Valentine’s Day menu: spoil the one you love

There is nothing as powerful as sharing yourself; your time, your energy and your passion with the one you love.

To me very little can encapsulate this idea as readily as cooking a meal and, yet, I know few people who genuinely love cooking these days. It seems as though I’m watching an entire generation grow up in the shadow of fast-food and ready-to-eat meals. In fact, those two areas have been the source of almost all growth in food sales in North America for the past 5 years in a row.

And I’m trying to understand: the busy lifestyle, the need to continually be doing more… we all know that incomes don’t stretch as far as they used to and everyone is working just a little bit (or a lot) more than ever. You’re up before 6 to make it to work by 8 so that you miss the worst of rush-hour. Maybe you work through lunch or, if you go out, it’s for something quick. Then you’re lucky to be home by 6 and there’s just no time to make something from scratch!

Trust me – I get it. I’ve been there, in the trenches with you. It’s not easy yet I find myself pitying the busy-people more than a little. Why pity? Because these people have forgotten the joy one can find in cooking! The joy of creation, the joy of doing something well and the unabashed delight in putting a smile on someone else’s face… with something as simple as a cookie or, in this case, my Valentine’s Day’s menu.

I crafted this for the light of my life:

filet of beef tenderloin, local wild mushroom demi-glaçe

roasted local organic new potato

roast organic gold beets and butternut squash

steamed organic Swiss Chard

 This is not a complicated menu and yet, should you go to your local steakhouse, no doubt you would be charged in excess of $30 per person just for this entree… and more like $45 when one considers that the entire menu is organic and/or local, seasonal. If I told you that the beef came from a local cattle rancher and was grass-fed and free-range, hormone and antibiotic free and dry-aged for more than 40 days then the price goes up again: $60+ in most markets and an easy $100 in Las Vegas.

I’m not saying that it’s easy to afford the $150+ for just the food in a restaurant, much less the $100+ bottle of wine I would want to pair with it. By the time the night is over you will have spent $300++ and no, for most people, that’s not easy. But my grandma told me once when I was very young “Christopher never give money as a gift, it is a poor way to show you care“.

So let me help you show you care. Let me share a few tricks-of-the-trade and you can make this meal for less than half the price (total cost for these ingredients for 2 people was about $50 CAD at Hopcott’s); you and your special-someone will appreciate it twice as much!

1. BEFORE YOU COOK

There are a litany of things that all chefs do before they cook and all of these little steps get generalized as mis-en-placewhich means “putting things in their place“.

notice the marbling, the quality one gets from a local butcher

a) choosing the steak: notice how this beef is marbled; the fat is integrated right into the muscle meaning that, as it cooks, that fat will render and keep the meat moist. I got this from my local, artisanal butcher (Hopcott’s) and if you Google “local butcher” you’ll find one in your neighborhood as well

b) prepping the steak:  bring that steak out of the fridge an hour before cooking to come up to room temperature before you fry it: going straight from the fridge to the pan makes for tense/tough meat. Pat it dry on paper towel to wipe away any excess moisture and allow for proper searing which locks in the natural juices. Season as you will; the better the quality the less seasoning I use… for this steak all I used was Kosher seasalt and freshly ground black pepper

c) heat your pan: seems like a “no-brainer” but so many people neglect to heat their fry-pan enough. How hot does it need to be? Leave it at medium+ heat for 10-15 minutes before you start to cook so that the steaks start searing immediately and never, ever crowd the pan or you won’t be able to keep the pan hot (the steaks should never touch)

As much as possible, everything that can be done before you start cooking should be done. Once again, this is a key element to mis-en-place because our goal in the kitchen is to ensure we can spend as much time focused on cooking our food as perfectly as possible. So do it! Trim your veggies, dice your onions, set the table, open the wine – all before you ever start to cook the steaks. Now pour a half-glass of wine, start to sear the steaks, and enjoy the process! This is great cooking and these are the stunning wines I’ve sourced for you!

2010 Muga Reserva Rioja DOC

91+ points, $25+ CAD, EXCELLENT Value

*DECANTING NOT NECESSARY*

… perhaps the most enticing aspect to this wine is the rich floral aromas it offers at the same time as the ever-approachable ripe red and black berry tones (think of a bowl full of raspberries, blackberries, huckleberries and black currants); hints of vanilla, warm toasty oak and peaty-earth round out the bouquet. The palate is brisk enough to warrant food (medium+ zippy red/black currant acid) and the sultry/fine medium- tannin structure means you can enjoy this on its own, with food or even a great cigar! Bold flavors with a full, youthful expression mimicking the aromas are truly fantastic when one considers that the winery produces over 850,000 bottles of this: more of this is made than the total production of many small to mid-size wineries! Enjoy 2015-2020+ due to excellent construction.

