Almost Provence

An old friend was about to celebrate an important birthday.  In years past, we have spent time together in Provence but since this year that is not possible Michele and I decided to create a Provencal menu at home.

Appetizers

We began with a thin slices of duck sausage, olives and breadsticks to accompany a Champagne toast.

Deutz Champagne “Amour de Deutz” Rosè 2008 Made from 64% Pinot Noir from Aÿ and Bouzy and 36% Chardonnay from Avize, Chouilly and Villers-Marmery. Traditional vinification in stainless steel takes place. The base wine is fermented at a low temperature and malolactic fermentation takes place. It is blended with a still Pinot Noir. Discreet fruit, floral notes, creamy strawberries, a touch of pastry.

Our first course was Poached Giant Shrimp with a basil, garlic and lemon mayonnaise sauce.

Saumur 2012 Parnay “Clos Romans” Domaine des Roches Neuves Thierry Germain made from 100% Chenin Blanc from 8-year-old vines on a 0.3-hectare vineyard that is a clos, surrounded by a wall built 300 years ago. The soil is sand, clay, and senonien limestone. Fermentation is in 400 liter barrels for 2 months. The wine is aged on the lees in 400 liter barrels for 9 months. The wine has hints of citrus fruit with a touch of apricot and honeydew and a touch apple. This is a very impressive wine and it went great with the shrimp.

Vegetable  Tian  — Michele  made  this  beautiful  vegetable  gratin,  called  a tian  in  Provence, with sliced potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes baked on a bed of onions and topped with grated cheese.

Along with the tian, our main course was Breast of Duck with Fig  Sauce garnished  with  fresh  figs.

These are the fresh figs Michele used

 

Chinon “Les Picasses” 1989 (Loire) Olga Raffault” Made from 100% Cabernet Franc. The soil is limestone and clay. The mid slope vines are at least 50 years old and are worked organically and harvested by hand. The fruit is destemmed and whole uncrushed berries are fermented with indigenous yeast in stainless steel tanks. Fermentation and maceration lasts for 25 to 30 days depending on the vintage. The wine is aged for 2 to 3 years in oak and chestnut foudres of 30 to 50 HL. There is more aging in tank and bottle before release for about four years. This is a full bodied, structured and complex wine with hints of cherry, red and dark berries, a hint of smoke and a touch of meatiness.

 

Dessert  was  Plum  Tart  with  Vanilla  Ice  Cream.  With  it  we  had  a dessert  wine.

Muscat Beaumes de Venise “Le Pèche d’ Emilie Alain Ignace Made from 100% Muscat petit grain rouge. The grapes come from 60 years old years old vines in lieux-dits Binquillon and La Tuillere and the soil is Miocene marine molasse. The bunches are destemmed and there is a cold pre fermentation. Fermentation lasts for 15 days and fortified with marc. It ages for 12 months in barrel. The wine has hints of cassis, strawberries and lychees. This is only the second time I had a Red Muscat Beumes de Venise.

How Chinon Saved Lunch

 

Under the current circumstances, we have been ordering most of our groceries and household supplies from different sources.   Many of these sources are overwhelmed by the demand placed on them and some time the wrong items are sent. Michele ordered pork sausages with fennel but when they arrived they turned out to be chicken sausages with parsley and cheese.  Chicken sausages are usually beneath her consideration, but they were here and we were hungry, so Michele decided to cook them.

For an appetizer we had two different types of pecorino cheese, salami , taralli, and Italian “Air Bread”,  crisp crackers that Michele had come across at Eataly. 

The main course was the chicken sausages with sauteed peppers and red onions.  The  sausages  were  much  improved  by  the  peppers  and  together  with  the wonderful Chinon , it  was  a  good  meal.  

On the platter

On the plate  with  a crisp ciabatta  roll.

Chinon “Les Picasses” 1989 (Loire) Olga Raffault” Made from 100% Cabernet Franc. The soil is limestone and clay. The mid slope vines are at least 50 years old and are worked organically and harvested by hand. The fruit is destemmed and whole uncrushed berries are fermented with indigenous yeast in stainless steel tanks. Fermentation and maceration lasts for 25 to 30 days depending on the vintage. The wine is aged for 2 to 3 years in oak and chestnut foudres of 30 to 50 HL. There is more aging in tank and bottle before release for about four years. This is a full bodied, structured and complex wine with hints of cherry, red and dark berries, a hint of smoke and a touch of meatiness.

For dessert, we had some homemade Wine Cookies with espresso.

 

C 

 

A Tale of Two Lunches

Can one enjoy lunch with friends on the Internet? Michele and I have a friend, Ernie De Salvo who lives in  NJ that we travel with often. In fact, we were with him in Naples and Rome for a month in February and March. He is a wine collector and an excellent cook, so we decided that even though we can’t get together in person, we could enjoy lunch and conversation via the internet.

Appetizer

We began our lunch with an appetizer of Tuscan style chicken liver pate which we ate with crackers.  Michele made it with garlic, capers, anchovies, and herbs.  It was very savory and rich but unfortunately, I didn’t take a photo of it.  Too busy eating.

Main Course

Our main course was chicken in a mustard sauce which we enjoyed with some simple roasted asparagus.  The  asparagus  in  the  photo  are  in  a special  asparagus  serving  bowl that  we bought  many  years  ago  in  Florence.

Mustard Chicken, made with shallots, herbs, white wine and a delicious  mustard  we  bought  in  Burgundy  last  year.

To drink, Michele and I had:

Chinon “Les Picasses” 1985 (Loire) Olga Raffault” Made from 100% Cabernet Franc. The soil is limestone and clay. The mid slope vines are at least 50 years old and are worked organically and harvested by hand.

The fruit is destemmed and whole uncrushed berries are fermented with indigenous yeast in stainless steel tanks. Fermentation and maceration lasts for 25 to 30 days depending on the vintage. The wine is aged for 2 to 3 years in oak and chestnut foudres of 30 to 50 HL. There is more aging in tank and bottle before release for about four years. This is a full bodied, structured and complex wine with hints of cherry, red and dark berries, a hint of smoke and a touch of meatiness

Ernie’s Lunch

While we enjoyed the above, Ernie was having the following:

For an antipasto, Parmigiano Reggiano, Finocchiona (fennel flavored salami) fatto in casa di Rosario, Pane e Olio.

This pasta is our friend’s personal concoction of traditional orecchiette, broccoli rabe, with garlic of course, combined with plenty of fried ground pork sausage meat. When it is all combined with a touch of peperoncino and plenty of grated Pecorino Romano, this pasta is to die for. The  last  are  his  words.  He  promises  to  make  it  for  me  when  we  can  get  together  again..

Barolo “Cannubi” 1995 made from 100% Nebbiolo Prunotto  Good color, classic Barolo nose of leather, tobacco, still dark cherry fruit. Tannins resolved but enough present to allow for more age. Wine paired well with orecchiette, broccoli rabe and sausage with plenty of pecorino grattugiato.

Though we couldn’t share our meals and wine, it was fun talking, laughing, and sharing our concerns on this strange predicament that we are all in.  For now, our internet lunches will have to do.