Maybe this belongs here, maybe not. I'll leave it to TPTB to decide.
Today is, I seem to recall, St. Patrick's Day, and being a good Polack I decided to celebrate with ravioli, because you can't have ravioli without a green salad.
There's a pretty good recipe in the family for meat sauce that goes on anything remotely resembling spaghetti. I've had it on French bread. Ravioli is right there in center court. There was about 1/4 cup of rather disappointing Australian Cab (see below (as far below as possible)) left over, and it got dumped into some of the meat sauce and boiled down for 10 minutes or so. Nice dark maroon color, good flavor, and the fresh oregano leaves make nice green highlights. Wine makes most things better -- even if the wine could be better.
Ravioli from Lupretta's delicatessen that used to be Pianto's except Mr. Pianto died and his nephew took over. They used to be in walking distance, but they recently moved to Saratoga, which makes it half an hour's drive each way (for a dozen miles or so -- freeway is farther and takes the same amount of time).
A nice chunk of San Leandro sourdough bread. Yes, the place where the starter lives does make a difference.
Romaine lettuce salad with a dressing that starts with Girard's Original dressing but gets tarragon vinegar, fresh oregano, pepper and olive oil added. The oregano keeps the tarragon from sticking out, and vice versa.
Ravioli requires an Italianate wine. Chianti, Montepulciano, or... Zin. I'm a Zinaholic. Rummaging through the spreadsheet I find a bottle of Joseph Swan Mancini Ranch Zin. (Sorry, Francois, not 1899.)
It must have been good, because there aren't any leftovers.
Now, to excuse posting this here, some vinous notes.
Zin: Joseph Swan Mancini Ranch, Mt. Olivet, 1999. 13.9% alcohol. I bought this at the winery in September '06 for $22.50 - Rod was clearing out his leftovers (Oh! Excuse Me! Library wines!!)
A little funky on opening, but that blew off and showed a light, fruity, young aroma. Quite clear deep violet color. (The color of the heart of a violet flower, redder than echinacea purple.) Equally light flavor on entry, slightly on the acidic side. Tannins are there but pretty well hidden in the mid-palate. Ripe, grapey finish as a good Zin should have. Medium length, though an hour after the last sip I can still find the taste in the corners of my mouth.
I think this is ready to be drunk up - it won't get better, and might have been better a year ago.
Added note: After a night in the fridge, the Zin was much more pulled together. The fruit showed more, earlier and less, later. I'd add another couple of points. Tonight the meal was veal chops du Barry, and having that in my mind did indeed influence the wine I opened last night. Perhaps this Zin was a bit better suited to the milder flavors of tonight's meal. It's definitely not one of the PowerHouse Zins, and I didn't expect it to be. (AAMOF, I don't much like the powerhouses, of whatever varietal.)
Cab: McWilliam's "Brand's Laira Vineyards" Cabernet Sauvignon 2000, Coonawarra, Australia. Bought at BevMo in June '06 for $19.99.
A little weird on opening – candied. Later tasted more like Cab, but became pretty vegetal. Not undrinkable, but not my cup of wine. Perhaps this is the thing that Otto calls "spoofulated". There wasn't any "there" there.