
Wine Time: L'Uva
Bella Wine Gallery
“The
black currant fruity taste of the wine was great with the Swai.”
By
Barbara Keck
L’Uva
Bella Wine Gallery in Reno has a great wine selection and is dedicated
to wine education. Debby Bullentini, the tireless proprietor of the shop,
extends her skills in matching wine and food pairings to a monthly event
at the Lodge at Galena on Mount Rose Highway.
As
an aperitif, Debby chose the Carbo Cava Brut, a Spanish sparkler that is
fermented in the bottle. The blend of grapes (60 percent Xarel-lo, 30 percent
Macabeo, 10 percent Parellada) results in a pale, yet brilliant, yellow
wine. Fine light aromas for this fruit and floral wine make it an exquisite
mouth-filling Brut. 11.5 percent alcohol. $12.99 the bottle.
The
first course, a ragout of pork, tomato and white beans is a hearty dish
that paired well with the Brokenwood Semillon from Australia. This is a
wine from the Hunter Valley, a wine region that’s a daytrip from
Sydney. Brokenwood makes this 100 percent Semillon with a classic New World
style, using this revered Old World grape. The color is a luminous green/yellow
that lets you anticipate the zesty lemongrass aroma. The structure of the
wine is tight, but the citrus and slightly acidic finish is a perfect complement
to the hearty pork dish. 11 percent alcohol. $20.99 bottle.
The
Vina Sardosol Blanco 2008 from the Navarra region of Spain was a good pairing
with the salad course. Generally, salads are difficult to pair with wine,
but this salad from Chef Lindsay of mixed beets with mustard and baby greens
was well suited to this wine with its minimal acidity, nice bouquet and
apple-apricot floral notes. The blend is 70 percent Chardonnay and 30 percent
Viura. 13.5 percent alcohol. $10.99 bottle.
I
hadn’t heard of the fish Swai, but this is an Indonesian species
much like Sole, and it is delicious. Baked with lemon, lentils and zucchini,
it paired nicely with the Domaine Lafage Grenache Noir 2008, a French wine
made from the Rhone varietal Grenache. The black currant fruity taste of
the wine, with medium tannin, and a rich and concentrated palate, was great
with the Swai.
Desserts
really should come first in any dinner, despite what your mother said.
The chef’s yummy poached pears with chocolate-coffee sabayon, accompanied
by homemade sugar cookies, was incredible with the Sandeman’s Founder’s
Reserve Ruby Port. Sandeman’s has made port since 1790, and this
traditional ruby-red port had powerful flavors and a wonderful brightness
to it. $23.99 bottle.
For
more information on wine offerings, visit luvabellawinegallery.com
or call (775) 831-1110. Call The Lodge at Galena at (775) 849-2100.
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past columns at winebiznews.blogspot.com.
Coming soon: Barbara’s iphone App on Sierra Foothill Wineries.
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