Wine Wednesday (Back to the Classics)

Anakena Enco Reserve Carmenere

“This wine rains kisses in your mouth.” –Insatiable By Gael Greene

The first Wednesday of every month is Wine Wednesday! Spectacular wines under $10.00. Yep. Under $10.00. Sometimes wine is less expensive where I am, but most of the time it’s more expensive. Hopefully that means that I will pick wines that are well below the $10.00 limit for most of you.

I will post wines that I particularly like. I am no specialist by any means, but I do love wine. I know the basics of the different varietals, what regions generally produce, how wines are made, but this space is all about preference. We all like what we like, and you might like what I like too. I will post food pairings and why those pairings are suitable for the specific wine.

Anakena Carmenere

Anakena Carmenere

Anakena Enco Reserve Carmenere 2013

Price: $8.99

Variety: Carmenere

Previous Awards or Ratings: Silver in Annual wines of Chile

With classes back in session here in Nittany Lion Land and activities in full swing, I am back to craving my real love: red wine. There is nothing better than relaxing after a long day with a glass of red to help cushion those late nights of research and writing. Except maybe that glass of red with some serious Netflix action! This wine is deep purple in color, slightly oaky, and very dry. My kind of wine. And the perfect way to ring in the coming autumn. You could always shovel handfuls of popcorn into your mouth in between sips all Scandal-style, but if you’re like me, you’re going to want some sustenance to go along with those late nights.

Anakena Carmenere

Anakena Carmenere

Anakena Carmenere

I love pairing this style of wine with something that has some fat and something with a tangy and salty sweetness. The salt and tang will cut through the dryness of a wine and the fat will help to round out the flavor by counteracting some of that puckering you get from a tannin-rich wine. An easy and seasonal snack that meets those demands should be just the thing!

I have a feeling that your kitchen, like mine, is overrun with vine-ripened tomatoes, so we’ll make them the star here. Plus those tomatoes are what we need for that tang. I did a play on a caprese salad and made a toasted bagel sandwich with herbed goat cheese (the fat!), basil, chives, and sliced tomatoes. And if you’re sitting there wondering “Hey, where’s the meat? Ain’t no sandwich without some meat!”, then this pairing will delight and surprise you. The oakiness of the wine lends a full, robust flavor that mimics a smoked meat, but it’s even better. Meanwhile those herby additions will bring out new green notes in the wine that changed from your initial mouthful of wine. I am in love with this pairing. So take my advice and act now! You’ll be happy you did.

Anakena Carmenere

Toasted Caprese Bagel Sandwich

1 everything bagel or bagel-thin, sliced

1 ounce soft herbed goat cheese

2 slices vine-ripened tomato

2 chives, chopped

4 leaves of basil, torn

Kosher salt

Black pepper

1. Toast your bagel until lightly browned. Smear the bottom slice with the goat cheese.

2. On top of the goat cheese, place the tomato slices and cover with basil leaves and chives.

3. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and a crack of black pepper. Top with the other half of the bagel, and enjoy!

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