Dinner: Colby Cheese/Cracker Appetizer, Orzo pasta, Cheesecake
Orzo recipe:
- Orzo rice
- Feta cheese
- Fresh basil
- Craisens
- Olive Oil
- Salt/ Pepper
Wines/Beers: Black Ink Wine, Incostas Do Lima Vinho Verde, Stone Chai Spiced Beer.
So this was a bit of an unconventional dinner pairing, but it was a really busy week. I ended up doing this by myself (so sad) only because I flew across the country Wednesday-Sunday. Stupid undergraduate research conference. So I first tried each of the wines alone (hence the blog postings) and then did them all with food later in the day. It was a heavy drinking day, but call me dedicated. Missing the Vintage Cellar tastings really throws me off my budget.
First up was the Black Ink. I have been so excited to try this wine. I had it decant for a few hours, and it really opened up the red berry flavors. Delicious with cheese and crackers. Really creamy to smooth out the richness of the wine. Also a really great start to the entire experiment. Gosh it was heaven with the orzo. The craisens and feta were so so good with the wine. It also was good that the orzo was a cold dish. The wine still has a bit of heat, so the cool orzo make it really balanced. Cheesecake didn't pair super great together. It seemed too sweet. I was overwhelmed with the richness of it all.
Next was the Vinho Verde. It was not as delightful of a wine by itself, but it paired ok with the cheese and crackers. Colby is kind of a sharp cheese, which made that combo good. I thought it was really good with the feta in the Orzo. Same with the basil. Gosh I just love that Orzo dish. I made a ton of it and it just makes the best leftovers. Last up was the cheesecake, and no. Not very good. It was an awkward combo between the whipped cream and the Vinho Verde. I don't know what kind of desserts would pair well with this.
Finally, and the real reason I had the cheesecake, was for the beer. It was good with crackers, but I didn't really like it with the cheese. As the beer was more of like a dinner in itself, it was too much to put with the orzo. My stomach was also starting to get super full. Finally, the cheesecake. I talked about this one already, but oh my gosh was a good pairing. I also am now obsessed with cheesecake from Our Daily Bread. Buy it.
Also decided to add a picture of my view out the window as I flew over the Grand Canyon! Not exactly related, but I thought it was awesome.
