December,
2004 vol.3 #12
Trends
by Ruth and David Pursglove
Firefly Festival Teaches Rose Wines
We are sorry we missed the rose wine Festival of the Roses that was held at Firefly
at the Madero Hotel off Dupont Circle. Sorry because we are partial to well-made
roses made from grapes classically used for rose wines and quite dry. We have
written about the comeback of rose for several years and were delighted when
we saw a news release from Thea Bowers Communications promoting the 2004 rendition
of chef John Wabeck’s Festival. During the event he creates and prepares
dishes to accommodate eight or ten rose wines from four or five nations.
The most recent festival menu featured a chilled English pea soup with yogurt
and curry oil, grilled mackerel with stir fried rapini, pickled jicama and
chive oil, and roasted Alaskan halibut with creamy grits, okra and sassafras
vinaigrette.
We found his wine selection excellent and intriguing, but we missed any choice
of champagne – pink champagne being the epitome of the champagne maker’s
art as we said in the December 2003 issue of FSM: Over the past 18 months we
have checked into and reported on the rising increase of trends setter interest
in pink, rose, and champagne. The curve delineating interest (among those persons
we have identified as trends makers) is now moving upward sharply and we expect
this to translate to increased sales of pink champagne to the general consumer
sometime next year. Pink, rose, champagne is generally the best and most expensive
offering of a good champagne house. Dry, usually full bodied and full flavored,
often fruit-filled, the pinks have much going for them – including an
even wider range of perfect food pairings than the more customary gold champagne.
We can always count on the quite dry Billecart-Salmon Brut Rose to deliver
at a reasonable price, about $60, give or take. And we like the full bodied
and very flavor-filled Laurent-Perrier NV Rose at about $50. For an occasional
special treat we get somebody to open a Krug NV Rose (about $255). We used
to enjoy it at breakfast with Maison Krug president Remi Krug. It’s dry,
with an excellent acid edge and full bodied.
Rosado, Torres, "De Casta," Catlunya, Spain, 2003 $19 (prices noted
are apprx. retail)
Garnacha and Cariñena combine to finesse the palate with notes of
strawberry, rhubarb, and mint. This playful rosé is muy refreshing
and muy delicioso.
Vin Gris of Pinot Noir, Sanford, Santa Rita Hills, Calif., 2002 $30
Aromas of hazelnuts, Fuji apples and pineapple leap out of the glass, with
same joining ripe plums, spice and cherries on the palate in this grown-up
version of pink wine.
Bergerac Rosé, Chateau Calabre, France, 2003 $23
Watermelon, green apple and sour plum are framed by abundant herbal and smoky
flavors in this inviting example, produced from 100 percent Merlot.
Rosé, Dom. De Saint-Antoine, Costières de Nîmes, France,
2003 $18
Syrah and Grenache speak eloquently and wield a big stick of blueberry, pepper
and floral aromas. Smoke, blackberry and some more blueberries (for good measure)
complete the lengthy finish.
Rosato, Quatroventi, Puglia, Italy, 2003 $26
Bright cherries and plums intermingle with black tea, pumpkin pie spice and
toasted almonds in this blend of Negro Amaro and Malvasia. Kind of unique,
and kind of really drinkable.
Rosé of St. George, Palivou, Greece, 2001 $29
The varietal of St. George (aka the on-the-tip-of-your-tongue Agiorgitiko)
fashions a beautiful, complex rosé replete with tart plums, earth,
wet stones, and a pretty serious meaty streak. Drink this early and often.
Rosé, Chateau Potelle, "Riviera," Paso Robles, Calif., 2002
$32
A lusty blend of Syrah and Zinfandel smashes out the palate with berry baked
plum and cherry notes. Plenty of black pepper and vanilla linger on the long
finish.
Rosé, Charles Melton, Barossa, Australia, 2003 $38
Shiraz, Pinot Meunier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache and Riesling make a formidable
team in this blockbuster wine. Expansive flavors of watermelon, rhubarb,
plum, Bing cherry and smoke evolve on the palate for some time, all the while
maintaining a serious sense of finesse.
Pork – The Other White Meat
When we first heard heavy advertising for "Pork – the other white
meat" a few years ago, we felt that the theme expressed in the slogan
would make pork "IN." Now, few years later pork, once the bane of
healthy food adherents who for years had looked upon pork as fat-filled, the
other white meat has joined the ranks of "Healthy foods," as proclaimed
in "Pork Futures," by writer Pete Wells in the November Food & Wine.
Wells points to the leaner pork, specialty pork, artisanal pork and novel ways
in which chefs around the nation are using pork – ribs, roasts, sausages,
bacon, chops and hams.
He points out that pork farmers are resurrecting old breeds such as Berkshire,
Large Black and Gloucestershire Old Spots. Wells makes the article a useful
working piece by naming and describing what he calls the two top books on pork,
mail order sources for bacon, ham and sausages, and pairing pork and wine (with
specific wines named for various pork dishes).
Copyright 2004, David and Ruth Pursglove
David and Ruth Pursglove are senior principals and demographic profilers at
the TrendsAnalytics Group, and the Pursglove food-drink-hospitality Consultancy,
202-244-3686. They are also publishers of on-line how-to guides and food and
drink and restaurant-oriented novels.
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