Pacific Northwest Ice Wine

While it is a known fact that various types of wine can be bought at any wine store, one of the rarest is the ice wine. Ice wine is a very rare type of wine, that is can only be produced under specified types of temperature conditions. Ice wine is principally produced in the Pacific Northwest region, where the weather conditions are perfect for this type of wine.

To produce the ice wine, only the finest qualities of grapes are chosen. Because of its scarcity, the quantity produced is very small. This makes the product extremely rare. The price is so expensive that only a prosperous few are able to buy the wine.

Comparable to the bliss of owning a diamond, experiencing a drink of ice wine is something that a lot of of us may only hope and dream of at some point in our lives. Apart from the rarity of the ingredients, even more crucial are the weather conditions in the production of this wine. Once the correct weather conditions arrive, the wine maker gets himslef ready to produce this very rare and priceless wine.

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The primary requirements needed to create ice wine are fully ripened grapes and a 5 degrees C. temperature which needs to be maintained for several days until the wine maker completes the wine-making process. During these extremely cold temperatures, when grapes have frozen, the wine maker and his assistants hand picked them at night.

Full vine grapes are needed in order to produce a bottle of ice wine. After the grapes are collected, they are pressed gently, in order to gather the running juice only. As the temperature produces the frozen water crystals, fermented along with particles and sugars that are present in the free running juices the marvelous and rare ice wine is created.

If you have been wishing to try ice wine, obtaining it may be quite difficult. Most wine stores don’t have this in stock. It can be difficult to find it online as well, unless you are lucky enough to chance upon it at the right time. It can easily cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars for just a single bottle.


If you are really serious to acquire ice wine, it is best to find the right winery in the Pacific Northwest region. Although the bottles may run out of stock extremely fast once they have been made, you may possibly meet a wine maker with a few on hand. Just be prepared to spend a hefty sum though. Extremely expensive and very difficult to find - just the mere taste of ice wine makes it well worth every penny and effort.

© 2010 Athena Goodlight 

A Beginner's Guide to Wine Tasting Events

Attending wine tasting parties and events, or joining wine clubs can be a fun and stimulating experience, although many people would just shy away from attending such functions out of fear - or for lack of knowledge on what to do or what to anticipate. There are no hidden mysteries to wine tasting; however, there are several things that you must keep in mind when attending these functions.

It is customary to serve women before men during wine tasting events. In some events bottled water are served between samplings, to clean your mouth out and to be ready to taste the next wine served. When taking the wine, always handle the glass by its stem, to avoid warming it with your hands. Normally, crackers and other delicacies are served as well, to help you clear your mouth and as an additional enjoyment to the palate in between wine tastings.

It is easy to recognize the wine typically by the color. When you attend a wine tasting party for the first time, you’ll observe that the glasses are crystal clear. This helps you to see the wine better. It is also a standard that a white tablecloth is used on the table, too. This also helps you see the wine’s color more distinctly. You should never judge a wine by the name alone, for it may easily fool you.

You will also observe the more experienced wine tasters slightly swirl the wine in the glass before they sample it. The slight swirling actually helps bring out the true flavor. Most wines are aged in bottles for long time periods, some for many years. The swirling releases the flavors in the wine and brings them out as the wine is tasted.

In wine tasting events, you will need to look at the wine, smell it, then after swirling it in the glass - taste it. The aromas play an important part of the process, because you’ll enjoy the wine better by smelling it first. The intriguing aroma of the wine stimulates you to enjoy the taste that wine is known for. After smelling the wine, you should allow a few moments to absorb the aroma and to think about the wine that you have smelled.

Finally you will need to know how to taste the wine properly. Your tongue has taste buds all over to help you to recognize flavors. Because wine bursts with flavors, the way you taste it makes the greatest impact. When the wine reaches your mouth, swish it around in your mouth for a couple of seconds, and give the flavors enough time to play on your palate. Once your taste buds begin to discover the wine, you may think about what you are sampling. After the wine is swallowed, the aftertaste that stays in your mouth familiarizes you even more to the kind of and flavor of the wine.

Prior to attending a wine tasting event, try to learn as much as you can about the many flavors and types of wines. By doing this, you’ll have a broader understanding of what you should look for in both aroma and flavor. Even though you may be a novice at wine tasting, you need not pass up an opportunity when it arises. You’ll get to experience the exciting world of wine tasting and get to know wines and flavors that you may have never even heard of before.
© 2010 Athena Goodlight

Tips on Serving and Pairing Wine with the Right Food

The flavorsome food matched with the depth of the perfect wine is absolutely amazing. With the availability of wine in different varieties and range of prices these days, there is no excuse to miss this palatable experience with food and wine. Here are some basic things you should remember to make food and wine pairing more enjoyable whether in a restaurant or at home.

