Thick-cut pork chop with a rub (chipotle pepper, Hungarian paprika, salt/pepper, garlic, rosemary, thyme, cayenne, and clove) put on the grill low and slow basking in the glorious smoke of hickory chips. On the side: grapeseed oil sauteéd golden beet and kale mixed into some orzo.
Wine: Aaron Berdofe Pinot Noir 2013
F’ing Hipsters.
Sometimes the stars align at the exact moment you need them to. We in Minnesota have been desperately seeking spring like nobody’s business and yesterday we finally saw an inkling indication that warm weather is on the way. Naturally, for me this meant it was a chance to use the grill. Additionally, my latest batch of kit wine, a California Pinot Noir, decided it was ready*. I don’t really have a label worked up for my small batches of wine, mainly because it’s completely unnecessary, so I did not include a gratuitous label shot. However, a couple months ago I did happen to capture the moment that I realized I was racking wine in my SW Minneapolis home WHILE wearing flannel on camera…unintentional hipster moment. So you get a picture of that. Happy? Anyway, the food was fantastic and the clove just picked up so nicely in the wine that I may have been somewhat overindulgent in my sounds of pleasure while consuming this concoction. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how long the finish has been in the two wines that I’ve made. The succulence of the pork, certainly called for a wine to stick around for awhile. Speaking of which, do you know what wine makers and marketers call wines without a lengthy finish? “Easy Drinking”
*For those of you who already have a bottle of my Pinot Noir, now would be a good time to start drinking it. Serve just below room temperature.
Aaron Berdofe's Wine and Food Experience 