Upcoming classes at the New York Wine and Culinary Center in Canandaigua

This sounds like a great way to spend 'Black Friday!'

"Seasonal Chef Demo and Wine Pairing — Lunch and Learn" - Chef Instructor Cathy Parsons prepares Apple Cider Molasses Glazed Pork Medallions with Tangy Apple-Carrot Slaw and guests eat the recipe for lunch paired with two New York state wines on November 28 from 1 to 2 p.m.

This class will also be offered with Pan Seared Organic Chicken Breast with Garlic-Thyme Sauce & Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Pecan-Coconut Butter on December 6, 20 and 27.


"Holiday Wine and Food Pairing" - discover your favorite NYS wine pairing with shrimp cocktail, roast turkey breast, herb-crusted roast beef and cinnamon apple tart. November 28 from 3 to 4 p.m. as well as December 6, 20 and 27.

December Classes

"Holiday Wine and Cheese from the Empire State" allows students to try three artisan cheeses from Yancey's Fancy with three wines from New York state on December 14 from 3 to 4 p.m.

"Wine 101: The Basics of Wine" December 13 from 12 to 2 p.m..

The center is at 800 S. Main St., Canandaigua. For more information about classes, call (585) 394-7070 or visit :
http://www.nywcc.com/learn/program_schedule_prod.php

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Olive Oil Tasting - Albany, NY food class

Honest Weight Food Co-op in Albany is hosting a tasting of 12 different premium olive oils. Scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 17, the hourlong event will be hosted by Kathleen Lisson, a certified specialist of wine, and Honest Weight's education coordinator, Karisa Centanni, in the co-op's community room.

Which olive oils are better for a last minute dash of flavor?
Which olive oils are best as a salad dressing?
Does olive oil have health benefits?

We will sample a variety of oils, learn tasty and healthful recipes and learn about how to use olive oil in gourmet cooking and delicious salads.

Advance registration is required, and there is a $5 materials cost, payable at the start of the class. Call 482-3312 ext. 113 to register.
Honest Weight is located 484 Central Avenue, Albany.

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Christmas at New York State Wineries - Polar Passport, Wreath Fineries, Ornaments

Christmas at New York State Wineries

Long Island

Shop for wine - the perfect gift for everyone on your list, and let the kids meet Santa at Palmer Vineyards in Riverhead on Saturday, December 13th from 12 - 4 PM
Guests are invited to take a photo with Santa (bring your camera!) and pull from Santa's bag for a special gift and coupon.
Cost: Admission is free with the purchase of a glass of wine,hot chocolate for the kids, or premium flight.

Palmer Vineyards is located at:
5120 Sound Avenue
Riverhead, NY 11901


Finger Lakes

Seneca Lake wineries are participating in the Polar Passport program again this year!

The Polar Passport is available DECEMBER 8, 2008 through APRIL 13, 2009.
For ten dollars, you get to enjoy tastings at many of the wineries on the Seneca Lake Wine Trail.
According to the Seneca Lake Wine Trail website, the winter season is actually the best time to visit - when owners, winemakers and vineyard managers are more available and are more likely to be available to chat in the tasting room.

Visit any of the over 20 participating wineries, receive a free flight of wines at each winery, and the winery will stamp or mark the appropriate space in your Polar Passport.

Hudson Valley

"Wreath Fineries At The Wineries"

Participants receive a SWT souvenir etched wine tasting glass and a handmade grapevine wreath at the first winery visited and then travel along the Wine Trail. Then, at each of the next 9 wineries, receive a beautiful ornament to decorate your wreath along with tastings of special holiday foods and wines.

This program runs on the following weekends:
Dec 6 & 7, 13 & 14, 20 & 21, 2008
Event Hours are 10am to 6pm each day

Niagara Region

December 6 & 7 and 13 & 14:

According to the Niagara Wine Trail website, the 'Holiday Happening' allows participants to pay one price to taste at all twelve wineries.

For $35/couple or $20/person, receive a commemorative wine glass and ornament (one ornament/couple, while supplies last) at the first winery of your choice and complete the ornament set as you sample wine at each winery along the trail. Ticket includes wine tasting at each winery.

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Chili Recipes and Wine Pairings

Chili lovers will enjoy the San Francisco Chronicle article, 'From vegetarian to double beef, one simple method produces countless chilis .' Writer Amanda Gold offers tips on what 'secret ingredients' to add to homemade chili - orange juice or apple cider vinegar - and provides
recipes for Wild Boar andTomatillo Chili, Sweet Potato, Mushroom and Black Bean Chili, and Double Beef Chili.

