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Wineries
Vineyards
Wine Recipes
CHICKEN BREASTS IN AVOCADO SAUCE Serves 4. - 4 skinless, boneless chicken-breast halves - Salt and pepper to taste - Flour for dredging - 1/4 cup oil - 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter - 1/2 cup chopped onion - 1/4 cup chopped celery - 1 clove garlic, minced or presseddavid woolsey 9/19/06 - 1/2 pound mushrooms, quartered - 2 tablespoons flour - 1/2 cup condensed chicken broth - 1/4 cup dry white wine - 1-1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese - 1 ripe avocado Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Flatten chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap. Put salt, pepper and flour in a paper bag and shake chicken pieces in it one at a time, shaking off excess. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, and saute chicken until evenly browned on both sides. Remove from pan and set aside. Melt the butter in the pan and saute onions in it, scraping up browned bits left from sauteing chicken, until onions are translucent. Add celery, garlic and mushrooms and saute until mushrooms have yielded their liquid. Stir in the 2 tablespoons of flour and heat, stirring, then gradually add the broth, stirring and scraping until the mixture is thick and uniform. Gradually stir in the wine and cook, stirring until mixture is uniform. Stir in cheese. Halve, pit and peel avocado and mash thoroughly. Stir into sauce and heat through. Put chicken in oven-safe baking dish and pour sauce over. Bake about 15 minutes. Serve hot with potatoes, rice or pasta. MEAT LOAF WITH BALSAMIC, RED WINE AND PINE NUTS Serves 3 to 4, with leftovers. - 1/2 cup dry red wine - 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar - Two 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick slices flaxseed, or other coarse whole-grain bread, crumbled - 1 large clove garlic - 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon salt - 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper - 3 generous tablespoons tomato paste - 1/4 tightly packed cup parsley sprigs - 1/3 packed cup fresh basil leaves, or 1 tablespoon dry basil - 1 large egg - 1 medium to large onion, halved - 1/2 to 2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese - 3/4 pound ground turkey dark meat - 3/4 pound ground turkey breast - 1/2 pound ground beef chuck - 1/2 cup salted sunflower seeds - 1/2 cup dry red wine Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine 1/2 cup of the wine, all the vinegar and bread in a large mixing bowl. Let soak while assembling other ingredients. Squeeze out the liquid into a food-processor container, adding any liquid from the bowl. Leave the bread in the mixing bowl. Add to the processor the garlic, salt, pepper and tomato paste. Puree a few seconds. Cut half the onion into 1/2-inch dice and set aside. With the processor running, drop in the remaining onion, the parsley, basil and egg. Process only a couple of seconds until the onion is finely chopped. Add everything to the bowl with the bread. Blend in the chopped onion, the cheese, meats and nuts. Blend well, keeping the mixture light. Cook up a small bit to taste for seasoning. Adjust flavorings. In a 9x12 baking pan, pat the mix into a long, 4-inch-wide loaf. Bake 15 minutes. Pour remaining 1/2 cup wine over the loaf. Bake another 30 minutes, turn heat to 400 degrees and bake another 30 minutes. Baste the meat loaf occasionally with pan juices. When the center of the loaf is 170 degrees on an instant-reading thermometer, remove from oven. Let rest 10 minutes. Slice and serve hot, moistened with pan juices. SCALLOPS OF CHICKEN IN SILKEN THYME SAUCE Serves 2 to 3 - 2 small or 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 12 ounces) - 1 tablespoon butter - 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, and more as needed - Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste - 2 large shallots, minced - Leaves from 3 branches fresh thyme - Generous pinch ground allspice - 1/2 cup dry white wine (sauvignon blanc, pinot grigio, etc.) - 2/3 cup heavy cream - 5 to 7 sprigs fresh thyme (garnish) Slice chicken across the width of the breast at an angle. Make slices about a 1/2-inch thick. Place between two sheets of plastic wrap (space pieces 2 inches apart) and pound with the bottom of a skillet until they are 1/4-inch thick. Heat butter and oil in a straight-sided 12-inch saute pan over medium-high. Once hot, saute scallops in a single layer, not touching, 30 seconds per side (salt and pepper them as they go into the pan). Remove to a plate and keep warm. Do two batches if necessary. Pour off all but a film of fat from the pan, add the shallots and thyme. Saute over medium heat until softened and aromatic. Sprinkle with allspice. Pour in wine, and scrape up all the brown crusty bits on the bottom of the pan as you boil down the wine to almost nothing. Now add the cream, simmer until slightly thickened. Taste for seasoning, adjusting flavors. Finish dish by stirring into the sauce any juices from chicken. Then pour the sauce onto a serving platter. Arrange chicken pieces in an overlapping pattern on the sauce and scatter with thyme branches. Serve hot. You could scatter a few halved green grapes over the finished chicken. They are especially good with cream and fresh thyme.
