No matter where one finds oneself in California, one senses a movement to eat locally and consume wine locally.   This concept, while increasingly popular is largely rooted in common sense.   Produce simply tastes better when the time lapse from “vine to dine” is as small as possible.    While Northern Californians often like to assume a certain proprietary pride regarding this idea, there are equally passionate communities throughout the state.   Travel to Southern California and the commitment to local food and wine consumption is visibly apparent.

As mentioned in my prior article, last week brought me to Southern California.   Originally from Southern California, I am a veteran of its farmer’s markets and roadside produce stands since infancy.  Motoring down Highway 101 from the Bay Area takes one through lovely Monterrey County where roadside visible fields abound with colorful fresh lettuces, spinach and other cool climate crops.  Next comes San Luis Obispo County which has more farmer’s markets than the memory can schedule as almost anything grows and thrives there.  Travelling through the Santa Ynez Valley in March lets one know that bud break has already happened in this wine country and that a new growing season has commenced.   At the end of the day you arrive in Malibu, in Los Angeles County, and your mouth is watering from a day long road trip through some of California’s largest agricultural producing regions.   Interestingly enough, stopping in Malibu one finds that there, too, in Los Angeles County, is a strong movement to eat locally as people are embracing the unique terroir, proximity to the ocean and the coastal climate that often nurtures produce and grapes to incomparable quality.   While Highway 101, El Camino, is known for its history in linking the missions for early settlers, it today provides travelers with a readily discoverable path to seasonal, fresh produce in California at its best.

Upon discovering the strong commitment to local produce in Malibu it was only logical that vintners would be also be a part of this community.   Malibu technically has two American Viticultural Areas (each an “AVA”), the Saddle Rock-Malibu AVA (located in Los Angeles County, high in the Santa Monica Mountains) and the Malibu-Newton Canyon AVA (established in 1996 and within the city limits of Malibu).   Between Malibu and reaching up to Agoura Hills, microclimates abound and depending on where a vintner finds himself, grape growing could yield delicious success.

Within the Malibu region there is a collection of grape growers and vintners who are committed to tending the local soil and bottling that which the unique terroir offers.  Under the label Casa Dumetz, Sonja Magdevski and Emilio Estevez presently produce three wines, with one boasting 80% of its grapes from the winery’s Malibu estate.   Having literally planted grape vines in their yard, winemaking could not be any more local.

Growing grapes in Malibu presents its challenges as there can be extreme heat, strong winds, fog and colder temperatures.   Yet as Casa Dumetz proves, Pinot Noir will grow here.   Casa Dumetz’s El Camino Malibu Estate Grown 2009 Pinot Noir (“2009 Pinot Noir”) also reaches to its Highway 101 neighbor, Tierra Alta in Santa Ynez Valley, to add 20% of Grenache to its bottling.   Grenache is a grape that grows well in warmer climates and when blended adds a brightness to the wine with round, soft fruit flavors.   This in turn will make a wine more readily accessible to the palate.  Taking into consideration that production is limited (only 48 cases produced), any wine aficionado will readily realize that something good with a unique artisanal touch of winemaking awaits him or her in the bottle.

In the glass, Casa Dumetz’s 2009 Pinot Noir shows off a rich color that is surprisingly darker yet graced with ruby jewel tone hues.   From appearance alone, the wine shows character and your nose confirms this as it draws to the upper rim of the wine glass to explore.   Round ripe aromas of raspberries and pomegranates are perfumed gently by notes of cedar.   As the glass tilts back, the nose is showered with the perfume of rose petals and anise.   Graced by time in the bottle, on the palate, the wine softly caresses with chewy cherries, warmed raspberries, rick plum and delicately unfolds to reveal pepper and bits of lavender.   The Grenache is readily identifiable as it festively brightens the wine.  The wine also offers a sophisticated, yet sultry earthiness that encourages one to contemplate the origins of the grapes and all that the Malibu terroir  has to offer.   Despite the character that the soil gives the wine, this location in Malibu does not overwhelm the historically finicky Pinot Noir vine as the wine reveals delicate layers of flavors (as a Pinot Noir should) that dreamily peel back, gently shifting from bright fruit, to spice and to herb.