… the only way this wine could be any better, more complimentary, with beef tenderloin is to grill that beef over a wood fire; the smokey tones of mesquite, applewood, hickory or whatever you use for your barbeque will play with the wines’ peaty/earthy tones and bring greater balance to the ample berry notes. The crispness/freshness of the acidity works perfectly with an unctuous sauce like demi-glaçe or a compound butter and the peaty/earthy notes will find unison with the wild mushrooms used in this example.

 2011 Chaberton Estate Reserve Syrah

Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys, BC

92 points, $31 CAD, EXCELLENT Value

**Silver/2014 National Wine Awards of Canada, BC**

*DECANTING NOT NECESSARY*

… there are producers in BC whose Syrah/Shiraz is easily on par with some of the top producers in the world. Dollar for dollar these wines can be compared to the northern Rhône valley (France), Barossa (Australia) or Colchagua (Chile) and yet, for the most part, they are unknown. But not for long! Chaberton Estates is just one of a litany of great Syrah  producers and the wine speaks for itself; textured aromas rich with red and black berries (raspberry, blackberry, huckleberry), dark flowers (irises, lilies, roses), cinnamon bark, pink peppercorn all colliding with a stunning synergy. The palate is brisk enough to warrant good food and yet balanced well enough to enjoy on its own; tight/focused full red currant acid frames a full/fine/chewy tannin structure that delivers an excellent concentration of flavors that mimic the bouquet. Excellent structure, this wine has the capacity to age gracefully for years and will continue to evolve: enjoy 2015-2025.

… this is a sophisticated wine; as such, pair it with food that is more subtle. Beef tenderloin is delightfully tender (hence the name) but rather lacking in flavor, especially when one compares it against cuts like a T-bone or ribeye. Let the musky, perfumed floral tones in the wine bring balance to the beef and elevate both! Savor the wine on its own or delight in how the fresh acid keeps the beef from weighing too heavily on the palate… the fresh berry tones will also balance the ultra-rich demi-glaçe.

2. WHILST YOU COOK

a) the pan: pan-searing steak is classic French cooking at its finest so don’t be afraid to emulate classic French methodology! We only drizzle a touch of oil (canola) on the steak before searing but otherwise it is a dry pan. This is important for purity of flavors as, if the oil gets too hot, it can impart unpleasant flavors on the beef.

b) turning the steak: Notice how I don’t turn the steak until it has seared perfectly on one side. How do I know it’s seared? It lifts easily from the pan! Now I just turn it over, spoon a healthy dab of butter on top to ensure it stays moist, and finish it in the oven

c) the oven and timing: I cooked this at 425F and, given the 1.5″ thick steaks, calculated approximately 90 seconds in the oven for every degree of “doneness”: RARE=90 seconds, MEDIUM RARE=3 minutes, MEDIUM= 4 1/2 minutes, MEDIUM WELL= 6 minutes, WELL=8 minutes… if you’re cooking for 5 minutes or longer, take a moment to spoon those lovely pan juices over the steak. It just takes a moment but makes the world of difference!

3. POST COOKING

organic produce just TASTES better!

I love cooking but I do not love cleaning. As such, I make every effort whilst cooking to ensure that when I’m done the kitchen is as clean and organized as possible. I want to enjoy my meal, savor every moment, and when it’s done take my wife and the remaining wine and curl-up on the couch. I can’t do that if the kitchen looks like a bomb went off! So take a moment while the steaks are searing, the veggies are roasting, the sauce is simmering and the greens are steaming: clean a few utensils, scrub the cutting board, wipe the counter. And never forget to just soak your pans when you’re done with them! My clean-up, post-meal, is rarely more than 10 minutes because it was drilled into me from an early age: Clean As You Go!

So enjoy your Valentine’s meal and enjoy the process! You just might find it so addictive that you’ll want to be sharing that special feeling more and more often! And it truly is like anything else in life; the more you do, the easier it gets. It’s still work, even for chefs, but it is rewarding work. It’s fun work and the kind of work that I now share with my 3-year old daughter who comes and helps me season food or scrub veggies in the big sink. She loves organizing my dirty dishes and YES! That inevitably means that I clean up after her cleaning-up but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

My daughter gets excited about baking scones with Daddy. She grabs a chair to come help with dinner and gets mad if she’s shooed off. She actually enjoys helping to unload the dishwasher. Is our family perfect? Far from it. But – but I’ve seen the gleam in her eye, the swelling with pride, when she tastes something that she helped to make and I am so humbled that I helped her find that within herself.