Wine Articles
Geography makes good grapes Agriculture: Southwest Idaho climate creates ideal growing conditions for winemakers Idaho Wine Commission From a purely geographical standpoint, area vintners say, southern Idaho offers ideal growing conditions. Vinifera, or wine grapes, thrive in the area's distinctly four-season climate. The characteristic cold winters, which might at first seem a disadvantage, are in fact quite conducive. The chill allows vines to go dormant, to rest and conserve important carbohydrates for the coming season, while ridding the plants of bugs and discouraging disease. In addition, the region's summer combination of cold nights and warm days serves to balance grape acids and sugars favorably. Because of temperature variations typical of the elevations in the area, sugars remain high, nurtured during the long day by the abundant sunshine, while acids are maintained at favorable levels by comparatively cool evenings. The natural acids, important for the wine's taste and longevity, can be difficult to maintain in some regions, such as the warmer California climate. Adequate sugar, on the other hand, is often the obstacle in Oregon, where early rains absorbed by the grapes and vines in the final stages of ripening dilute the fruit's natural levels of the substance. Because such potentially ruinous precipitation is also responsible for assorted other agricultural woes, including mold and rot, the Snake River Valley's lack of rainfall is considered a plus. Here, water is one element that can be controlled by the grower through irrigation, according to calculated timing. Wine commission joins downtown Caldwell Business: Idaho Grape Growers and Wine Producers Commission finds new home in Trolley Square. By Lee Vander Boegh Idaho Press-Tribune CALDWELL - Idaho's booming wine industry led the Idaho Grape Growers and Wine Producers Commission to seek a more sophisticated office to keep pace. The commission found just what it needed at Caldwell's Trolley Square. "The new office should really help us meet the needs of the growers and wine makers," said Ron Bitner of Bitner Vineyards. The commission promotes Idaho's wine industry and provides resources to the state's vineyards and wineries. "It's all part of helping the industry grow," Bitner said. Silver Trail Winery and Sandstone Vineyard owner Kathy Hansen attributes her success to the commission. "We probably wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for them," she said. "It's such a positive organization; they give (winemakers and grape growers) so much information." Hansen joined the commission when the first Sandstone Vineyards were planted in 1996. Michael Williamson, vineyard manager at Williamson Winery in Caldwell, thinks the commission plays a vital role. "I think for the industry to be successful, we need the commission to keep promoting us like they are," he said. The Idaho Grape Growers and Wine Producers Commission is located at 117 N. 9th Ave., Suite 2, Caldwell. Phone: 455-8354. Fall tastes sweet at Ste. Chapelle Wineries: Grandfather of Snake River Valley vineyards celebrates autumn with after-dinner ice wines By Linda Funaiole Idaho Press-Tribune CALDWELL - At Ste. Chapelle Winery, the advent of autumn spells the debut of a sweet, new ice wine. To kick off the season and to please the palates of local wine devotees, the winery, located at 19348 Lowell Road in Sunnyslope, recently unveiled a new Cabernet Franc red ice dessert wine that brings to three the number of these specialty sippers produced on-site. "It's a very sweet dessert wine. We let the grapes freeze on the vine, and then we harvest them while they are still frozen," Leslie Churchill, Ste. Chapelle's special events coordinator, explained. "This is something we are able to do in Idaho that other wineries are unable to do because we have freezing temperatures," Churchill said. "We are lucky here to be able to do this every year." Plucking, pressing and processing frozen mature grapes produce a very limited quantity of the popular after-dinner drink that is not yet stocked on local supermarket shelves, she said. Instead, ice