Pinot Noir and Syrah lovers could pair a glass of their favorite wine with a variety of chili recipes, but a really hot and spicy chili may pair better with a spicy, slightly sweet white wine like Gewurztraminer. The spices in chili can work against red wine by uncomfortably amplifying the wine's tannins.

Fellow wine blogger Tyler Colman, AKA Dr. Vino has gathered a bunch of responses to his challenge to pair all-meat Chili conCarne with wine. Pairing suggestions include Riesling, Grenache and Cru Beaujolais. Read all the responses here:
http://www.drvino.com/2007/10/11/impossible-food-wine-pairings-chili-con-carne/

What do you pair with Chili? Would your wine choice change if the chili was served with a dollop of sour cream? Is chili a 'beer food' only?

Cheese advice from Murray's in NYC

Owen Duga from the Wine Spectator visits Murray's Cheese Shop in New York City and talks with Murray's owner Rob Kaufelt about how to buy and store cheese in this Wine Spectator video.

Kaufelt shares tips on:
How to select a quality cheese shop
What information cheese buyers should bring to the cheese shop
How to serve and store cheese

I was interested to learn that Kaufelt recommends storing blue cheeses in aluminum foil. I look forward to trying this technique the next time I enjoy blue cheese at my home.

Related article:
Six tasty tips on serving goat, camembert and brie cheese
http://kathleenlisson.blogspot.com/2008/05/six-tasty-tips-on-serving-goat.html

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A horseradish and wine pairing?

In a recent Wall Street Journal Pairings column titled, 'Big Flavors Need Big Wines,' Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg offer advice on pairing wines with flavor rich foods, including dishes that use Fresh and Dried Chili Peppers, Horseradish and Hot mustard, as well as hot, strongly acidic and spicy dishes.

My favorite eye opening advice was their recommendation to pair Horseradish with New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc or Rose Champagne. I look forward to trying that combination the next time I enjoy Salmon with horseradish!

Related Article:
Indian Food and Red wine pairing
http://kathleenlisson.blogspot.com/2008/02/indian-food-and-red-wine-pairing.html

Sausage, Bratwurst and Chili Dog pairings
http://kathleenlisson.blogspot.com/2008/08/sausage-bratwurst-chili-dog-donut-and.html


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My Menu for a Beer and Wine Pairing Dinner

I recently invited friends over to my house for our Wine Meetup's second annual Oktoberfest Party!

This year we held a potluck BYOB at my apartment in Albany with each person bringing one beer or dish. Here is the food and beer menu we followed:

Appetizers:

Cold Roast Beef - Fullers or Samuel Smith's (British Style) Pale Ale or Coniston Bluebird Bitter

Pretzels and Mustard - Spaten Oktoberfest

Potato Salad - Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse or Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier

Meat:

Sausage and Sauerkraut - Maibock, Weizenbock, Rogue Dead Guy Ale, or Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale

Bratwurst - Dixie Blackened Voodoo Lager


Desserts:

Pumpkin Pie - Ayinger Celebrator or Spaten Optimator

Chocolate - Mackeson XXX Stout or Samuel Smith's Imperial Stout

My favorite was the Spaten Optimator and pumpkin pie. I will definitely bring a bottle of Optimator to Thanksgiving dinner this year.

Mike's favorite was the Samuel Smith's Imperial Stout with Ghirardelli 60% Cacao chocolate bar.

Other guests really raved about the potato salad and Hefe Weisse. To make potato salad easy for my guests to sample, I served the potato salad on plastic spoons decoratively arranged on a large serving platter.

Related Article:
Food and Beer Pairings from Brewery Ommegang
http://kathleenlisson.blogspot.com/2008/05/food-and-beer-pairings-from-brewery.html

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Schnitzel & Riesling Pairing

Mike over at A Food and Wine Blog has posted a video on his experience pairing his mother's recipe for Schnitzel with a glass of Riesling.

Mike's video makes the recipe look easy to replicate at home and I love his advice to flavor each ingredient and at each step of the recipe instead of adding spices and salt all at once. I also share his philosophy of cooking - concentrate on simple recipes with quality ingredients for the best results.

The video is here:
http://foodandwineblog.com/2008/08/22/fwb-tv-episode6-schnitzel-and-riesling/

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How to find a quality wine on a budget

Robin Garr recently posted a very newsworthy article on WineLoversPage.com. 'Wine and Hard Times' offers Garr's insight on drinking quality wines on a tight post-economic collapse budget. I agree with Garr's suggestion to befriend a local wine shop employee or owner and ask for wine recommendations in your new price range but disagree with his advice to stop your subscriptions to Wine Spectator and other wine magazines. I find Wine Spectator to be increasingly focused on two great goals - wine education and searching for value driven wines.