It is safe to put hearty food such as stews and casseroles with full-bodied reds, and more subtly flavoured food with lighter wine. You don’t need to stick to the strict rules about chicken and fish being served with white wine and red meat with reds. You must instead consider the whole dish – if a chicken is served in a rich buttery sauce it might be better suited to a red Burgundy than a white wine.

If you plan on bringing a bottle of wine to a dinner party and you’re unsure of the menu, go for lighter wines such as Chablis, Muscadet, or a delicate Riesling, or light reds such as Valpolicella or a young fruity Pinot Boir. I personally favor bringing Muskat red wines to friends’ houses – a bold yet sweet choice; but then, taste can be cultural. It is just proper to bring something, especially if it’s a house dinner. Similarly if you are catering for a party, choose lighter wines such as Sancere, Sauvignon Blanc, Beaujolais, and Valpolicella. Allow half a bottle of red per person and a little more for white. In summer, trade Champage for a more economical bubbly such as Prosecco or Cava, and allow half a bottle per person.


WINE PARTNERS

Beef
Dense reds such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeax, and Barolo go well with roast beef; spicier reds such as Shiraz, Grenache, and Amarone are all good partners for hearty stews.

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Lamb
Red Boreaux or Merlot are good overall choices, but for lighter lamb dishes choose a young Pinot Noir. If you are serving offal, partner it with a Barolo.
Pork
Beaujoais goes brilliantly with roast pork and cassoulet, although more full-bodied reds such as Shiraz mix well with sausages, while Chablis is a good choice for cooked ham.
Chicken
Roast chicken can be served with Chardonnay or a white Bordeaux, but for heartier stews, choose a light Italian red such as Chianti or a Merlot.
Game
Pinot Noir, red Burgundy, and Merlot are all good matches for game, although fuller-flavoured game dishes such as stews would be best with a full-bodied red such as Cabernet Sauvignon. More delicate game can be served with a lighter red, such as a Côtes du Rhone. For pheasant, try a dry Pinot Gris.
Fish
Delicate dishes should be served with light wines such as Sancerre, Pinot Grigio and Muscadet, while richer-sauced fish would work well with white Burgundy. Oily fish such as mackerel is good with Muscadet or Sancerre, and meatier fish such as salmon, oysters and lobsters all have a natural (and costly) affinity with Champagne.

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Salads
Vinegar-based dressings make salads hard to match with wine but try light rosés or citrusy whites such as Sancerre and Pinot Grigio.
Puddings
Always serve wines that are sweeter than the food. For rich chocolatey puddings and fruitcakes try a Madeira, and for light fruit or creamy puddings an Orange Muscat or Sauternes.

 © 2010 Athena Goodlight

Mussels Recipe: How To Cook Moules Mariniere

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 If you enjoy seafood, particularly shellfish here's a comforting and classic dish – Moules Mariniere. The recipe, shared by Steve Sudbury was one he learnt from a chef whilst living in Lower Normandy, France – is simple, quick and delicious. Enjoy!

Get recipe: How To Cook Moules Mariniere

How to Dry Your Own Herbs

Drying herbs is not a difficult task to do. Whether you plan to dry your herb harvest from your own garden or leftover herbs bought from the store, this is an easy and cheap method.
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Drying herbs is not a difficult task to do.  Whether you plan to dry your herb harvest from your own garden or leftover herbs bought from the store, this is an easy and cheap method.
Tie five or six sprigs together at the stem ends.  If you are drying basil or mint, make sure to give enough space between the leaves to prevent mold growth.

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To dry, hang these bunches upside down in a warm and airy place away from sunlight.  Doing this will retain the herbs’ flavor best.
If you live in a dusty and dry climate, get a paper bag and cut lots of holes into it.  Then place the herb bunch with the stem ends up.  Secure the bag with a string or rubber band then hang.
In two to four weeks, the leaves are dry and ready.  They should break apart easily in your fingers.  Place them in an airtight jar.  These are ready to use; just crumble them when needed.  These herbs will keep for about a year.




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To learn more about storing herbs read this:   Tips for Storing Herbs and Spices

Chilled Coriander and Yogurt Soup

2 1/2 cups        plain yogurt                                           625 mL

1 1/2 cups        packed, chopped fresh coriander,         375 mL

                        leaves and tender stems only    

1/2                   onion, finely chopped                            

1 cup                light cream                                          

3 cups              chicken stock                                       

parsley sprig for garnish           

• ln a food processor or blender, puree yogurt, coriander, onion and cream until smooth.

• Pour into a large container, add stock, and mix well.