Knowing that this wine would reflect a certain brightness due to the Grenache and a diverse layered flavor profile as a Pinot Noir, creating a menu from a variety of seasonally fresh ingredients would allow the 2009 Pinot Noir to truly flaunt its attributes.   Further, being in Southern California for the week, it did not take convincing to rise early on a Saturday morning and head to the local farmer’s market.   Given the warmer temperatures in Southern California, the growing season for produce is far ahead of its Northern California counterparts:   strawberries, avocados, oranges, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, leeks and onions are already coming into season to accompany the already present varied greens, mushrooms, asparagus and artichokes.   With this in mind, all ingredients (except for the fish and the olives) in this week’s menu came either from the local farmer’s market or my own backyard:

1)      Tomato-Zucchini-Olive Ragout Atop Spinach-Cheese Bread;

2)     Cedar-Wrapped Salmon With Caramelized Leeks and Roasted Mushroom Medley; and

3)     Japanese Sweet Potato With Chive Butter.

When you step into a farmer’s market and can smell the produce before reaching the various farmers’ tables, you know that you have landed in the right place.   Picking up tomatoes that are fragrant, plump, meaty and juicy will make a delicious starting course of Tomato-Zucchini-Olive Ragout to top off bread from one of my favorite bakers from Yorba Linda.

Baker’s Best Bread, located in Yorba Linda, is prepping itself to be launched in Whole Foods in Southern California, yet you can still pick up a European loaf which has been lovingly handcrafted from the owner himself at the Irvine Farmer’s Market. Baker’s Best Bread truly is the best with fresh flavors, wholesome ingredients and texture that makes you feel as though it has just been pulled from the oven and brought to the farmer’s market especially for you.   While his Rosemary-Garlic bread has been a long-standing favorite of mine, I decided to use the owner’s Spinach-Cheese Bread which has visible flakes of spinach throughout and is deliciously flavored with Asiago cheese.   This bread alone without anything else would make a fantastic snacking pairing with Pinot Noir.  Toasting it in the oven, the bread will readily hold the Tomato-Zucchini-Olive Ragout.

To create the ragout, not only am I using tomatoes from the farmer’s market but am also using zucchini.  From the garden a shallot is plucked and two types of thyme are harvested:  both Lemon and Lime.   Lime Thyme is the new celebrity in my garden as it adds a certain festivity to dishes, both flavorfully and fragrantly.   Shallot is coarsely minced and gently sautéed with razor thin slices of fresh garlic.   As the tomatoes and zucchini simmer, aside from adding the thyme medley, the only other seasonings used are a bit of olive oil, sea salt and a tiny dash of freshly cracked black pepper.   When produce is this fresh and this local, the flavors are exponentially better and less is needed to flavor.  Further, no respecting Southern Californian would forget to roughly chop up some left-over Graber Olives to add to this ragout.   Graber Olives have long been grown and canned in Ontario (Southern California) and can frequently be found on the shelves of grocery stores throughout Los Angeles and Orange County.    Growing up on Graber Olives was a treat as these delights are incredibly buttery and nutty in their flavor.   Adding them to the ragout presents the flavors of olives, but gives an earthy and smooth flavor.  More importantly, these olives in particular add a “wow” factor to the dish which will impress any guest.   When paired with the 2009 Pinot Noir, the wine’s brighter fruit flavors dance across the palate.    The pairing gives a sense of ease, ready enjoyment and an artisanal feel as if you sitting on a patio overlooking a vineyard after a day of working with the land.

To demonstrate the wine’s more serious attributes, salmon is wrapped in cedar paper.  The cedar paper was previously soaked in a bit of the pinot noir and water to create a bridge of flavor between the wine and the main course.   Since I am caramelizing leeks from the farmer’s market, the greens of the leeks are sliced such that they can be used as a tie for the cedar paper and also infuse flavor into the fish.  Baked in the oven, a more environmentally gentle manner of preparing cedar roasted salmon emerges.

As finely sliced leeks slowly caramelize, next I have a medley of exotic mushrooms from the farmer’s market to roast.

While exotic mushrooms can be pricey, purchasing them at the farmer’s market allows you to control cost as you can select the right balance of that which you need for your dish.   It also permits you to access a flavor profile that is unlike anything you will ever find in your local grocery store.   Minced shallot, garlic, lemon thyme and white wine are added to the mushrooms to roast in the oven and then slowly simmer on the stove.   Once completed, the leeks and the mushrooms are placed atop the salmon for the main course.   Paired with the 2009 Pinot Noir, the wine becomes instantly more masculine as the earthy notes are more pronounced.   Since the salmon is baked wrapped in cedar papers, the fish then solicits a mystical smokiness from the 2009 Pinot Noir making it perfect for those evenings when the marine layer returns to the coast and delivers a slight lingering chill to the air.

