Dinner - A Friend's House (College Themed Potluck)

           A couple of my friends hosted a wine and appetizer party last Thursday night.  Most of the people in attendance are in Boyer's wine class, but we even had a few other wine lovers join us.  There were about 17 of us in all, giving us a bountiful variety of wines and appetizers.  Our wine dinner happened to fall on the day of the unexpected snow storm that ended up closing down the Virginia Tech campus.  However, this did not stop our wine dinner from happening.  We are dedicated wine drinkers (especially on Thursday nights), and obviously we were not going to pass up free food.  So, everyone trudged their way through the snow to our friends house, and my parents took my snow boots home last weekend so that sucked.
           The theme of this wine/dinner tasting was somewhat of a "College Themed Potluck."  You might be wondering what a "College Themed Potluck" entails.  Well, it's our cheap version of a wine/dinner tasting, with a variety of random appetizers and wines.  And did I mention cheap wines?  All the wines were probably under the $10 range, but we really did have a wide variety of wines and foods.

           Among the food items were some Italian style appetizers, such as bruschetta, pasta salad and caprese.  There were cheeses and crackers, breads and chips.  There were a couple different dips, such as a tuna dip, a cheese dip and a mexican style dip.  There were some vegetables and fruits, and even macaroni and cheese.  Then there were desert items, such as cookies and croissants filled with chocolate.  I know cookies aren't the best thing to pair with wines, but that's what I brought (oatmeal chocolate chip and sugar cookies).  I was planing of making something nicer, but the snow storm hit and I couldn't make it to the grocery store, so whatever.  Among the wines, were a variety of reds, whites and a rosé.  Two of the wines that we had in the wine tasting that same day were there, the Veleta Tempranillo and the Cresta Azul.  There were Moscatos, Pinot Grigios, a Cabernet Franc, a Cabernet Sauvignon, and a red blend.  My contribution was Espiral Vinho Verde (from Trader Joe's), currently my favorite type of wine.
           The first wine I tasted was the Cresta Azul.  I had tasted this wine at the wine tasting earlier in the day, and I loved it!  It's a white wine with the variety of Macabeo, Parellada, Zarel-lo, and Moscatel.  This is a refreshing wine, with a crisp finish.  It tastes of peaches and vanilla, with a slight creaminess.  I paired this wine with the cheese, crackers and tuna spread.  The refreshing, clean taste of this wine is why I paired it with the cheese and tuna spread.  The cheese brought out the acidity in the wine and made it more crisp.  I figured this wine would pair nicely with seafood and I was correct.  The tuna spread brought out the refreshing, peachy taste in the wine, and actually made it taste sweeter.  In the future, I would pair this wine with some sort of fish.
           The second wine I tasted was the Veleta Tempranillo, which I had also had at the wine tasting earlier in the day.  I really enjoyed this Tempranillo earlier in the day, and the food pairings made the taste stand out even more.  This Tempranillo from Spain is smooth, acidic, and slightly spicy.  It tasted like pomegranate and fresh berries.  I paired this wine with the pasta salad.  I figured the italian dressing in the pasta salad would bring out the spices in this wine.  The pasta salad did in fact bring out the spices in the Tempranillo; however, I think it might have been a little too much for my taste buds.  This might have been because pasta salad might not be the best thing to pair with wine.  It overpowered the flavor of the wine, and toned down the smooth, slightly fruity taste.  Next time I would pair this wine with a meat, such as steak or lamb.
           The next wine I tasted was the Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio.  This is a very cheap Pinot Grigio, so I wasn't expecting much.  However, I really like Pinot Grigio, so I sucked it up.  Overall, it wasn't a bad cheap Pinot Grigio.  It was very smooth and tasted of tropical fruits.  I paired this wine with the caprese.  The caprese was mozzarella, a tomato, basil, and balsamic vinaigrette on top of a slice of bread.  The subtle taste of the Pinot Grigio was brought out by the caprese, specifically the balsamic vinaigrette.  It toned up the acidity and the crispness.  I liked this food pairing, but would also pair the Pinot Grigio with a fish or chicken.
           Lastly, I drank my Espiral Vinho Verde wine.  This Vinho Verde wine it from Portugal and is of the Alvarinho variety.  It is light, fruity and crisp, with a little bit of bubbly.  I drank this wine with the macaroni and cheese, but mainly because I just wanted to finish the bottle, not because I thought they would pair well together.  Boyer told us to always finish a bottle of wine once you open it.  The mac and cheese did nothing for the wine, and probably actually made it taste worse.  So, I ended up eating them separately.  Vinho Verde tends to pair nicely with seafood and light appetizers.
           Ultimately, I learned a lot from this wine dinner.  I learned that the flavors and tastes of the wine are different when pairing them with different foods.  In addition, the food brings out flavors in the wine that I didn't notice when drinking the wine without food, and vice versa.  The wine gave the food more savour to its taste, as well as added spiciness.  It was kind of a guessing game while trying to pair the wine with the food, and I really need more practice in that department.  We are definitely going to do this wine dinner party again in order to try even more wine and food pairings.  I am excited for all the possibilities!