Wine Dinner #1

I took a trip to Chicago to visit my fiancé (Jesse), where we decided to have a dinner with my older sister (Katie) and her boyfriend (George).  And since we were having dinner and both love wine, why not make it a wine dinner?

On the way from the airport, Jesse and I stopped at a small wine shop to pick out a few bottles.  We chose a 2010 Pinot Noir from Oregon, a 2011 Garganega/Pinot Grigio blend from Italy and a rose Malbec/Merlot from Argentina.

Preparation for dinner

My sister and I prepared a baked, lightly crusted tilapia.  Along with that, we prepared a cheesy quinoa with mushrooms, onions, and peppers and garlic, sautéed green beans. 

We began the evening with a loaf of warm bread and an oil/vinegar.  We paired it, to start, with the Pinot Noir.  It was a 2010 from Jovino, with 13.5% alcohol.  They paired well together, in my opinion.  There were some light flavors like raspberry and cherry, but a good balance of earthy tones as well.  It was an easy wine to start with, but also showed complexity.

Our bread with Oil/Vinegar

The Pinot Noir

We continued with this wine into dinner, trying it with each dish.  I thought it paired very well with the cheesy quinoa, personally.

Into dinner, we opened the Garganega/Pinot Grigio.  It was a 2011, 70% Garganega, 30% Pinot Grigio from Delle Venezie, with 11.5% alcohol.  I especially enjoyed this paired with the tilapia and sautéed green beans.  It was a much lighter, floral aroma wine.  There were berry, especially strawberry and cherry flavors.  It was a light, refreshing wine that I thought paired well with very flavorful, but light dishes like the tilapia and sautéed green beans.  

The Garganega/Pinot Grigio

We also had the Malbec/Merlot rose wine with dinner.  It was a 50% Malbec, 50% Merlot from Valentin Bianchi, with 11% alcohol.  It was a rose, with some sparkle.  The light fizz was very refreshing with the heavier cheese quinoa dish.  The cherry aromas were pleasant and the berry and grapefruit flavors seemed to be brought out with the contrasting cheesy quinoa.  This also paired well with the bread/oil and vinegar, which we finished with dinner. 

Some final pictures from our night...

Jesse and I enjoying the Pinot Noir

Katie and I enjoying the Malbec/Merlot

"A successful night" ~Katie Williams

The experience was very enjoyable and a lot of fun.  I am definitely excited to have more of these in the near future.  It was a great opportunity to see how different wines paired with different foods and flavors and I am looking forward to exploring more pairings through dinners like these.