• Cover and chill until ready to serve. Garnish with J parsley or fresh coriander.

Serves 6

How to Roast a Turkey and Other Poultry The Fastest Way

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The ritual of cooking turkey used to be a painful and an elaborate process, taking long hours of watching the clock and basting the bird, hoping that with luck, the dinner will not turn out tough and dry.
There is, however, another way to roasting that can give you perfect results in the form of a juicy and tender turkey, taking much less time to cook than our grandmothers took. The same technique can also be applied to roasting chicken, duck, goose, pheasant, or any kind of poultry.
This method is also used in fine restaurants and hotel kitchens where they cannot afford to take as much time as our ancestors did in roasting turkey. They blanch the turkey before roasting, and then roast it at a very high temperature.

Here are the steps:
First, make sure that your turkey is completely thawed, if you are starting with a frozen one.
Second, boil water in a large pot. Place the turkey in the kitchen sink, and pour the boiling water all over it to scald it thoroughly both inside the cavity and all over the skin. You will notice the skin beginning to shrink.
Next, run cool down the turkey by running cold tap water all over it, both inside and outside. Cooling it down makes it easier for you to handle it.
Pat the turkey dry with paper towels, both inside and out.
Now, you may put in the stuffing. I recommend using a cheesecloth bag. Whether or not you stuff the turkey, it isn’t necessary to sew the cavity together. Just truss the legs together. If you still have stuffing leftover, stuff it into the neck cavity, and secure it with a skewer.

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Now, put the turkey on a rack in a roasting pan. Make sure the bird is elevated so the hot air can circulate under and around it. The best kind of wire rack is the V-shaped rack specifically designed for roasting turkey. It enables you to lift the bird from the pan easily when roasting is done.

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Make sure turkey wings and thighs are not touching the roasting pan. If they are, slip pieces of aluminum foil, oiled with cooking oil, between the turkey skin and the pan.
Next, oil the entire top surface of the bird. Corn or safflower oil has less saturated fat than peanut oil or butter. Pour several tablespoonfuls into the palm of your hand, and rub it all over the turkey.

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Using a large sheet aluminum foil, make a tent that will completely seal the turkey within the roasting pan. Crimp the foil edges to the outside edges of the roasting pan, all around the entire perimeter.

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Roast at 450˚ Fahrenheit. This very hot temperature enables you to cut your roasting time virtually in half: instead of 0 minutes per pound, it will be 15 to 18 minutes per pound.
Half an hour before your roasting time is done, you need to baste your turkey for the first time. To do this, remove the aluminum foil (be careful of the hot steam inside). Reduce oven temperature to 325˚, and baste with a bulb baster, brush or spoon. Baste twice more during the final half-hour.

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The end result of this turkey will be juicy, tender, and perfect enough to make any professional chef proud. The same method works just as well for chicken and any other bird, as long as you first seal the skin with boiling water, oil the skin, place it on a rack in a roasting pan, cover with foil, and roast at 450˚. Chickens and smaller birds may need less than half and hour of uncovered browning time, 15 to 18 minutes per pound hold true no matter what size your bird is.
You will literally save hours of time, and your family and guests will rave about how tasty, tender, and juicy your perfectly roasted poultry turns out, each and every time.

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Cream of Summer Squash Soup

1 tbsp (15 mL) butter          

1 lb  (450 g)     yellow summer squash or zucchini, chopped      

1                      onion, chopped                                                 

2                      cups chicken stock                                                       

1 cup                sour cream                                                                 

pinch nutmeg

salt and freshly ground black pepper sour cream and chopped chives for garnish

1 Melt butter in a large saucepan, add squash and onion, and cook over medium-high heat until squash is tender. Add stock to mixture, bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes, or until squash falls apart.

2 Remove from heat and puree until smooth. Transfer mixture to a clean saucepan, mix in cream and nutmeg, and season to taste. Reheat, garnish and serve.

Serves 4

TIP: Very hot liquids may crack some blender or food processor bowls, or may cause splattering. Check manufacturer's instructions for your appliance to determine whether you should allow hot liquids to cool somewhat before processing.

Chilled Melon and Cucumber Soup

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1          cantaloupe melon, peeled and seeded               

4          cucumbers, peeled and seeded              

2          tbsp honey     (30 mL)                                                 

2          tbsp lemon juice (30 mL)                                           

8-12     mint sprigs               

      

• In a food processor or blender, puree melon and cucumbers until smooth; strain. Add honey and lemon juice; pour mixture into a bowl, cover and set aside.

• Roughly chop mint (reserving some for garnish) and stir into pureed mixture. Let mixture stand for about 5 hours at room temperature.

• Remove chopped mint from soup, and chill until ready to serve.

   

  Serves 6