December Wine Notes
Responsible Indulgence—December 2023
The time of celebration is upon us, so my selections for December are with this “flavor” in mind. This is not a simple notion, of course. When I think about celebrating, I anticipate the flavors of the shared meals with friends, family and colleagues, which are defined by joy and a feverish desire for pleasure. What does all that taste like? For starters, I think about my mom’s pizza frites, fried bread dough sprinkled with granular sugar that we enjoyed every Christmas morning. As I grew up, so did my mom’s culinary acumen, and she added thinly sliced prosciutto and fresh melon. (Nice addition, Judy!) I never tired of the combination of the puffed bread dough with a thin crisped fried layer, still hot, just kissed with sugar, along with the salty fat of prosciutto and the fresh fruitiness of a wedge of ripe cantaloupe melon—absolutely divine. It is also about the combined textures: soft, crisp, granular with the dried pull of the ham, and all cleansed with the acidity and sweet, dripping, refreshing melon. (You want it right now, don’t you?!? Fear not, the recipe follows). Later, my own culinary exposure widened a bit, but still my sugar plum fairy is made of dough, though slightly more savory—gougères. Perhaps it is a stretch, but I see these as culinary equals from across two very similar cultures. Every Momma and every Maman has her recipe, which she prepares with love and pride for her family and friends. These delights disappear faster than one can make them.
I am approaching December selections with these and other delights in mind. It is a time for indulgence and celebration, which often means foods that are rich, intense, and flavorful, so here are some wines to elevate those bold, celebratory bites.
December Wine Notes
To begin the Value 3 Pack gives you options for a confident grab on any occasion. 2019 D'Oupis Minervois is my house red, and it never disappoints. Truth be told, I enjoy this all year round, but it is perfect for this time of year because of its flexibility. It is nice on its own, pairs well with light savory bites, and will elevate a meal from pasta to roasted duck. It is a little wild, which to me means that its earthiness co-mingles with the red fruits. For the super value white, I chose the 2021Tombacco Pecorino, which is indeed a grape, though it shares its name with a common cheese. This a dry white with soft stone fruit, lighter acidity, and nice palpable minerality. It has a wonderful mouth feel, and its alluring texture is matched by delightful aromatics of figs, melon, and lemon thyme. Enjoy it with a cheeseboard or a Cesar salad!
It is a time of celebration, and though I do not need an excuse, it is a time for bubbles. I include a bubble instead of the rosé this month, so you will have something to pop for brunch or cocktailing. The Flora Prosecco is fermented dry, so it is truly crisp and refreshing with subtle ripe pear and crisp granny smith apple notes. This family run winery in Traviso makes a value bubbly wine that will delight and refresh!
To round out your Value Selection, for December I found some values that over deliver in the quality versus price point category. For starters, the 2021 Colleleva Verdicchio provides a white wine that is vibrantly fresh and crisp. It has soft fruity stone fruit flavors, melon, and apple, with a light citrus note on the finish. There is an interesting saline quality on the finish along with that subtle lemon that invokes the salt air. This is a wine that I want before dinner, perhaps while I cook, or just when friends stop in for a glass before we head out for dinner. It pairs well with some fresh cheeses, salads, simple seafood, but honestly this is the wine that I suggest for sipping on just on its own.
For some value reds, you will enjoy the 2021 Filipo Cassano Calx Primitivo. You cannot dislike this wine; it is fun, fresh, and easy going. It is hand harvested early to preserve freshness. This is becoming a more popular approach to wine making, and I applaud it. Most of my customers are talking about enjoying wines that refresh the palate, and this wine does that while still providing substance, impact of flavor, and a satisfying intensity that will stand up to winter dishes. They do this by de-stemming, a short maceration, frequent punch downs, and finishing up in stainless steel. All of these choices produce a fruity, fresh red that has light berry punch and good acid. It is perfect with a burger, providing contrasting freshness. It would also be fun with some pasta, particularly aglio olio. Sweat that garlic on a low heat while you boil some spaghetti, add a pinch of red pepper flakes, salt liberally, and a little parmigiana...twirl, sip, and repeat.