 This Valentine’s Day my hope is that you will remember: the most genuine happiness comes from knowing you have shared with the one you love and shared not just of your wallet, but of your self.

Many thanks to my friends the Hopcott family of Hopcott Meats (artisanal butchers) for the brilliant components for this meal; they truly are some of the best tasting, most tender, steaks I have ever had! And of course to Christopher Stewart Wines: importers of Muga for Canada and to Chaberton Estates of British Columbia for the generous sample bottles. As always you can find more recipes, free wine reviews and my notes on premium distillates and cigars on:

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Anarchist Mountain Vineyard, BC

It’s natural, at the start of a New Year, to ask ourselves: “What does it mean to be alive?” We breathe, we eat, we give thanks through our day for the blessings we’ve received. Does that make us alive? Or is it something more?

In my life, the times when I feel most alive are when I struggle; when I strive against the obstacles, the nay-sayers, the obstinate will of those who would deny the possibility of more. This is when every breath is full of oxygen, when every flower is imbued with a kaleidoscope of color and the wind is the breath of god.

Andrew Stone loving his work

Look at this photo: this is a man who is filled with life. Even if you don’t know him and, before a few weeks ago, I didn’t know him either. But I don’t have to know him to see his joy. I don’t have to know him to see that this is someone who has found his place in the world, his home and that life is more to him than the passage of time.

Meet Andrew Stone: one half of the team that is bringing life to a vineyard 1700′ above the ocean; high above the northern tip of the Sonoran desert in the Okanagan Valley, British Columbia. A place filled with its own ancient magic that, to some, may seem ethereal. But watch the sun begin to set over the hills, feel the last rays touch your face, the earth, the grapes on the hillside, and tell me that you don’t hear the land whispering its own primordial song.

I asked Terry (wife/partner/better-half to Andrew):

the vista at Anarchist Mountain

“Why? Why do this? Why give up your great jobs with great incomes and great security – to take on the life of winemakers?”

And though we were speaking on the phone I assure you that I saw most plainly when Terry smiled quietly before her response.

“When we came to this place, when we looked out on this vista, we knew that this was our place. This is our home and the lifestyle of being a part of this land makes it all worthwhile.”

I knew she was being completely honest. I knew because I’ve felt the same feeling. I tried to steer the conversation around to the actual business side of winemaking and asked Terry what their inspirations were for the Burgundian-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that I tried. But Terry is humble, to the point of even deferring that they were truly wine-makers.

“We’re still trying to figure that out Kristof: are we really winemakers or are we grape-growers? There is so much inspiration to choose from but, of course, my brother (Jak Meyer of Meyer Family Vineyards) has been significant for both of us. It was being there with him, right at the beginning of his adventure into the woolly world of wine, that got us hooked.”

But – there must be a style that you’re striving for… certainly with your Pinot Noir, which is one of the most unique I’ve tried.

“Yes, there is a style…. the style the land wants to express. And that’s what we’re trying to better understand.”

Andrew and Terry Stone

Humbling words coming from a couple who have staked their future on these grapes and so I had to know: What would be the biggest goal for Anarchist Vineyards in 2015?

“You mean besides survival?”

And we both laughed ruefully at that, for we both knew what it is to take that leap into the unknown and gamble not only with our own future, but the future of our family on a new venture. “It’s a roller-coaster-” Darren Hardy of Success Magazine likes to say, “-and if you don’t like roller-coasters then you’ld better not get into business for yourself.”

“We’ve both kept our full-time jobs to help support our work at the vineyard, but it means long days and very little rest on weekends, holidays… we’ve always got something to do! Which we love! But we’ve got to get the word out there – get people trying the wine so we can get feedback and do better next year, and better the year after that.”

And then came one of the hardest parts of being a journalist; I had to tell the truth. I’m not including a review of the Anarchist Vineyards Chardonnay: the acid was untamed/out of balance and though the wine showed excellence in mineral concentration, the structure was overwhelmed by these full++ lemon zest acids. And I said as much to Terry who, to my surprise, concurred.

“It was a difficult vintage for us. I’m not making excuses, but it was tough, and we’ll do better next year. That being said we have noted that, with time, it is softening; making it a wine that will come into its own over time “

And listening to her, I found myself nodding in agreement. It is part of the process and a necessary one. You and I know that we all learn better from our stumbles in life than we do from our triumphs. Lucky for you, the consumer, Anarchist Mountain Vineyard has both.