wine enthusiasts may purchase the new vintage exclusively at the winery for $18.95 a bottle, or for $15 a bottle if purchased in a three-pack along with the Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc ice wines. Ste. Chapelle features a series of summer concerts that extend into the early fall. The final concert of 2006, on Oct. 1, features the popular local band High Street. It runs from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., with gates opening at noon. Admission is $10 per person, with children 14 and younger free. The winery also plans two major events for November: a "big case lot sale" of selected wines at major discounted prices from its local stocks, and from Covey Run and Columbia, its sister wineries in Washington; and a course in making wreaths from the vineyard's grapevines in mid-November. Ste, Chapelle details Ste. Chapelle is open year-round. Hours of operation are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The winery offers complimentary wine tastings daily, and tours to see how wine is processed, bottled and aged are available at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tours are not available on concert dates. Ste. Chapelle's tradition of summer and harvest-time concerts and wine picnics now dates back more than two decades. To get to Ste. Chapelle
Wine Basics
The right tools make a difference. You'll need a corkscrew and napkin. To open a bottle:
Source: The Olive Garden
Hot and cold on wines
Source: Whole Foods Market
Older wine isn't necessarily better By Mike Dunne Sacramento Bee American wine consumers, whether seasoned or neophyte, think that all wine - red and white - improves with age. (We're talking here of the age of the wine, not the age of the wine drinker.) While this perception generally is true of red wine, it applies to relatively few white wines, customarily only a handful of champagnes, chardonnays, rieslings and dessert wines. Nonetheless, when people were asked what vintage of white wine they would pick for either a casual or fancy dinner, most said they would buy the older vintage. Granted, some older white wines may be ideal, but there's also a pretty good chance that changes in an older wine may cause it to strike diners as short and tired. The better bet would be one of the younger vintages. Blame Orson Welles, suggests John Gillespie, president of the Wine Market Council, a nonprofit trade group. In the 1970s, Welles was the high-profile presence of Paul Masson Vineyards, continually reminding consumers that the winery "will sell no wine before its time." Since then, people have clung stubbornly to the notion that wine continues to get better the longer it is held. "Unfortunately, such a belief can lead to poor choices of wine and disappointment with a purchase," Gillespie says. He believes the wine trade is missing the boat by failing to capitalize on the differences between the alluring evolution of a well-aged red wine and the buoyant freshness of a young white wine intended for early drinking, such as most sauvignon blancs and pinot grigios, several chardonnays and some rieslings. Such wines, often moderately priced and increasingly in bottles with screwcaps, are at their friskiest and most refreshing at up to two or three years of age. After that, their fruitiness and crispness almost invariably plunge. What's needed, Gillespie says, is someone like Orson Welles to start promoting the fresh aspect of young white wines. Freshness is an appealing sales pitch nowadays, he notes. Breweries are touting the freshness of their beers, restaurateurs are promoting the freshness of their cuisines, and so forth. Function, not form, defines wine glasses By Jennifer Rosen Scripps Howard News Service There was a time when wine was drunk from pewter flagons, crockery cups, wooden bowls and even the bottle itself. But now we are more sophisticated about getting the most out of wine, and wines have gotten more complex. Glass companies offer fine distinctions, for instance, one shape for grand cru Bordeaux and another for mature Bordeaux. Back on Earth, one or two styles suffice. What should you look for?
