The Underground

I've been thinking about vegetarian food & what to pair with such cuisine...even more so that usual since I live with a vegetarian. I think that even more so with this kind of eating I have to take the texture & seasoning into account. With an animal protein based dish I think about the wine's acidity acting as a knife through the fat & meat. With veggie stuff, all bets are off. With the gorgeous food of my friend Justin to play with I really felt a creative license to use whatever I wanted. This was fun! Of course being the Pacific NW obsessive that I am I instantly reached for Washington State.



For the first course enoki mushroom ceviche with smoky black beans & tostones I immediately thought of a cocktail. The very cuban nature of the dish made me desire a mojito. I used an ounce & a half Cruzan light rum, one half of a lime, a small handful of mint & one teaspoon of raw sugar for this recipe. Muddle that all together, top off with ice & club soda & BANG! Instant cuban vacation. Justin, Amy & I all thought it worked pretty well if I do say so myself.



Next we had corn elote soup, a take off of roasted corn elote which is an incredible dish at Las Tortugas. Justin prepared it with roasted corn, queso fresco, lime & mexican crema. The sweetness & richness of corn needed fruit & acidity so I paired this up with Seven Hills Viognier 2008 Talcott Vineyard.



The notes of jasmine, lime, honeysuckle, orange peel & ginger worked deliciously with the sweet/spiciness of the soup & the acidity matched perfectly against the lime as well as cutting through the richness.



We finished up with a six minute duck egg over crisp tortilla nests & a smoked chili-tomato sauce. The rich yolk & spicy earthy nature of the dish needed spice & earth to match with it. Chateau La Colombiere Coste Rouge 2006 just sang with this dish. Great sensual aromas & textures on this bad boy, almost haunting in the way it just lingered on my palate & made me want more.