Wine Dinner(with family) Blog 2

2020 coutada Velha Red Blend       

Last week was spring break which allowed me to go back home to my family in northern Virginia. My dad is very enthusiastic about wine and I was able to have a wine dinner with him and my Mom last week. For the wine, my dad had a 2020 coutada Velha Red Blend that he had bought from Costco a while ago and for the food, we prepared some Indian food of biryani rice with fried masala chicken and fish. The wine was a red blend of various varietals such as 30% Arogonez, 30% Trincadeira, 30% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet sauvignon. It also had a 92 score from wine enthusiast so it appeared to be a very high quality wine.

Biryani, is a common dish in India and is a flavored basmati rice and meat dish made with lots of spices and masala. It is savory,spicy and full of flavor. As for the other dishes, there was chicken pieces grilled with traditional south indian spices as well as some deep fried fish in kerala spices. As the food was very savory, the wine chosen was also picked with the intention that it would best suit a savory and flavorful meal.

As for tasting notes for the wine, it had a fruity taste such as cherry/raspberry but had a spicy or savory like aftertaste. There was a hint of cocoa taste and some spice taste that oddly lingered after a sip or two(it was nice but unique!).

I paired it with the biryani rice first and the rich and sweet cherry taste complemented the masala taste of the biryani exquisitely. The acidity of the wine helped to cut down the richness of the masala. The slight spice aftertaste that the wine had was very pronounced as the biryani was already very spicy. Since I like spicy food, I still enjoyed the food but I did find myself having to drink water much more often. 

The grilled chicken was cooked with garam masala and other indian spices and the wine helped to bring a lot more of a fruity pop to the meat. The meat had a rich taste and taking a sip of wine after every bite helped cleanse the palate and enjoy the rich masala taste without being overwhelmed by the masala taste.

The deep fried fish(salmon) in coconut oil was a lot more interesting as typically seafood is paired with white wine but the deep fry and the masala rubbing made the fish far more savory. It was very well complemented by the wine and I felt as though the soft texture of the fish absorbed the wine flavor exquisitely nicely. The acidity of the wine also made the salmon texture of the fish seem very soft as though it melts in your mouth. I believe masala helped prevent the wine from overpowering the fish taste and led to both complementing each other well. The spiciness was a slight issue though but drinking water helped with that.

Overall a very tasty meal that I got to enjoy with my family and I had a lot of fun doing so.