Never fall in love with your glasses; they will jilt you in the end. The higher the quality, the quicker you'll break them. This process might be slowed or hastened by hand washing. Line the sink with a towel, and be sure the glasses don't touch each other. Air-dry them upside down on a towel or dish rack. Wine glass impresario George Riedel advocates holding glasses over a pot of boiling water and then wiping off the steam. Of course, when his glasses break, he's got, like, a factory to replace them. In my experience, hand washing does not touch the slow buildup of red wine that eventually turns a glass pink. So, I put all my glasses in the dishwasher. Some people complain about etching that creates a fog. You can buy special dishwasher soap for this. Most of the problem seems to come from minerals in your water.
Wine Glossary
Here are some of the most common wine-related terms: [ a · b · c · d · e · f · g · h · i · j · k · l · m · n · o · p · q · r · s · t · u · v · w · x · y · z ]
Acidity The presence of natural fruit acids that lend a tart, crisp taste to wine Aroma Smells in wine that originate from the grape Astringent Bitter; gives a drying sensation in the mouth Balanced All components of the wine are in harmony Barrel Fermented White wine that is fermented in an oak barrel instead of a stainless steel tank Body The weight and tactile impression of the wine on the palate that ranges from light to heavy/full Bouquet Smells from winemaking, aging and bottle age Buttery Rich, creamy flavor associated with barrel fermentation Character Describes distinct attributes of a wine Chewy Wine that has a very deep, textured and mouth-filling sensation Clean Wine without disagreeable aromas or tastes Closed Wine that needs to open up; aging and/or decanting can help Complex Layered aromas, flavors and textures Cooked Wine that has been exposed to excessively high temperatures; spoiled Corked Wine that has been tainted with moldy smells or other obvious flaws from a bad cork Delicate Light, soft and fresh wine Dry No sugar or sweetness remaining; a fruity wine can be dry Earthy Flavors and aromas of mushroom, soil and mineral Elegance A well balanced, full wine with pleasant, distinct character Finish The final impression of a wine on the palate; ranges from short to long Firm Texture and structure of a young, tannic red Flabby/Flat Lacking in acidity, mouth-feel, structure and/or texture Fleshy A soft textured wine Flinty A mineral tone, aroma or flavor Floral Flower aromas such as rose petals, violets, gardenia or honeysuckle Fruity Obvious fruit aromas and flavors; not to be confused with sweet flavors such as berries, cherries and citrus Full-Bodied Rich, mouth filling, weighty-textured wine Grassy Aromas and flavors of fresh cut grass or fresh herbs Green Unripe, tart flavors Hard Texture and structure that hinders flavor Herbaceous Grassy, vegetable tones and aromas Lean Wine is thin and tastes more acidic than fruity Legs Teardrop impressions of alcohol weightiness that are visible on the inside edges of a wine glass Light-Bodied A wine with delicate flavors, texture and aromas Lively Young, fruity and vivacious flavor Malolactic Conversion of hard, malic acid (green apple flavors) in wine to soft, lactic acid (rich, butter flavors) Medium-Bodied A wine with solid, but not rich weight and texture Nose The smell of a wine; aroma Oak Aromas and flavors contributed during barrel fermentation and/or aging such as vanilla, caramel, chocolate, smoke, spice or toast Off-Dry (Semi-dry) Very low levels of residual sugar remaining in the wine Rich Weighty flavors and texture Round Smooth flavors and texture; well-balanced Smoky/Toasty Aromas of smoke and toast imparted by fired barrels Sweet Wines that have a higher concentration of sugar after fermentation Tannin A drying, astringent sensation on the palate that is generally associated with heavier red wines Terroir French word reflecting the expression of soil, topography and climate in a wine Thin Wine is unpleasantly watery and lacks flavor and texture Vegetal Herbal, weedy aromas and flavors Velvety Wine is unpleasantly watery and lacks flavor and texture Vintage Year that grapes were harvested and fermented to make a wine Source: The Olive Garden
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