Finally, while all of this is transpiring, roasting in the oven is a Japanese Sweet Potato.   This sweet potato is unlike its counterparts.   Available at the farmer’s market, these sweet potatoes are delicately sweet, similar to the texture and gentle unfolding layers of a Pinot Noir.   Topped with a butter laced with chopped chives from the garden, the Japanese Sweet Potato serves almost like a dessert in addition to being a healthy side dish.

Working with the earth is an honor:  its yields grace our tables and our wine glasses.   Depending on where you are located, the flavors of your produce and grapes will vary yet have an indelible fingerprint of where you are.   Head to your local farmer’s market this spring; however, if you are interested in truly eating locally, step out into your yard and get busy planting, mindfully.

*Special Announcement:  Put your money where your palate is and consider attending Hall Winery’s Cabernet Cookoff on April 30^th to benefit Napa Valley non-profits.   I will be dicing for dollars with my cooking team to win in the amateur round.   Keep reading this month for more information, press releases and join the fan page on Facebook to learn more fun details.   Cheers!

Pair take-out with sparkling wine.   It flat out does not get any more casual than this.  Before any devout winos recoil in horror, let me qualify that statement to say that such a pairing should embody a degree of culinary thoughtfulness.  In the early articles of this web publication, I paired Mexican cuisine with sparkling wine.  This pairing is much the same, except that this week, I let someone else do the cooking for a change.

This week brought me to Southern California and when there, one is hard pressed to not find good Mexican cuisine.   For quite some time I have received fan inquiries wondering when I was going to pair take-out with a wine.   It is easy enough to do, but if I was going to feature such a concept in a weekly article, I would want take-out done right and in Laguna Beach, I know just the folks to do that.

For years, I have been quietly visiting La Sirena Grill in Laguna Beach for the quality of their Mexican cuisine.   Having studied extensively in Mexico, I know authentic quality Mexican food when I taste it.   La Sirena Grill, however, not only passes the authenticity test but it also meets my standard for environmentalism, agricultural product sourcing and cooking.   First, La Sirena Grill’s menu items to its salsas are all made fresh and from scratch, but if that is not enough, they are actually healthy.   Second, La Sirena Grill uses organic products, right down to its meats and seafood and even obtains beef from Estancia Beef.   Third, if you are going to order take-out, you can do it with peace of mind as all of its containers are eco-friendly and biodegradable.   The most important aspect of the cuisine here is that it is delicious.   It is delicious enough that I have been coming here any chance that I have had for the past eight years.  

To pair a wine with Mexican cuisine, you could go with red wines such as Grenache, Petit Verdot or Tempranillo, but I personally love sparkling wine with a really good quality taco.  Just as I originally paired on the site in an earlier article, I opted to share a bottle of Schramsberg’s 2006 Blanc de Noirs with a good friend as we munched on La Sirena Grill’s fare and watched the sun set over the Pacific Ocean.

Finding a bottle of Schramsberg’s Blanc de Noirs is not as challenging as one might think.  In fact, it is actually affordably discoverable if you have a Trader Joe’s location nearby (which also made it a terrific wine to use as a take-out pairing example while on the road).   2006 was a funky year for Napa Valley weather-wise, yet Schramsberg’s Blanc de Noirs does not show a trace of that.   Instead, the long spring and mild summer afforded a long growing season for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay which in turn produced very fruit-forward wine.  The Blanc de Noirs (as readers will recall from my earlier article) is made primarily from the red grape, Pinot Noir.   Only 10% of Chardonnay wine is added to this sparkler to give the wine a bit more backbone and crisper acidity.   Aromas of strawberry, fuji apple, cinnamon and lime greet the nose and the palate is presented with a savory combination of fuji apple, strawberries, cream and a sprinkling of brown sugar. 

Our take-out consisted each of a La Sirena Grill Taco Plate:  

·         Carnitas Tacos with Mexican Rice, Spiced Pinto Beans and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa; and

·         Ahi Fish Tacos with Mexican Rice, Spiced Pinto Beans and Pico de Gallo.

