Robust wines for winter's hearty fare

October 24, 2010, Sunday |

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WINTER is around the corner so it's a great time to fortify yourself with hearty Czech meat dishes and equally robust wines. The most important wine making region in the Czech Republic is Southern Moravia where wines have been made since Roman times. The northern region of Bohemia also produces wines. Most are white wines made from varieties associated with Germany. Well-known white and red wine varieties are increasingly being cultivated. Popular domestically, unfortunately these wines are hard to find in China. Czech cooking tends to be quite heavy and filling and suitable for cold weather. Meats like pork, chicken and beef play a principal role. As the temperature dips in Shanghai, the thought of hearty Czech meat dish with a similarly robust wine is ever more appealing.

One of the most characteristic Czech dishes is roast pork with dumplings and sauerkraut. Roast pork like most white meats is great with white or red wine but the sourness of the sauerkraut clashes with most red wines. Therefore, a full-body white is the best companion. The Kendall-Jackson Vinter's Reserve Chardonnay from California and the Santa Rita Medalla Real Chardonnay from Chile are two new world whites with a concentration and intensity of flavor that won't be overwhelmed by the meatiness of this dish. They also feature a level of acidity that seamlessly harmonizes in the palate with the sour notes of the sauerkraut.

Another Czech meat classic is beef sirloin in cream sauce. The beef is sliced and prepared with layers of bacon, chopped root vegetables and spices and steamed until soft. The vegetables are passed through a sieve and blended with heavy cream. This sauce is poured over the beef and served with dumplings and a scoop of cranberry compote. The combination of savory meat flavors with dumplings and the rich cream makes this a very satisfying dish suitable for a smooth rich red wine. To harmonize with the slightly tart cranberry compote, the wine should also feature red fruit flavors. I recommend is balanced Bordeaux red like the Chateau Haut-Beausejour, a typically flavorful, well-made Saint Estephe red or the Chateau Caroline, a cru bourgeois from Haut Medoc. Their ample black and red fruit flavors augment the beef and vegetable flavors while the tannins aid digestion.

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Robust wines for winter's hearty fare

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