Almanac White wine and a meal deconstructed
While entertaining my dear friend Michelle this past week, I opened a bottle of Grange of Prince Edward Almanac White, a brand new blended wine made from the varietals Chardonnay, Riesling, and Pinot Gris. This wine is exclusive to the LCBO.
Brimming with flavours from all three grapes, the wine’s nose and palate sing with qualities reminiscent of fresh peaches and apples, with identifiable minerality in the after taste. The wine is light and crisp, (CSPC 516575), $19.20.
Rather than cooking a structured meal, I served what I refer to as “meal deconstructed.” On the table I set down a variety of differently shaped white designer plates, each offering a different ingredient or food. On one plate I offer slices of fresh avocado, sliced tomatoes, and sliced cucumber, all drizzled in olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
On another plate are slices of roast chicken, also drizzled in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. The light oil coating keeps the chicken moist as it sits out for a while.
In white bowls I offer a few different dips with crackers. An array of cheeses like chevre, brie, blue cheese, Boursin, and pecorino are surrounded by gluten free crackers on yet another white plate.
On a separate plate I place a large half-cup of fresh ricotta. I drizzle over the fresh cheese some olive oil, balsamic reduction, and fresh herbs like French tarragon from my garden. Gluten-free rice crackers are arranged around this plate, as well.
Of all the dishes displayed, the fresh ricotta dip brought out incredible texture qualities in Almanac White. With fresh ricotta as a partner, the wine’s body and texture moved from light and crisp to more full-bodied and rich and creamy. Michelle and I agreed that this easy and simple fresh cheese dip transformed the wine’s character.
Other ricotta hors d’oeuvres and dishes that will harmonize with and make this wine sing include Baked Ricotta with Lemon, Garlic and Chives.
Baked Ricotta is a hot dip that will complement this wine, as well. To prepare this dip add to a cup of this fresh cheese one sliced shallot, one garlic clove minced, a quarter cup of Parmigianno Reggiano, zest from half a lemon and salt and pepper to taste. Place the dip in a small casserole dish, cover with foil, and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes on 300F. Transfer the dip to a bowl and serve with gluten-free crackers.
The saltiness from the cheese nicely offsets the wine’s acidity. Lemon zest is pleasantly bitter and complements the wine’s finish.
I spoke on the phone to the winery’s proprietor Caroline Granger. She said that Almanac is the result of a new, exciting partnership between her daughter Maggie and herself.
Caroline said, “Doing this wine was a big change for us.”
I asked Caroline about the hand drawn logo on the bottle.
Caroline said, “The label, the hands, tied together, means we are tied to the farm and to each other. The birds represent the expression of our individuality, separate but not separate. The bird and hands mean our hands, ourselves.”
Caroline said working on this project with her daughter has allowed her to grow and listen more intently to the land, to the grapes, and to each other.
“It’s so philosophical,” Caroline said. “The name of the wine ‘Almanac’ represents a picture of the year, in this case 2016. This vintage was not opulent, but was one of those picturesque kinds of years. The way the grapes came together (in the blending process) is a lovely reflection of this year. The heat of the summer, and the ability to bring in the Riesling, which is always a little leaner, takes longer to come around. But it gives the wine a multi layered sort of palate.”
The thing that Maggie always says, which Caroline said she struggled with at first, is that the vines are all grown in the same place, in other words on the farm. So, she believes the wine is a beautiful way to express the idea that what grows together; goes together.”
Caroline went on to explain that the underpinning of the wine is the terroir and its identity, which can be found in all of the different grape varieties used to make Almanac. It’s a peach-like flavour and identifiable minerality on the back palate foud in all their wines, the stamp of the farm’s terroir. Caroline said her daughter Maggie call the trio of grapes used in this wine “the brothers.”