2012 “Wildfire” Pinot Noir

Okanagan Falls, Osoyoos

harvested at 2.3 tons/acre

70 cases produced

89 points, Very Good Value

*BENEFITS FROM DECANTING OR 1-2 RUNS THROUGH THE AERATOR*

… inviting aromas of ripening red raspberries, wild lavender and thyme, punctuated by a light seasalt minerality. Refreshing medium+ raspberry acid acts much like great examples from its cousin Gamay Noir in that it conveys a candied fruit quality. Tannin is fine and incredibly light – far less then I would expect – and again, acts much like a good Gamay. This being the case, and the wine having very good balance, structure concentration, I would use this the same way when pairing with food. Think of this as a “mid-afternoon” Pinot Noir; perfect with a grilled mortadella e provolone panini at the park or out on the deck with a plate of charcuterie (coldcuts), local cheese and warm bread. Unfined and unfiltered means that this wine is made with Old World skill and, though under Stelvin enclosure (screw-top), will benefit from a few years of age… it helps, in my opinion, to soften the eager acid and let the wine find it’s balance.

livin’ the life at Anarchist

Many thanks to Andrew and Terry Stone of Anarchist Mountain Vineyard for the very generous sample bottles. As always you can find more recipes, free wine reviews and my notes on premium distillates and cigars on:

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BC Uncorked: a gathering of greatness

http://bcuncorked.ca

What compels a man to tear himself away from his family at the end of a long work week? Well in this case the man in question is John Gerum; a lover, a most ardent fan, of BC wine and the evening in question is "BC Uncorked: the Art of Food and Wine".

Ok. That could get me out of the house on a Saturday night as well.

But John is more then just a devotee to the oenological adventures of BC winemakers; he's their cheerleader as well. For this event is his brainchild and has been gathering groups of grape-lovers to the furthest side of the GVRD (Greater Vancouver Regional District) for going on 6 years now. And it's amazing!

Under the humble eaves of a high school come to gather some of the finest winemakers in the province and, for those readers unfamiliar with British Columbia viticulture, that's an impressive line-up. It's a funny kind of system that the residents of any particular region seldom truly know the adventurous pioneers working in their very midst and when it comes to wine this is most certainly a truism: BC winemakers are crafting greatness.

21st Chardonnay du Monde (Burgundy, France)
29th Pacific Rim International Wine Competition (San Bernardino, California)
34th All-Canadian Wine Championships (Windsor, Ontario)
Northwest Wine Summit (Pomona, California)
31st International Wine Challenge (West Sussex, UK)
33rd Riverside International Wine Competition (Murrieta, California)
Decanter World Wine Awards (London, UK)
45th International Wine & Spirit Competition (London, UK)
75th Los Angeles International Wine Competition (Los Angeles, California)
San Francisco International Wine Competition (San Francisco, California)
Mondial des Pinots (Sierre, Switzerland)
Intervin International Wine Awards

Are some of the prestigious competitions where BC has garnered respect in 2014, to name a few - many thanks to Wine BC! ( http://www.winebc.org/press_room/awards/)

 And here in the town of Port Moody, nestled against the base of the mountains and sitting squarely in the rain-shadow, these champions come to gather. With a kind of Zen tranquility they set-up their tables; pulling bottles of chilled Chardonnay from thermal-bags and cases of Pinot Noir and Bordeaux-styled blends from their trolleys. The room begins to hum as the crowd tries to appear patient with the rows and rows of bottles being arrayed just beyond reach.

Then the chefs appear and all sense of patience quickly dissipates; barbequed ribs start glazing over hot coals, fresh truffled popcorn is tossed in caramel and seasalt, tart-shells are patiently filled with infused mousses and fresh fruit... like I said, what could possibly compel someone to leave their kids on a Saturday night?

But BC Uncorked is about more then just delighting one's senses with world-class wines and fine victuals. Have a listen to my interview with John Gerum and co-conspirator Steve on their decision to craft this "Ode to Art" into something with a deeper resonance:

Haywire “Lunar New Year” wines

 http://www.haywirewinery.com/

 

The challenge with many people in the wine business is that they start treating wine as art and forgetting that it is a business. In and of itself there’s nothing wrong with viewing wine as art but when it interferes with a business’ ability to remain fiscally viable then the vision needs to change. This has never been a problem for the wise folks at Haywire who manage to blend art and function in virtually every endeavor they create: Lunar New Year wines being the example today.

 When I first heard that someone was crafting a special release for the Lunar New Year I thought “Capitalism at its finest; these folks are just chasing the market” which, really, isn’t such a bad thing if it’s done well. China is now poised to be the largest consumer of wine on the planet… who wouldn’t want a piece of that?!

