Originally Published August 2010
Inspired after to listening to a few friends one night
debate the topic of what wine goes best with pizza, I decided that the food for
this month’s pairing would be pizza. I am told that if this was Italy, we would
not be pairing pizza with wine, the ideal beverage would be beer. Why? well
that I think is for another debate on another night for a different column.
While pizza may seem to be a rather straight forward food
for pairing, it can be prove to be challenging and is not as straight forward
as one may initially presume. Stop and think about it the last time you looked
at a pizza menu, the options of choices are almost limitless, plain cheese
pizza, 4 cheese pizza, pepperoni pizza, vegetarian pizza, white pizza, Hawaiian
pizza, Barbecue chicken, I’ll stop now as I think I have made my point. So how
does one pair wine with such a chameleon of dish like pizza? By thinking about
the intensity, acidity, tannins and flavors of the wine and matching those to
the pizza you will not go wrong. These factors will vary depending on the
toppings, sauce and crust used to prepare the pizza. When matched well, one
will truly enjoy the intermingling of flavors of the pizza and the wine. For pizza
you generally want a wine that can stand up to the sauce with medium acidity
and enough tannins to balance out or cut through the cheese(s). This type of
wine is generally a young, medium bodied red wine.
Of course depending on how extravagant your
pizza is, you can play with that last statement to work in more fuller bodied
wines. One tidbit of advice for the fuller bodied red wines, they generally
have more tannins and that can prove tricky with the pizza crust. Pizza crust
sometimes has a drying effect on the mouth, so do the tannins in wine, the more
tannin, the more of the dryness effect that is felt in the mouth.
Since I tend towards pizza with at least one extravagant
ingredient and a zesty sauce, my go to wine for pizza is generally a
Sangiovese. This grape is the heart and soul of many wines from Tuscany especially
ones from the region of Chianti. Sangiovese is rarely bottled alone; it is
often blended with other red wine varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon or
Cabernet Franc. The blending of different varietals often has a tremendous
impact on enhancing or tempering the wines quality and flavor profile. If done
well, Sangiovese is a smooth drinking wine with a beautifully balanced favor
profile.
The Sangiovese that is featured in this paring is produce by
Three Fox Vineyards located in Delepalene, VA in the heart of the Fauquier Wine
Trail.
Three Fox Vineyards principally
specializes in Italian varietals.
The 2008
ILVolpe Sangiovese is a blend of Three Fox Vineyards’ estate grown Sangiovese
(75%) Cabernet Franc (20%) and Chambourcin (5%). The Sangiovese and Cabernet
Franc are individually aged in American and Hungarian Oak. The wine is made in
“Super Tuscan” style. The 2008 IL Volpe Sangiovese is a Gold Medal Winner,
Eastern Seaboard 2008 Wine Competition and a Silver Medal, Hilton Head Island
International 2009 Wine
Competition.
(IL Volpe means “the
fox”).
1)
Roasted
Pepper and Tomato Salad with Herbs De Provence
Croutons
While to many a person, pizza can be a meal in itself. I
generally like a salad along with pizza. I decided to roast a few red bell
peppers, two types of tomatoes (Roma and Grape tomatoes) and torn up pieces of
French bread. Herbs De Provence was liberally sprinkled on the tomatoes and
bread prior to roasting.
The IL Volpe Sangiovese paired wonderfully with the salad,
the herbaceous notes of the salad really brought forth the Cabernet Franc
influences in the wine. The nose on this wine was of cassis with a hint of
tobacco. Taste was of darker fruits like cherry and was well balanced with a
long finish. It balanced out the sweetness of the roasted peppers and tomatoes
2) 2 Cheese Roasted
Tomatoes, Mushroom Pizza with a zesty sauce on a whole wheat Pizza crust.
The two cheeses on this pizza were gruyere and mozzarella.
For me, mozzarella can be rather one dimensional and the gruyere adds a depth
and richness to the cheese mixture without overpowering the mozzarella. The
mushrooms and tomatoes were sprinkled with Herbs de Provence before going on to
the pizza (hint: place the mushrooms under the cheese mixture to prevent them
from drying out during baking.)
The IL Volpe Sangiovese had the right balance of acidity and
tannins to both bring out the richness of the gruyere and at same time cutting
through the palate coating effect of the cheese. The wine was tangy enough and
matched the zestiness of the sauce. The whole wheat crust brought out the toast
and caramel notes of the wine. The touch of Chambourcin rounds out the full
mouth feel of this wine. This wine has a beautiful long finish. Notes of cassis, dark cherries and a hint of
chocolate can be detected. This wine paired beautifully to the rich extravagant
pizza. The Herbs de Provence brought forth the subtle hints of the herbaceous
influence that both the Cabernet Franc and Chambourcin.
While I do not think the debate mentioned at the beginning
of the article was resolved, it did inspire a wonderful meal.
I selected a Port like dessert wine, Rosso Dolce Chambourcin
by Three Fox Vineyards. The vineyard is located on the Fauquier Wine Trail in
Delaeplane, VA. The Rosso Dolce’s (sweet red) residual sugar is at 6%, with
strong berry/ red fruit and subtle chocolate notes. This wine is a nice
alternative to Port as it is Port-like on the palate and finish. One can enjoy this
Port-like wine without the high alcohol level of a true Port wine and thus it
can be paired with more after dinner desserts.
