|
June 2010 saw the launch of Wines of Chile's "Carmenère
Made for Curry" campaign with a food and wine matching event at
one of London's leading Indian restaurants, Benares, on Berkeley Square.
Jitin Joshi (Executive Chef at Benares) and Costanzo Scala (Head
Sommelier & Wine Buyer at Benares) created a delicious menu of
classic Indian dishes and sauces to help us test the theory with 39
Carmenères from across Chile.
Guests included wine writers, sommeliers, retail buyers and on-trade
distributors. They were encouraged to taste through the
Carmenères in their own time and to experiment as much as
possible with the food to see how different dishes brought out
different characters such as Cardomom in some wines and how the smoky
oak of the tandoor could be a good balance for the toasty oak in others.
A questionnaire was handed out to all those attending and the
responses were extremely positive: most respondents wouldn't be
reduced to just one wine when asked for their favourite
Carmenère in the line up and the answer to the golden question
"Do you think Carmenère is a good match for curry?"
was a resounding "YES".
There are many types of curry however and many styles of
Carmenère but common themes included the prominence of
vibrant, spicy, sometimes floral notes that highlight the aromatic
spices of this cuisine. Use of oak was also noted as the main
characteristic in the wine that would influence the degree of success
with curry.
"In general terms yes. I can't think of any other grape variety
that would come close to this level of acceptability"
Leafy, juicy, spicy styles work best - accenting herbs andspices in
food, offering contrast"
"Seems to have an affinity with cardomom and cumin"
"The spice - light bodied & elegant florals compliment the curries"
"&ldots;. wines that are not over-oaked and have integrated oak
(work best)"
Next time you are cooking up a curry or sitting in an Indian
restaurant, go for a Carmenère and give the combination a go.
Look for lightly oaked or unoaked wines that will allow the delicate
spices in the food to develop. If you can't live without your oak fix
however, choose a tandoori dish from the menu. |