But as my step-family is Cantonese I cringed inwardly. I had visions of ginger-infused syrupy sadness lacking depth beyond Beaujolais Nouveau and tasting more of my morning ginseng tea. I couldn’t have been any further from the truth. Here are wines that any winemaker would be proud to put his/her name to and showcase not only varietal correctness but also speak in sophisticated ways of their terroir. Truly finessed, each of them, I was a bit humbled and started my due diligence in researching just what this could portend: after all, it was only a few years ago that one of the most highly regarded houses of Bordeaux put a Chinese symbol on its bottle.

It caused a wave of sales that outstripped anything conceived.

So the savvy craftsmen at Haywire decide to follow, but, in an unexpected way; you see, this is one of their first releases and it’s for the “Year of the Sheep”. This is considered a very unlucky year by many Asians and this is especially true for children’s birth years and business. Creating a new wine is certainly like a kind of “birth” and this is most definitely business, so why do it? It wouldn’t be the first time a winery created a release on only certain years.

Well as I pondered this I looked at my 8-month old son who was helping me with this article *(all punctuation is his, not mine). Adam is half Italian and half Irish; his Italian family name actually meaning “sheep” in their dialect. It seemed to me, in that moment, that sheep were actually very lucky for some people like me. And I got past the nay-sayers who conjecture doom and gloom at every corner and found the beauty of the “Year of the Sheep”.

Loyalty. That’s a quality to those born in this lunar year. So is generosity. And kindness. Hard for me to imagine bestowing those traits just because of the month they’re born in, but, I’ve heard crazier explanations for the cosmos before.

And I went back to the wines I was making notes on: so filled with generosity of flavor, brimming with “loyal” representation of the grape and the land and with very “kind” pricing… and so it seems, to this writer, that 2015 will be one lucky “Year of the Sheep”.

2012 “Lunar New Year Red”

blend of (mostly) Gamay Noir, small amount of Syrah

89+ points, Very Good Value

$22.90 in BC

*DOES NOT REQUIRE DECANTING

… to get this quality in Gamay Noir from Beaujolais in the south of Burgundy one would need to invest more then $23 CAD and invest it wisely. This wine carries rich aromas of warm earth, dark cocoa, stewing blackberry/plum/raspberry and the hint of Schezuan peppercorn on the finish (thank-you Syrah). The bright, full, fresh palate carries lively medium+ currant acids that titillate the tastebuds and are a brilliant way to start any meal or simply enjoy on their own as the guests are arriving. The medium fine/slightly grippy tannin carry their weight deceptively as they are finessed well beyond the price-point of the wine and deliver a performance more in line with wines twice the cost. This is a wine that at the same time will impress the ardent connoisseur in your midst and be perfect for the friend who “really is more of a beer person” – or so they say. Food pairing options abound from ginger and lemongrass infused beef/pork to the salty treat of soya crispy skin duck; the bold red and black fruit tones will balance salt and yet the warm earthy/spice/pepper tones will delight in bringing balance to Asian flavors. Meant for consuming now (Stelvin enclosure) this wine can age well for several years but will not develop in bottle. Enjoy 2014-2017

2013 “Lunar New Year White”

blend of Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Viognier

90++points, EXCELLENT VALUE

$19.90 in BC

*DO NOT SERVE TOO COLD; 12C MINIMUM TO PRESERVE THE AROMATICS

… this might be the prettiest wine I tried in 2014! Whilst normally this style isn’t a “go-to-wine” for me, this particular blend is impressive on many levels: aroma, balance, structure and value. The aromas are seductively layered with notes of lychee fruit, pink grapefruit, honey and exotic flowers… it’s an incredibly easy wine to want to drink which brings me to the palate. The balance and structure are absolutely flawless for under $20; bright/fresh/zippy medium+ lemon and grapefruit acid dance in unison. This wine loves south Asian flavors: Vietnamese, Cambodian, Thai… coconut milk, ginger, lemongrass and galangal all delight in the nuanced levels here. Which brings me to value: STUNNING. Want a blend like this from outside of BC? Firstly I don’t know any region blending these varietals but secondly something similar would start at $25 and work its way up… buy a few extra bottles as this gem will easily last a few years in the cellar/wine-fridge if you can resist 

“lucky money” from Canada in the Year-of-the-Sheep

Many thanks to Haywire Wines and their PR firm TownHall Brands (  http://townhallbrands.com/ )for taking the time and expense to send these lovely wines to me.

As always you can find more recipes, free wine reviews and

my notes on premium distillates and cigars:

on Twitter @AStudentofWine

on Facebook @ www.facebook.com/TheChefandTheGrape