SOMM SLAM 2019

Posted by Nicholas Livingston on August 6, 2019 in Food and wine pairing, Tastings, | no comments

4 COURSES | 8 SOMMELIERS | 8 WINES | 1 WINNER Each year the city gathers at Monello for the annual SOMM SLAM to experience the city's most talented sommeliers sharing their perspectives on food and wine pairing along with their personal passions, with insights as to how they curate their wine programs. This is the first
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#WineCoEats Paella with aged Rioja

Posted by Nicholas Livingston on April 8, 2019 in Food and wine pairing, | no comments

An asparagus salad affirmed our intent to celebrate Spring by sharing a paella with friends. First brown the rabbit thighs then into the oven. Steam the shell on shrimp, halve the lobster tails we cooked last night then warm them by steaming briefly in the seafood broth. Remove the lobster turn
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Want Some Tots?

Posted by Nicholas Livingston on September 4, 2017 in Food and wine pairing, Minnesota Wine | no comments

I am so hungry I could eat a horse! Whoa there! We get it -especially around the time of the Minnesota State Fair when there is every sort of bucket and bag and thing-on-a-stick. Food pairing on the fair grounds is often limited to whatever is nearby and cold but if we
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Three great wines for grilled fare

Posted by Jason Kallsen on August 5, 2015 in Beaujolais, Finding wines, Food and wine pairing, France, Rhone Valley, Saint Thibault | no comments

We love our grilled food at The Wine Company, especially during a nice summer evening on our company patio playing a little bocce ball and listening to great music. What to drink with grilled food is a topic that comes up every summer, and this year we have three great
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Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s Thanksgiving Wine Pick: Pavao Vinho Verde

Posted by Jason Kallsen on November 22, 2014 in Food and wine pairing, Holidays, Thanksgiving | no comments

For fans of Lynne Rosseto Kasper and her show The Splendid Table, you know that her suggestions are phenomenal and especially when it comes to Thanksgiving, indispensable! She was a guest on this week's Marketplace Weekend and what do you suppose she proclaimed as the "One wine you should have on
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Tempranillo: an education

Posted by Jason Kallsen on April 7, 2014 in Food and wine pairing, Spain | no comments

As Spring starts a slow crawl towards reality here in Minnesota (the winter of 2013-2014 was the harshest of the last generation) our thoughts can't help but turn to the idea of grilled food, cooking away on our charcoal grill on the company patio. We do like popping corks around here
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Pairing wine with lutefisk (seriously)

Posted by Jason Kallsen on December 2, 2013 in Food and wine pairing, Wine Experiments | no comments

Want to make a bunch of wine experts scratch their head in confusion and minor frustration? Put a plate of lutefisk in front of them along with a wide variety of wines (Cava, Gruner Veltliner, Chardonnay, Cru Beaujolais, and more ... even sake') and ask them to pick the perfect
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Understanding Cru Beaujolais (and why it’s perfect for Thanksgiving)

Posted by Jason Kallsen on November 14, 2013 in Beaujolais, Food and wine pairing, France, Holidays, | no comments

Thanksgiving can be such a difficult holiday, and we're not talking just about family members with opposing political and religious views being forced around a table together. We're talking about a bigger conflict: food and wine. We're talking about having a huge variety of deliciousness on the table, including the obscure
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Zweigelt: the ultimate wine for grilled food

Posted by Jason Kallsen on July 2, 2013 in Austria, Food and wine pairing, | no comments

It's the start of July, and summertime has finally arrived to Minnesota. It's time for fishing, camping, relaxing, and grilling. Especially grilling. Burgers. Brats. Chicken thighs. Rib eye steaks. You name it, we grill it. But what to drink with this fine grilled fare? It's a question we get asked often, for when we grill
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Wil Bailey’s favorite rose’ of 2013 part three (and some great rose’ pairing recipes from local food bloggers)

Posted by Jason Kallsen on June 3, 2013 in Food and wine pairing, Rose, | no comments

Photo hat tip to @amanda_paa at healthylifehappycook.com. See below for more info on this delicious and easy to make bacony thing. Before we get to Wil Bailey's rose' pick part three, let's talk a bit about wine and food pairings, specifically regarding dry rose' wines. Most wine and food pairing is based
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