To Thine Own Self, Be Food

The wine-drinking has been infrequent as of late; hence, no update for the last week and a half. However... I found a decent Beaujolais at the local WalMart (!), and we tried it by itself. Not a glugging wine, for sure, I don't care what the literature says. We've really been turned off by red wines in the past, honestly, I think because we tried the wrong one with a meal or just went too intense, who knows. The Beaujolais, we found, improved upon further tasting. It wasn't terribly off-putting, but it didn't change my life like some of the Rieslings we've had. So, in short...we will probably be trying a Beaujolais again. Now, a week ago, I picked up a 2007 Selbach-Oster Kabinett Riesling at a Co-op food store. $24 a bottle, by far, the most I've spent on wine. German wine labeling/categorizing is kind of confusing. Basically, from what I understand, there are four categories of German wine, and within the top group (Pradikatswein), there are four sublev...

Today, on a whim, I walk into one of two local booze shops we have here in town. Here is the conversation: Clerk: Can I help you find something? Me: Yeah, I'm looking for a Beaujolais. PAUSE Clerk: Uh. Me: It's a red. Clerk: How do you spell that? PAUSE Me: B-E-A-U-J-O-L-A-I-S Clerk (Looking at a random label): No, I don't think we have that. I didn't find at the grocery store, either. My next places will be the other liquor store and Walmart (cue doom music). Anyway, yeah. I haven't gotten anywhere near through my Riesling phase, but I'm thinking Beaujolais might be a fun foray into red wines, not to mention a change of pace. Anyone here have experience with the stuff?

So, anybody else here celebrate an American holiday with a German wine? Or...is it just me? Happy Belated Fourth, Everyone! Last night was a Polka Dot Riesling (Germany, Pfalz) with chili for dinner, and yes, I concur when the experts say R. goes with nearly any dish, especially spicy. How marvelous is it when one can enjoy wine with a simple bowl of chili?! Sometimes, and I have especially noticed it with beer, food can completely ruin the taste of alcohol. Not with the PD! I was able to eat, sip, eat, sip, ad nauseum, without grimacing. That says a lot for the wine. I don't recall a high level of acidity, but enough to clear the palate for every bite I took. But, I will say, I pay a lot more attention to my food and drink now that I've sort of taken up this food pairing stuff. Now, the stunner. I finally cracked into the Monchhof Estate Rielsing, paired tonight with an Asian Beef Noodle recipe and WOW! Tantalizing acidic, bubbles on my tongue - and there's n...