Shown in its sexy biodegradable, environmentally friendly take-out box, the carnitas are dressed with fresh cabbage slaw and accompanied by a freshly made Mexican rice of carrots, peas, tomatoes and spices.   The pinto beans are spiced and best adorned with the roasted tomatillo salsa and dressed with some freshly squeezed lime juice.

The pulled roasted pork carnitas are simply succulent.   One chews slowly, savoring the juices and the spices from a dish that takes the concept of tacos to the next level.  Sipping on the sparkling wine from Schramsberg while slowly munching on the carnitas tacos (or as my friend, knowing a quality taco when she tastes one, quickly inhaled the ahi fish tacos) is just best described as perfectly delicious.

Add in the sound of the ocean, the salty marine smells and aromas of springtime blooms in Laguna Beach and Mexican take-out cuisine paired with sparkling wine is sensually better than sitting down in a noisy, crowded restaurant.

Spring is a special time in Southern California.   The temperatures warm, the wine flows a bit more easily and good times are easily had.   Include organic, sustainably raised produce in your cuisine, let someone else do the cooking for a change and enjoy nature that blooms naturally all around you and you will see that Southern California has much to offer.

For those who love Cabernet Sauvignon, sometimes the palate longs for variation yet not deviation from the strong nature of the varietal.   If you seek a red wine that still maintains the stoically strong backbone of Cabernet Sauvignon yet offers a unique spicy suppleness, look no farther than a Cab-Syrah.

Hall Winery, located in St. Helena in Napa Valley, bottles a beautiful Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah blend called “Darwin”.   Opening a bottle of Darwin not only invites a red wine with personality to the table but with it comes a story.   In 2004, Craig and Kathyrn Hall (proprietors and vintners) were travelling in Australia.   While in flight above the Outback, the landing gear of the Hall’s small plane failed to properly deploy.  During the course of three hours in the air, attempts were made to repair the plane’s landing gear.  Ultimately an emergency landing was successfully accomplished in the city of Darwin.   Safely on the ground, the Halls’ raised a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah to toast divine guidance and care.  With that toast soon followed a firm vow to create a lush Cab-Syrah blend in honor of the safe landing, the town where they unexpectedly landed and the wine that awaited to welcome them.

Dominated largely by Syrah from various vineyard blocks, the 2005 Darwin offers aromatics of fig, blackberries, spice of anise and hints of allspice.  Benefiting from proper cellaring and bottle-aging, tamed tannins give way as a velvety smooth texture unfold leaving a wake of dark roasted plums and blackberry preserves undulating across the palate.

From a food pairing perspective, Cab-Syrah blends welcome anything from grilled vegetables to steaks on the grill.   While taking a friend wine tasting over the weekend in Napa Valley, we talked about the varied different pairings that I feature in my weekly articles and I commented that sometimes I just have to feature “dude food”.   “Dude food” means those savory items that generally involve meat and the smell of a smoky charcoal grill.   With a Cab-Syrah sitting on the table and “dude food” on the mind, this week’s menu hosts:

·         Grilled Steak with Dried Tomato Butter Atop Grilled Vegetables and Arugula With Garlic Aioli;

·         Tomato Zucchini Black Bean Rice Casserole; and

·         Red Velvet Cupcakes Dressed With Chocolate Mint.

Serving a casserole in an individual ramekin makes an otherwise standard savory comfort food dish into a hip attractive side dish.   Brown rice, Vidalia onion, heirloom tomato, lemon thyme, zucchini, black pepper and jack cheese are combined to bring garden fresh flavors to comfort food.  Lemon thyme from garden is incomparably fresh and livens the casserole with pronounced aromatic notes and flavors of Meyer lemon.   When paired with the wine, plum fruit comes forth and the black beans encourage a subtle earthiness from the wine.

Top Sirloin seasoned with peppercorns, garlic and sea salt is grilled indoors and prior to finalizing cooking, is topped with dried tomato butter.   “Dried Tomato Butter” is easy enough to quickly whip together at home as julienned sundried tomatoes, minced shallots and lemon thyme are combined with butter.  Sundried tomatoes atop a steak are a sweet savory addition causes one to slowly chew, roll eyes to the back of the head and wonder why one had not thought of this combination long before.  This flavored chef butter makes beef so extraordinarily savory which in turn reaches for the deeper, richer flavor aspects of the 2005 Darwin.

