Food and Wine Centric Portland: A City After My Own Heart – Part 1

I recently had the opportunity to spend the weekend in the ultimate food and wine lovers paradise: Portland. Portland is a city where I’m not sure how people can choose from day to day which restaurant or wine bar to visit next. On every corner of every block, a tempting food and drink menu awaits the enthusiast in us all. Luckily, this decision was made easy for me – a marketing and PR company based in Portland, Watershed Communications, suggested I attend a wine and food pairing event at one of the city’s prominent wine destination restaurants, Metrovino.

The event, Red vs White: A Battle for Tastebud Dominance, was organized by Watershed Communications marketing and PR pro, Katie Bray, and the event could not have had a more befitting name. Metrovino’s chef, Dustin See, prepared a five-course tasting menu of ambrosial and savory goodies that were each paired with a red and a white wine produced by featured winery, Montinore Estate. Both the red (Ben Thomas) and white (Stephen Webber) winemakers of Montinore Estate were there to talk about the wines they had selected to pair with each of the dishes, and after a short explanation of how certain characteristics in wine can effect food, the winemakers shared why they thought the wine they made and chose would pair better with each plate of food.

When I arrived at Metrovino, I immediately noticed the wall behind the bar that was lined with state-of-the-art Enomatic wine preservation and chilling machines. These machines, carefully chosen by owner and wine director Todd Steele, are used to both preserve and serve 90+ wines by the glass – as a serious wine enthusiast, the sight of these machines may have caused me to drool a little. When I was able to take my eyes off of the Enomatics, I noticed the tables were set and ready for a wine and food tasting adventure. At each place setting, booklets that included descriptions of the evening’s pairings were ready for tasters to take notes. Aside from being excited about these handy booklets, I was truly a happy wine gal when I spotted the little Riedel logo on the wine glasses –  it’s true, I am a wine glass snob.

What was poured into the Riedel stemware, however, had me even more ecstatic: Montinore Estate wines. Family owned and operated, Montinore Estate is located in the northern reaches of the Willamette Valley. Using the strict methods of Biodynamic farming, Montinore produces from their 230 acres of grapes: Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Müller Thurgau, and of course, Pinot Noir.

With winemakers Ben Thomas and Stephen Webber ready to talk about their wines, the tasting was underway. We, the tasters, were to decide which wine paired best with each of the five courses.

Pairing 1

The Dish: Tonno di Miale in Tonato Sauce aka Oil Poached Pork with Tuna Aioli.

The White: 2010 Pinot Gris ~ Aromas of pear and apples slide smoothly onto the palate, where bright acidity rounds out the fruit creating a well balanced wine with a hint of lemon zest on the long, pleasing finish.

The Red: 2010 Estate Reserve Pinot Noir ~ Beautiful bright cherries, pie spice, earth and fresh tobacco all contribute to the nice complexity offered in both aromas and flavors. The  mouthfeel is luscious and smooth while easy-going tannins round out the fruits.

The Winner: 2010 Pinot Gris ~ Although I almost always pair pork with Pinot Noir, the bright acids with the lemon zesty finish in the Pinot Gris sliced through the flavors of the white beans and tuna, creating a solid marriage between the food and wine.

Pairing 2

The Dish: Ham and Cheese Polenta Cake with Spiced Hazelnuts

The White: 2011 Müller Thurgau ~ My notes for this one simply read, “honeysuckle galore!” However, I do remember other qualities; such as, tropical fruits and crisp acidity on the palate along with a super nice balance between fruit and acid. Not too sweet, actually, the perfect amount of sweetness – this was a stellar Müller Thurgau.

The Red: 2008 Parson’s Ridge Pinot Noir ~30 year old vines shine through – giving this Pinot a gorgeous depth of character. Fruit driven, I also detected  smoke, earth and forest floor characteristics – qualities I love to find in Willamette Valley Pinots.