If you are slow cooking short rib, making a spicy bean stew, or making some Italian Wedding Soup, you will want something that is more intense. I use this word often, and I feel I should explain more fully what I mean. Intensity is about a depth and strength of flavor, not necessarily about body, though that texture is often what accompanies these components. It is not “light or fresh” but rather dark in color, fierce in flavor, not afraid of expressing itself. If you are going to tango, this wine will want to lead, but not without calling you to dance with her. Yes, I experience this wine as movement, energy, and compelling. Give it some air, pour with some aeration, swirl in a bulbous glass, and give it some fat and salt to dance with—it will reward you.
At the Select Level, the wines give you greater complexity, meaning that you will pause for a thought a bit, ask yourself to try to recognize what is familiar and what is new. After your first sip, which brings immediate pleasure, you will slow down, recognizing that the wine challenges you to understand it. Some would argue that viticulture alone brings us these wines, but we cannot underestimate the wine maker and the choices one makes each step along the way.
The 2021 Josef Fischer Gruner Veltliner is one that will certainly compel you to slow down and smell the bouquet. I love a wine like this—one that distracts you from the meal and everyone around you. You look at the glass, swirl it around for a moment, smell it, smell it again, smile, and then take a second sip. You may even do the aeration thing in the mouth, which, I know seems pretentious, but it does make all your taste buds come alive. Then you smile again, knowingly recognizing that this is a good one. It is in the balance of tension and flesh. Yellow stone fruit, melon, wet stone, citrus all come together with precision. I suggest fish, pan seared with this one.
The 2023 Ermitage Pic Saint Loop is my rosé pick for the winter months because it has the complexity and quality for nearly any occasion. It has tart pomegranate and red berry aromatics with citrus and dusty thyme. It can be enjoyed as an aperitif with cheeses but can also stand up to your roasted chicken. It is consistently delicious with subtle vintage variation. It is a wine that we need not over thing, but never underestimate.
There are meals this time of year that just need a bit more power, and the 2021 Perrini Negroamaro will accomplish that. It is 100% Negroamaro from Puglia. It will not surprise you that it comes from the Southern most part of Italy where the sun is hot and the conditions are severe. The fruit is ripe, and it is as if we can taste the warmth of the sun. These are old vines, so that gives the wines a complexity and depth. The black fruits and herb flavors make this an ideal wine for pairing with teriyaki, slow braised meats, and pan seared pork chops.
I also want to challenge my club members with something interesting, so I included the 2020 Old Westminster Pepper Red which is made with Cabernet Franc, Blaufrankisch, and Chamboucin in Maryland. (Surprsied? Wait until you try it!) It is aged in neutral oak and treated with minimal intervention. It is soft, rich, and spicey with soft tannins. It is called pepper for a reason, and you will get it—the spice is fun and makes this a wine that will shine with flavor dishes. I am thinking about some sweet potato gnocchi with a brown butter and sage sauce.
The 2022 Biscaris Cerasuolo di Vittoria is a blend of Nero d’Avola and Frappato from Sicily. Another small family estate committed to producing wines with minimal intervention, allowing the grapes to sing. This wine has all the bright fruit that we want from a Sicilian wine with earthy and herbal components that give it fruit, earth, and a dark brooding sexiness that will compel you to revisit it. Pair it with roasted lighter meats, pot pies, and mushroom dishes.
Sometime classic is what I want and the 2022 Sylvain Bailly Sancerre provides just that. It is crisp, clean Sauvignon Blanc with texture and character. It is elegant with more of the grassy, herbal notes that a cooler climate produces. It is decidedly subtle and has a good deal of minerality on the finish. This one is ideal for fish, but it can handle the more winter fish dishes, roasted and pan seared, but it is also very nice with brussels sprouts, shaved and sautéed finished with shaved parmesan.
For my Collector’s, I chose two wines that are quite distinctly different. With celebration in mind, I included one Champagne. The NV Fresne Ducret, Spagyrie, 1er Cru Brut Rosé is a Grower’s Champagne. This is a sparkling wine from the Champagne region that is grown, harvested, and vinified by the third generation of the Fresne Ducret family in very small production in traditional methods. The wine is complex because of the process, and it is absolutely worth the price. Methode Champenois requires a great deal of work and attention, it involves risk, and if done properly, it produces a wine of elegance and complexity. This Brut Rosé is exceptional.