Lurking beneath the steak are grilled zucchini medallions and thick slices of Vidalia onions.   Both the zucchini and onions are spritzed with Meyer lemon olive oil before hitting the grill.  Further beneath the grilled vegetables lies a seasonal bed of arugula adorned with garlic aioli.  As the steak is sliced, the vegetables and arugula take on the residual juices of the beef to create a roguish grilled salad capable of engaging the senses and leaves the palate wishing for more.

Sinfully rich and sweet red velvet cupcakes are adorned with fragrant julienned chocolate mint from the garden and parked next to a seasonal juicy strawberry.   Take a sip of wine and let the palate be raptured by an even sprinkling of spices as big rich blackberry preserves tumble back across the palate.   Clear the palate with a bite of strawberry and dare to repeat.

Typically I finish each article with a short quip about why to seasonally enjoy a wine and food pairing but for the 2005 Darwin, Hall Winery aptly captures the sentiment of sharing and enjoying wine on its label:   “A toast to you and to those special joys of life that come without warning and that we will never forget.”    Cheers!

Winter continues to sidestep the true arrival of spring in the Bay Area as rains fall heavily and fog ensconces homes in the evening.   Continued moisture ensures blooms and on pace, spring continues to press forward despite slightly abnormally wet conditions.

Whether in the rain, the fog or by luck of catching a break in the weather, a charcoal grill is a celebrated sign in March as it is a sign of culinary good things to come.   As with most grilling, it is always appropriate to select a Zinfandel.   Given the weather, the bigger the Zinfandel is, the better.

If you are looking for a Zinfandel with depth and plenty of personality, look no further than Bremer Family Winery (“Bremer”) in Napa Valley.   Bremer is regarded for its ability to create wines that people love to enjoy but it is equally regarded for creating wines with slightly bigger or clearly defined personalities.  In the case of Bremer’s 2005 Napa Valley Zinfandel, this is no exception.   Poured into the glass, the wine is a beautiful dark rustic garnet color and enamors the nose with aromas of red raspberry, cassis, fennel and rich leather.   Nimble on the palate, the wine sensual captivates with a distinct supple character and flavors of black raspberries, plum, lavender and kissed by a hint of mint. 

As smoky charcoal perfumes the backyard air and sips of Bremer’s 2005 Napa Valley Zinfandel are savored, this week’s menu takes shape:

1)      Blue Cheese-Thyme-Caramelized Shallot Polenta;

2)     Grilled Roasted Garlic with Grilled Artisan Bread Slices;

3)     Grilled Zucchini, Chicken and Mushrooms with Soy-Dijon Marinade; and

4)     Chili-Chocolate Dipped Strawberries Stuffed with Blueberry Chevre.

A quick review of the above menu indicates a largely rustic meal ahead with a dash of California culinary flare.   Grilling a head of garlic on a charcoal grill takes a favorite like roasted garlic and adds a smoky component to its naturally sweetened flavor and deliciously tops grilled artisan bread.   Scooping out grill roasted garlic is sensual as it aggressively grabs and clings to nooks and crannies of grilled bread slices.   Richly sweet, roasted garlic on grilled bread is a treat to anyone lingering around an outdoor fire on a spring evening.

Switch over and start spreading some of the Blue Cheese-Thyme-Shallow Polenta on the bread and then top with roasted garlic:  the rest of the meal could stop right there!   Polenta combined with caramelized shallots, lemon thyme and Point Reyes Blue Cheese takes creamy polenta to the point of decadent.   Given a certain sassiness contributed by the spicy nature of the blue cheese, this polenta recipe is so compatible with the often feisty nature of Zinfandel.

Chicken is threaded onto skewers to grill and brushed with a marinade of soy sauce, Dijon mustard, rangpur lime and chives from the garden.   As the chicken cooks, marinated mushrooms are added to the grill along with zucchini spears.   Dijon mustard naturally adds spice thereby allowing the chicken to readily embrace the wine and creating a new culinary twist on the traditional barbeque pairing with Zinfandel.

If you must pick up a fork, stack the “perfect bite” and let a medley of rustic grilled flavors unfold on the palate.   Each piece of this meal is so savory that it can become near finger food as each bite is savored slowly on its own.   If you make it to dessert with this meal, chevre stuffed strawberries await.

