Good Morning!

Welcome to Tuesday’s Open Thread. As the title suggests, today’s offering is about wine. Which wine? Well, in keeping with the outdoor theme of summertime festivities, Pinot Grigio was the wine selected for this week's tasting. One of the most popular Italian wines apart from Chianti, this little grape still invites disdain from wine aficionados. Detractors of Pinot Grigio often complain that it's too "simple" a wine, while others attribute that characterization to the unfortunate practice of watering down the wine by harvesting the grapes too early. Simple, or not, I found the flavors in the Pinot Grigio's we tasted marvelously refreshing and think they would compliment any barbecue or outdoor picnic quite nicely.

The Little Grape That Could

At the outset, the pinot gris grape had an inauspicious beginning. Originally from Burgundy, France, the odd looking grape was thought to be a mutation of the red Pinot Noir grape. Its grayish blue hue, which is what gives this grape its name, confused early winemakers who weren’t sure if they should treat it as a red grape, or a white grape. Eventually they figured it out and found the secret to a good Pinot Gris, or Pinot Grigio as it’s known in Italy, is picking the fruit before the grapes lose a high proportion of acidity when they ripen fully. Traveling from France to Italy in the late 1300’s, the wine became Pinot Grigio. As time went on, the little grape that could, did, and traveled to other parts of Europe, and then finally found its way to North America where we apparently drink a lot of it.

Characteristics of the Pinot Grigio grape depend largely on the region where they are grown. In the mountains of Northern Italy, the grapes keep their high acidity, producing a lighter-bodied dry wine, while the Alsace and German varieties are sweeter, with strong hints of honey and apples. For the purpose of this tasting, the wines selected below are dryer and less sweet, but still have fruit forward flavor notes. I have some favorites that I’m looking forward to sharing with you, but before we get to the wine tasting, I wanted to suggest some food pairings that will go very well with any of Pinot Grigio selections from our tasting.

The Perfect Pairing

Now that we have a chilled glass of white wine on our dinner table, what should we pair it with? Shrimp is always a good place to start. The cook times are short and during the summer that is a major plus. Here are three go to recipes I have used that are easy and tasty!

Ingredients
1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Juice of 2 lemons
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Step 1
In a bowl, toss the shrimp with the garlic, Creole seasoning and bell pepper.

Step 2
In a skillet, sauté the shrimp in the oil over moderately high heat, turning the shrimp once, until just white throughout. Add the lemon juice and parsley and serve.

Recipe from Food and Wine.com

Ingredients
3 Roma or plum style tomatoes diced
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno seeded as desired and finely diced
2 fresh limes
Salt to taste (plus additional to cook shrimp if needed)
1 12 ounce jar cocktail sauce
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp cooked or raw
2 ripe avocados chopped

Instructions

1. In a large mixing bowl combine diced tomatoes, diced onion, chopped cilantro, and finely diced jalapeno. Squeeze mixture with the juice of one lime, season with a little salt, and toss together with a spoon. Add the entire jar of cocktail sauce and stir till combined. Place bowl in the refrigerator.
2. If using cooked shrimp, skip to next step. If using raw shrimp, rinse with cold water and drain well. Remove tails if necessary. Bring a large pot of water to boil on the stove. Drop in about one tablespoon of salt. Add shrimp and cook for two minutes; no longer. Drain hot water from pot and cover the shrimp with cold water to cool them down and stop them from cooking further. Drain well and transfer the shrimp to a cutting board.
3. Cut each shrimp into two or three pieces to desired size. Transfer chopped shrimp to the chilled bowl of tomato/cocktail sauce mixture and stir well to combine. If desired, bowl can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for several hours at this point until ready to assemble shrimp cocktails.
4. When ready to serve, remove pits and chop avocados. Squeeze juice from remaining lime over the top of the chopped avocado. To serve in a large bowl, garnish top of the shrimp cocktail with the avocado and allow people to serve themselves. For individual servings in martini glasses, layer a heaping spoonful of the shrimp cocktail mixture in the bottom of each glass. Add a generous layer of avocado. Fill glasses to the top with more shrimp cocktail and garnish the top with some of the avocado.

