I live, and so does my liver!
I was inspired to return to my wee wine blog after reading about my favorite wine duo, Jenn & John Nugent of Colorado Wine Company, in the LA Times this week. And how kickass is Jenn’s quote?
“We found a surprising gap in the market for the kind of store where we wanted to shop, a place where no one is ever made to feel stupid.”
I have spent so many happy, buzzed evenings ensconsed in their wine bar, so I’m glad to see them and their refreshing egalitarian approach to wine getting more excellent PR. In fact, the bottle shown here was bought at the Colorado Wine Company on their recommendation. This is not a wussy wine for your wussy wuss friends who love pinot grigio (and also pan flutes). It is a sparkling red, with an appealing rich dark brick color, and a zingy perky acidity. That tartness would go so well with a nice tray of charcuterie. You know, some hunks of Italian salame. Or slices of sopressata. Ooh, is that grana padano? I’ll just make myself a little plate if you don’t mind… oh my, I drifted off there to a wine tasting in my imagination.
Don’t feel pressured to finish it off in one sitting because it’s fizzy and you’re living hard and you have no place to go tomorrow morning. Get yourself one of these Metrokane bottle sealers for bubblies (mine came with my Rabbit opener), and pop it back in the fridge. On day 2, I had it with some Quercia speck I picked up from Whole Foods and it held up just fine. No crackers, no cheese, just a few slices of buttery rich smoked pork and some tart Lambrusco. I’ll gladly get another bottle of this special treat, and have it with hearty grilled chicken sausages. Meat + wine = heaven. Sorry, my vegetarian amigos. This post was more about meats and meat enjoyment than what it should have been about. I promise to write about brussell sprouts…someday.
Other Random Information:
70% Lambrusco, 30% Ancellotta, produced & bottled by Negri’s Wine, San Giorgio, Italy.
An aside – I bought the La Quecia speck almost totally because I read all about their humane & organic business philosophy on an info sheet on the Whole Foods deli counter. Also, the book with the bottle is called Movie Thrillers, which Tony found for me in a thrift store.