WTN: I'm going to catch that Horse if I can...

[David M. Bueker]

• 2020 Enfield Wine Co. Pretty Horses - USA, California (2/26/2024)
  My history with Enfield goes all the way back to the first wine John released DTC, his 2010 Syrah. It’s been a fascinating ride through John’s development as a winemaker, and he has demonstrated an ability to adapt to different grapes and different sites. Such is the life of a winemaker with ever changing vineyard sources.
  
  Anyway…
  
  The other night I was initially going to have a Beaujolais. I wanted bright red fruit but also a bit of structure. Looking at my inventory there wasn’t really a wine that fit the bill. All the Beaujolais seemed like it needed time or was in a later phase, just not quite what I was looking for. As I was thinking about options, I heard Hardy Wallace mention Enfield Wine Co. in a podcast I was listening to. A bottle of Pretty Horses seemed like just the ticket. Quick trip to the cellar, and I was pouring this wine into my glass. Fresh, young, and vibrant, but with a clear structural form, it was exactly what I wanted. Then I tasted it alongside my white bean soup (adapted from a Kenji Lopez-Alt recipe) and the match was an amplifier for both wine and food. The herbal elements of the soup (rosemary, thyme, and parsley…sorry no sage) brought out the herbal and leathery qualities of the Tempranillo in the wine, and the underlying sweetness from the carrots amplified the wine’s fruit. I was hard pressed to not finish the wine while I was filling our bowls for dinner!
  
  Long story, but it was fascinating how a long history with a winery, and a chance reference led to a selection that resulted in such a fantastic wine/food pairing.