Recipe fromvalerieskitchen.com

Ingredients
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 large red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons sweet Thai chili sauce
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 pound large raw, deveined shrimp with tails removed
1 mango, chopped
unsweetened shredded coconut for garnish
chopped green onions for garnish
lime for garnish

Instructions

1. Heat coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Once melted, add red onion and saute for 5-7 minutes until softened.
3. Add garlic, soy sauce, lime juice, Thai chili sauce, red pepper and shrimp to the skillet and toss to combine.
4. Cook for 3-5 minutes until shrimp are pink and cooked.
5. Add the mango, stir to incorporate and warm through.
6. Plate the shrimp and garnish with coconut, green onions and a squeeze of lime. Serve with rice.

Recipe from runningtothekitchen.com

And Then There was Wine

While Christine from our wine department was away last week, our manager, John, decided to step in by selecting a flight of Pinot Grigio's that were all deliciously fruity and dry. Served with some of our Italian salami and a choice of gruyere and smoked gouda cheese, our palates were very pleased indeed! Gosh, do I love my job, or what?

TJ's Wine Profile: A Trader Joe’s exclusive from the Lodi region of Monterey, California, this selection is a medium-bodied, well-balanced wine. Enticing aromas of fresh citrus, fruit and flowers with flavors of juicy grapefruit and spices. Pairs well with a wide variety of foods including salads, seafood, shrimp, chicken, turkey and pasta in a light creme sauce.

Blend Composition: 87% Pinot Grigio, 10% Sauvignon Blanc, 3% Muscat Alexander

Market Price: $8.99

TJ's Price: $4.99

My personal impression: Has a delicate floral bouquet with citrus on the nose, and melon flavors followed by a tangy, refreshing finish.

TJ's Wine Profile:This Pinot Gris is Trader Joe’s first wine from the cool climate of Columbia Valley, WA. Pale straw in color with notes of mango, citrus blossom, and banana on the nose. On the palate, a medley of tropical notes continue throughout the long and lingering finish.

Blend Composition: 90% Pinot Gris, 5% Gewurztraminer, 5% Muscat Canelli

Market Price: $13.99+

TJ's Price: $8.99

My personal impression: Fruit on the palate includes pear and cantaloupe. A mineral tone on the finish. Medium acidity.

TJ's Wine Profile:Cultivated in the vineyards along the Adige valley surrounded by the Italian Alps using the traditional pergola style, the grapes are hand harvested at optimum ripeness to produce a perfectly balanced and crisp Pinot Grigio. Aromatic crisp green apple with mineral and honeysuckle notes.

Blend Composition:Pinot Grigio, Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, & Pinot Blanc

Market Price:$10+

TJ's Price: $6.99

My personal impression: Crisp and dry. Acidity offsets the melon and green apple. Has a hint of mineral with a tangy finish.

TJ's Wine Profile:A Pinot Grigio crafted in the Alto Adige/Valdadige region of Northern Italy, which is known as premium wine country. Valleys are broad and the Adige’s floods keep the mineral rich, gravelly soil fertile. While the viticulture is more challenging, soil types and day-night temperature variations infuse the wines with fragrances and freshness. This crisp white wine has a straw yellow color. Its clean, intense aroma and dry taste (with appealing notes of Golden Delicious apples) make this wine one of great personality and versatility.

Blend Composition:100% Pinot Grigio

Market Price:$21.99

TJ's Price: $18.99

My personal impression: Aroma of apple, and then as it aired, I noticed grapefruit. Flavors on the palate of citrus, including lemon and grapefruit. It is bright. It's clean. It's crisp. It's fresh. It’s lovely.

TJ's Wine Profile:A Trader Joe’s exclusive from Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy, this wine is a pale yellow color with flecks of green. A floral aroma combined with pears and candied lemon. On the palate: The Contadino Pinot Grigio is soft and refreshing with a light to medium body. There are notes of apple, pear and grapefruit supported by an oily citrus profile. The mouthfeel is smooth and creamy with a nice streak of minerality and just a hint of acid.

Blend Composition:100% Pinot Grigio

Market Price:$7.99+

TJ's Price:$4.99

My personal impression: This is the best five dollar Pinot Grigio I’ve tasted in a long time. It's got lemon. It's got peach, yes peach. That's a great flavor to find in a Pinot Grigio. There's also a beautiful lime and green apple in this. Bought this one and had it with the Mexican shrimp cocktail (see recipe above).

Oh, It’s an 80's Kinda Summer….