Michel and his wife Daniella believe that each year the wine must be reimagined. They taste the wines before creating a unique blend that best represents the vintage, so each year the cuvees are uniquely blended to create what Michel believes is the very best blend. Spagyrie is a new Latin word for alchemy and the art and science of blending. In this cuvee, Michel selects the very best Pinot Noir, Pinot Munier, and Chardonnay, to achieve the balance that he is seeking. The grapes are all from the 1er Cur lots in the village of Villedommange. The wine has a deep pink color with copper nuances, and it has a soft foam that develops into tiny elegant bubbles that rise like stars in the glass. The aromatics are dominated by red fruits—berries and pomegranate with citrus, biscuit, roses, and violets. It is a serious wine that can be enjoyed on its own or with food, and it loves something as simple as potato chips, but can pair with a wide variety of foods from fish to lighter meats.
For the curious wine drinker, seeking a quiet rock star, the 2021 Minimalist Syrah, Connect the Dots is the product of someone I would call a Syrah scholar. Sam Lambson believes that life is a journey of connecting the dots, joining people, places, ideas, and experiences. Metaphorically speaking, vines sometimes connect, and when they do the wine that results is magical.
Sam has been exploring the diversity of Syrah planted in the microclimates in the Cape of South Africa’s Winelands, particularly in cooler microclimates. He works closely with his farmers across the regions to create a blend of Syrah’s from the best sites to fuse together a snapshot of the essence of Cape Syrah. 2019 hails from two sites in Elgin, which is likely South Africa’s coolest climate, and a Stellenbosch site that sits at 270m above False Bay. It is 100% whole cluster fermented and gently basket pressed, aged in older barrel for 10 months and then matured a further year in the bottle before release.
It is an expressive wine with aromatics of red fruits and the floras of the region with plummy fruit on the palate, all given structure with grippy tannins. There is a hint of lavender and pepper, spice and mushroom. The wine is dark in color, but has a gentle medium bodied texture that is elegant and luxurious. I would pair this with steak au poivre, lamb shank osso buco, or short ribs.
In case you feel ambitious, here’s my mom’s recipe for fried dough. I suggest that you make the dough a day in advance to allow it to rise slowly in the fridge. Take it out at least an hour or two before you want to cook it.
Judy’s Pizza Frites
3 cups AP flour
1 oz fresh cake yeast (or 2 teaspoons dry yeast)
1 ½ cups warm tap water
¼ cup olive oil
Tablespoon salt & sugar
1. whisk yeast into water
2. make a well in your flour (easiest in a mixer, but you can do this by hand) pour in your water and oil
3. with the dough hook attached and mixer on its lowest speed incorporate the liquid into the flour.
4. turn up the mixer to medium and allow the hook to knead the dough for 4-5 minutes, then sprinkle the salt and sugar in and knead another 2 minutes.
If the dough is sticking to the sides, which can happen if it is particularly humid, just sprinkle flour a tablespoon at a time until it releases and forms a smooth ball.
5. remove the dough hook, and knead the dough for a few minutes with your hands
Once you have a ball, put it into a bowl and cover with a damp cloth. I usually put it into the fridge for at least a day to rise slowly punching it down a few times in the course of the day. Remember to take it out at least 90 minutes before you want to cook.
When the dough rises and comes to room temperature, divide it into balls about the size of a meatball, stretch them into rough rounds, and lay on a floured sheet plan, and allow to rise again for 15 minutes while you prepare the oil.
Over Medium-High heat bring any vegetable oil of your choice to hot. You will need a couple of inches of oil, so use a deep pan to avoid splattering on yourself, I like an enameled Le Cruset. Gently lay the individual dough pieces into the oil. They will fry up quickly so don’t step away. Using tongs, flip it over a few times until they puff and are golden brown on both sides, then remove to a paper towel. Sprinkle with sugar & serve with prosciutto and fresh fruit—melon, figs, and ripe pear all work wonderfully. And, yes, open whatever makes you happy—any and all wine would work with this simple treat!
My mom used granular sugar, which is what I like, but powdered sugar works, too!