Strong yet friendly tannins came up as a topic this past week. I just want to say any Chef can teach you how to Calm those Tannins in Red Wine Down!
For example, think back to when we were in college. We’d go to the bar, lick our hand, pour on salt, then lick the salt, shoot the taquilla and eat the lime. Right? Just like that, what could be really harsh, is more tolerable. Salt balances tannins as well. So when they talk about eating red meat with red wine, what do we do with red meat? We salt it. Sometimes heavily. And that’s the trick for tannins and red wine.
While we are on the topic, I just want to give you some feedback about wine drinking. We all think “Red Wine is good for you, with it’s antioxidants”. But I am going to tell you my story, then see what you think.
As a chef, I traveled the world for 3 years, cooking in kitchens, pairing food and wine and eating at Michelin Star Restaurants. Of course I had to have the ‘Chef’s Menu’ which always paired food and wine. So my ‘palate’ became very developed. I was in blindfolded contests where I could tell you the Year, the Grape, and sometimes even the Vineyard.
When I came back to America, I was always in search of that ‘great wine’. I settled on wine from Russian River and even took my daughter on a college graduation vacation up there, to explore.
And yes. It is true. I am happy with that regions’ wine. But always lingering was this feeling that, in Paris or Amalfi for example, the house wine at a small local restaurant is about 100 times better than what we have here in America.
REALLY CHEF?
Yes. Really. It’s balanced. It’s fresh. It has subtle notes…..
Once I realized that I won’t get that experience here in America (because even if I spend top dollar for great French or Italian Wine here, it still won’t be the same wine or food), I gave up trying.
What that means to me today is: I’m not storing wine at home, no longer bragging about a case of 62 Pomerols I got at a wine auction for a ridiculous price. Not finding an excuse to uncork one each month…. And here’s my point: If wine is not in the house, I don’t drink it! And you can see by the bottle pictured above, I once was quite the collector.
I don’t drink wine with every meal. It’s no longer something that calls to me. If I’m out to dinner and they have a great wine on the menu, I may get a glass or two. But unless and if I really would miss the pairing, I don’t drink alcohol. I remember going to wine festivals, beer festivals…. where all we did was get sloshed. Been there. Done that. Home on a Saturday night? Uncork a good bottle of wine and make yourself a cheese plate. Been there. Done that.
These days I’m more interested in my health. And I feel better, I look better, when I skip the alcohol (and the cheese for that matter)! lol
If this helps you just look at your consumption for just a moment, that’s all I really want to do here. Whether you cut down from two glasses a night to one, or three times a week to once a week, all of these ‘baby step’ changes in our lifestyle certainly do make a difference.
And least we not forget the point of this article: a great red wine with heavy tannins (that make the wine burn when it goes down) can be ‘realized’ for its’ real beauty and value, if you tame the tannins by adding food with salt. You would be amazed at how many times I have done a red wine ‘tasting’ by serving salted popcorn with red wine. It really let’s you experience the red as it was intended.
Happy Healthy Eating,