Read the whole article and offer your advice on sticking to a wine
budget here: http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/village/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=19309

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Fondue Recipe and wine pairing

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Free/Newsletter_Tip_Main/0,3963,373,00.html
I know, I know. You smiled sweetly as you unwrapped your gift from a well meaning aunt last year, and oohed and aahed over your new fondue set. Of course, you had the best intentions of using it, but now it's gathering dust and you just don't feel creative enough at the end of the day to make one of those fancy fondue recipes.

This looks like an easy fondue recipe - the ingredients include Vacherin, Appenzeller, and Gruyère cheeses, garlic, white wine, kirsch, black pepper, nutmeg and cornstarch. Blend the ingredients according to the recipe and serve with chunks of country bread.

This cheese fondue can be paired with a white Rhone wine.

Related Article:
Riesling and cheese pairings -
http://kathleenlisson.blogspot.com/2008/08/dry-riesling-and-cheese-pairings.html

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How to choose a 'good' bottle of wine at every price point

I seem to field the same pleading, insistent question at every wine class I teach - "Tell me the name of a good wine to buy." I tell my students that there are two answers to that question - the easy answer and the real answer.

The easy answer is to adopt the strategy of many rich Asian wine collectors - take out your credit card and pay for the expensive 'first growth' French wines and the 100 point Robert Parker picks.

The real answer is that my wine students do not have that kind of cash to spend on wine and would get much more enjoyment from their cellars by following a few easy steps when they want to choose a wine that pleases their palate and their wallet.

Step One - Determine what you want from your bottle of wine. Will you drink the wine with food or by itself? Are you buying wine as a gift or for your own cellar?

Here's the quick and dirty way to figure out what to serve with your meal - just pair the wine to the style of dish and seasonings.

There are online food and wine matching tools that will make your choice even easier - try Natalie MacLeans here:
http://www.natdecants.com/matcher/

If you are buying wine as a gift, would the recipient appreciate an interesting new wine, or would you feel comfortable giving a tried and true wine that will be recognized as a quality gift? If you are giving to an adventurous wine lover, ask for recommendations from a trusted wine shop, or use sommelier Adam Seger's advice on trying new wines in this McClatchy-Tribune News Service article:
http://www.nj.com/homegarden/entertaining/index.ssf/2008/05/we_suggest_a_new_wine.html

If you are looking for a more traditional wine for a gift, look to France. The Burgundy region has many excellent wines. Reds are Pinot Noir and Whites are Chardonnay. Look for a Premier or Grand Cru wine in your price range. These wines are well made and will pair extremely well with a wide range of dishes.

What if you are buying a bottle or two of wine to share with friends?
What are the best ways to find a 'good' bottle at your price range?

If you are looking to spend under $20 per bottle, check out the Wine Spectator's Value wines before you head to the wine shop. They are published in the magazine and available online here:
http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Free/Value_Wines/Value_Finder/0,3793,,00.html

Another option is to see what other wine lovers are buying and give those bottles a try - Internet wine shop Wine Library also offers a list 'Best Selling wines under $20' wines - http://winelibrary.com/top520.asp?DCMP=ILC-top5under20

Wine Library also offers a list of its 'Best Selling 90+ point wines,' and many are also in the under $20 price range -
http://winelibrary.com/top5rated.asp?DCMP=ILC-top5rated

For a pre-tasted selection of weeknight wines, check out 'Good Wine Under $20', my Fellow Wine Century Club member's blog -
http://goodwineunder20.blogspot.com/

It is much easier to find a quality bottle in the $20 - $30 dollar price range. If you like flavorful wines, check out Robert Parker's wine ratings. Empire Wine in Albany has an online selection of their 90+ rated wines here - http://www.empirewine.com/top-rated-wines/

If you want an interesting surprise, find a good wine shop and ask for recommendation. Bring the names of 3-4 wines you like.

Big Splurge wines - Choose Cru Bordeaux or Burgundy, or invest in quality Napa Cab.
Wine Spectator Top 100 wines -
http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Top100/2007/0,4955,,00.html

Wine is an agricultural product, so every vintage has different 'winning' wines. Using these wine tools will help the novice wine lover to choose a quality wine in any price range.

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Christmas on the Shawangunk Wine Trail

The Shawangunk Wine Trail is holding their annual 'Wreath Fineries at the Wineries' event at 10 area Wineries on December 6,7,13,14,20 & 21 from 10:00AM - 6:00pm each day.
For more information, visit:
http://www.shawangunkwinetrail.com/swtevents.html#anchor333999

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