Master Sommelier Virginia Philip

Chef Tricoche’s menu contains several delicious sauces, which can be critical when selecting a wine. The pairing rule “white wine with fish and poultry, red wine with meats” went out the window years ago. I often see wines too heavy or too light that overshadow a dish’s flavors, so this menu lets us dabble in some adventurous but rewarding pairings.

Leaning on the heavier side, the first course of seared king scallops requires the heft of a full-bodied white to hold up to the fleshy meat of the scallops. With a blend of 30 percent grenache blanc, 30 percent clairette, 30 percent roussanne and 10 percent bourboulenc, the Clos de L’Oratoire des Papes, Châteauneuf-duPape, Southern Rhône Valley, 2013, has just the right amount of neutral oak and mineral not to overpower the dish and marries well with the powerful bite of the chorizo and Parma ham.

The tasty main-course ballotine of beef and chicken has been thoughtfully paired with Craggy Range’s Gimblett Gravels Vineyard syrah, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, 2010. Perhaps best known for sauvignon blanc, New Zealand’s best-kept secrets are its reds. This red is powerful and robust, yet the silky tannins have just enough structure not to overpower the delicate poultry.

The dessert course, a raspberry bavarois, is a rich, dark chocolate gem that begs for a refreshing, slightly fizzy dessert red. Conte Vistarino Costiolo Sangue di Giuda, Lombardy, Italy, 2014, fits the bill. Made from the grapes croatina, barbera and uva rara, its flavors are ripe and lush with red berry fruits and compote jam that complement the raspberry and sorbet beautifully, blending well with the chocolate at the same time.