The Winner: A tie! The sweetness of the Müller Thurgau blended with the salty-spiciness of the nuts in perfect harmony while the smoky qualities in both the Pinot and ham most definitely enhanced each other. Both were rock solid pairings.

Pairing 3

The Dish: Chicken Confit with Parisian Gnocchi, Fresh Herb and Cracklins (Confit is simply a meat that is slow cooked in its own fat & Parisian Gnocchi is different than traditional – dough is used in place of potato)

The White: 2011 Borealis ~ Vibrant aromas of tropical fruits, Key Lime Pie and Apple Jolly Ranchers lead to mouthwatering, fruit forward, similar flavors, ending in a clean, refreshing, dry and well balanced finish with a shot of lime zest. This is truly a fun wine.

The Red: 2009 Parson’s Ridge Pinot Noir ~ A quality that I find in a lot of ’09 Pinot Noirs is alluring fall pie spice and cherry pie aromas and flavors. This one is no different in making me feel like I want to sit down for Thanksgiving dinner. A solid acidic backbone with smooth tannins provides a nice balance and pleasing finish.

The Winner: A tie! Again, there was no distinctive winner here because both were equally delicious with the food. The acid in both wines seared through the fattiness of the Confit, and each enhanced the flavors and texture of the Gnocchi.

Pairing 4

The Dish: Duck Rillette with Apple-Raisin Chutney

The White: 2011 Gewürztraminer ~ This is my kind of Gewürztraminer, and it immediately took me back to my days in the Florida Keys with its tropical grapefruit, orange and lime aromas and flavors. On the palate, lime zest and sweet grapefruit bring the palate to life, along with the solid acidic backbone and lemony-lime finish. This is not your mama’s Gewürztraminer – it’s super dry and displays everything that creates the perfect food-friendly wine.

The Red: 2009 Cataclysm Pinot Noir ~ Beautiful berry aromas along with cedar and earth set the stage for this gorgeous Pinot Noir. Cranberries, raspberries and cherries galore; along with, earth, vanilla and super smooth tannins all contribute to this complex beauty. I loved the velvety and juicy mouthfeel.

The Winner: 2009 Cataclysm Pinot Noir ~ Although the Gewürztraminer is seriously a perfect food wine, the flavors and mouthfeel of the Pinot Noir were simply ambrosial with the duck and apple-raisin chutney – there could be no better match.

Pairing 5

The Dish: Pork, Wine and Cheese Sausage with Lentils

The White: 2010 Almost Dry Riesling ~ Another Montinore wine that immediately took me back to my days in the tropics. This Riesling displayed aromas and flavors of super fresh limes, grapefruit and oranges. A solid acidic backbone brought nice structure and balance, while the flavors lingered on the slight minerality driven finish. Yum.

The Red: 2008 Graham’s Block 7 Pinot Noir ~ This displayed many of the same characteristics as the Cataclysm, and except for the tannins, they were simply more marked and profound. The silky smooth entrance plus fuller bodied presence stole my heart, and the tannins were so smooth – so much so that the balance and finish on this was purely palate pleasing. I loved this Pinot Noir.

The Winner: 2008 Graham’s Block 7 Pinot Noir ~ There’s nothing like pork with pinot. Simple.

The event was as much of an eye-opener as it was fun – I was sure at first site of the menu, certain dishes would definitely pair better with certain wines. The resulting winners, except for the last pairing, totally surprised me. This was a true adventure for the senses. From Metrovino, I walked to another feast for the senses –  Irving Street Kitchen, where I got to try wine from the coolest barrel to bar wine system I have ever seen. Keep an eye out for Part 2 of Food and Wine Centric Portland: A City After My Own Heart. 

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Kudos to all involved in this stellar event, I was clearly impressed with everything from the chef and winemakers to the atmosphere and event planning. A very special thanks to Katie Bray and Watershed Communications for inviting me to partake in this one-of-a-kind, totally awesome event. To keep up with, and join in on, other spectacular events planned by the crew at Wathershed Communications, visit WatershedCom.com.