Last night we wanted that taste of spring. We started our menu with roasted asparagus with shallots, lemon, Parmesan, and prosciutto, added grilled halibut with Made in Napa Valley's Fish and Seafood Rub, and roasted rosemary potatoes.
The toughest food to pair with wine in this menu is the asparagus. It's notoriously difficult to match with wine. It can make the wine, especially Chardonnay, taste vegetal and just plain off. Who wants that? Enter Sauvignon Blanc. Not only can the grassy herbal notes of most Sauvignon Blancs complement asparagus, but the citrus qualities help brighten the whole meal.
We paired our dinner with a 2007 Voss Rutherford Estate Vineyard.
Why this works: The 2007 Voss is a classic Sauvignon Blanc with lots of citrus flavors like lemon and grapefruit but also has some green notes like herbs and a bit of grassiness. Many Sauvignon Blancs can be excessively grassy but the Voss is nicely fruit driven. It's dry and crisp so that bright acidity keeps everything tasting fresh. Not only does this work well with the asparagus, but both the halibut and the potatoes were accented with herbs as well so the wine was perfect with the entire dinner.
Have you had a good Sauvignon Blanc lately? Let us know what it was.
