslings are low-alcohol too, to help keep guests safe and under-the-limit. Costco has a German Riesling now that's only 7.5%. Look for Dr L by Loosen Brothers in the tall, teal screw-cap bottle, around $10 at Dan's Wine Shop and Trader Joe's.

Box Wines

The space-saving eco-packaging by Octavin Home Wine Bar holds three liters, equal to four bottles of wine. With a convenient pour spout, these tasty, good quality wines will douse a couch-full of thirsty fans. Find them at Albertsons and Ralphs grocers, better still when they're on sale. Silver Birch Sauvignon Blanc is refreshing and balanced, without too much grassiness for game day foods. Kickoff reds worth a runback are the low-tannin Monthaven Cabernet Sauvignon (find the 2007 if you can) or Big House Red, sometimes also at Costco.

Rosé

If you think real men don't drink pink, food-friendly rosé will rock your manly man's playbook. Go with New World rosés made from heartier red grapes instead of more delicate French and Provençal rosé styles. Give it a good chill and watch for conversions. Try screw-capped Tapiz Rosé of Malbec from Argentina (BevMo!), Barnard Griffin Rosé of Sangiovese from Oregon or Mulderbosch Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon from South Africa (World Market Cost Plus).

Finally, if your heart beats for healthier Super Bowl recipes, score with the roasted red pepper dip and others here, more recipes and substitution ideas here and funny but real food safety tips from Uncle Sam here.

Coming soon: Not-so-grouchy picks for a romantic Valentine's Day