These are not ordinary strawberries as they are stuffed with a blueberry honey chevre and then dipped into melted chili chocolate.  Spice, smooth dark chocolate and juicy sweet seasonal strawberries meet creamy chevre which is naturally sweetened by honey and given an additional roguish depth by blueberries.  Not the typical sweet dessert, but is one that leaves the palate wishing to chase after more.  The result is a sweet sassy companion to polish off that last swig of a rustically elegant and confident Zinfandel.

Start up that grill and put together a varied combination of grilled vegetables and spices to pair with Zinfandel.  Doing so, you will find that it is easy to linger over a meal despite late seasonal winter weather.

Spring brings crisp cool temperatures in Napa Valley and throughout much of the United States.  Senses continue to liven as floral scents drift past the nose from camellias, daffodils, nemesia and other spring flowers.   The palate shakes off the slumber of winter, heavy dishes and tannic red wines to search for something brighter, cleaner and livelier:   enter, “L’Ingenue”.

L’Ingenue is a blend of white wine grapes made by Elyse Winery in Napa Valley.   Before anyone yawns and envisions “chardonnay”, “sauvignon blanc” or other standard white wine grapes, reel back any predisposition to judge for the four varietals used in this blend are native to the Rhone Valley of France.    Instead of the white wine usual suspects, L’Ingenue offers 36% Roussanne, 35% Viognier, 20% Marsanne and 9% Grenache Blanc.  If you are looking for something ingeniously unique to serve at a spring dinner this month, L’Ingenue gracefully meets this criterion.

Considering the varietal make-up of the 2008 L’Ingenue, it is readily understandable why this wine will be highly aromatic.  Both Roussanne and Viognier are highly aromatic grapes.   Pouring the wine into the glass, it is a lovely pale straw color.   Delightfully aromatic, the nose is enchanted by nuances of orange citrus blossom, camellia flowers, honeysuckle, peaches and apple blossom.  In the mouth, a playful acidity dances across the palate, revealing bright spring flavors of citrus, tropical fruit (such as pineapple), apricot, graced with a bit of crème fraiche and finishing with notes of fuji apple.  Full fruit flavors akin to a impromptu fruit salad made with seasonal neighborhood harvested backyard fruit.   Over the palate, fruit flavors, body and acidity wash back like taking a bite of tree-ripened fruit yet surprising the flavor profile with sudden pleasantly bursts of citrus flavors.  The wine is not as heavily bodied as a chardonnay but is present enough in the mouth to diversify its food pairing capabilities.

The acidity in the wine quickly speaks to seafood pairings such as scallops or the quintessential crabcake.   Yet being mindful of the wine’s substantial weight in the mouth, a carefully crafted pasta dish can pair well, too.   This week’s menu holds:

1)      Seared Scallops in Rangpur Lime Juice; and

2)     Spring Pea, Carrot, Green Onion stuffed Pasta Shells with a Sweetened White Sauce.

Given the body and acidity of the 2008 L’Ingenue, scallops have a well-suited texture and when seared in olive oil, butter and rangpur lime, these scallops soulfully pair with this wine.

Simple ricotta fillings for pasta are pleasant enough, but if some creativity is put into such filling, the wine that is paired with the dish will explode with varied flavors as it crosses the palate.   Here, creating a filling of ricotta, carrot, green onion, lemon thyme, peas, parmesan and garlic brings this wine to its full potential, as L’Ingenue flaunts all of its very best attributes with a cornucopia of vivid bright fruit.   Tasting a wine is one thing, but pairing it with the right food flavors takes it from a “good” wine to a “wow” wine.

Any time that I feature a wine from Elyse Winery, I am compelled to carefully contemplate the ingredients in the pairing.  Elyse Winery’s wines are wonderfully enjoyable on their own or with much gourmet fare (hence why they probably appear on restaurant wine lists across the country).  Yet knowing Ray and Nancy Coursen’s ties to and history with the restaurant world, it is like knowing that if you can unlock the culinary code, one of their wines has the potential to knock the socks off your taste buds.

In this week’s featured food pairing, the plate beckons spring forth with the suggestive crook of its culinary finger.   Wine happily skips forward to the front of the palate with a playful somersault of fruit flavors mid-palate and finishes with a flirtatious wink of citrus and lingering remembrance of fuji apple.   Decorate your table with a few aromatic spring flowers so that your nose can prime your taste buds and light some candles to slow the dining process down to allow the palate to search and savor all that the dish and paired wine has to offer.  If you don’t have spring fever yet, grab a bottle of L’Ingenue and let your taste buds fantasize.