Beef Wellington pairing

Hi everyone ... this is my first post - so n00b here. I am learning more and more about wine on a daily basis, and love it, and am excited to use this forum as I expand my tasing and pairing horizons. I did however join this group for a specific post question... and since Fathers Day is only 2 days away hopefully I'll get some good opinions and answers

Ok - my dad is a sommelier, and because of that I know my way fairly well around wine. But for Fathers Day, rather than getting him a gift, I am cooking for my husband and dad. I want to make sure I pair just the right wine with dinner...

I am serving Beef Wellington - the recipe omits the fois gras and pate, and wraps the tenderloin in the duxelles and prociutto before putting it in a puff pastry. I am serving it with roasted red fingerling potatoes and whole garlic cloves, and grilled asparagus.

So I have narrowed my wine down to three choices and I am wondering if one of these is going to be better than the others... or if I need to go with something totally different (these three were chosen b/c I already have them in the house ... I can run out and get a different one if I need to, or if these aren't going to be that great)
so the three are:

1) 2004 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon
2) 2002 Ferrari-Carano Tresor
3) 2001 Da Vinci Brunello di Montalcino

I also have a 2002 Newtons Unfiltered Merlot but my dad isn't a huge fan of Merlot, so I was leaning away from that. So do I need to go get something different? Or would one of these three work well??? I would love some input

Methinks they are all too much. Look for an RRV Pinot Noir.

Dear Carl,
I hope you don't mind, but I would say they're all excellent choices. The Tresor (a cabernet sauvignon-dominated Meritage, to save others the trouble) would be my choice, but that's because I like blends. Still, in a restaurant I would happily choose any of the three.
Walt

[Jenise]

Dear Carl,
I hope you don't mind, but I would say they're all excellent choices. The Tresor (a cabernet sauvignon-dominated Meritage, to save others the trouble) would be my choice, but that's because I like blends. Still, in a restaurant I would happily choose any of the three.
Walt

Walt, I'll second your suggestions. I wonder if the 407 isn't a bit young yet though, where the other two might have a bit more of that interesting secondary development from their greater age. Hang on, I'll go look for TNs.

In the meantime, Krista, welcome!

[Jenise]

Okay, here's the news: I realized after I left that you said 407, not 707, so I wouldn't be as concerned about the age factor, and tasting notes I found back that up. Recent reports say that it's drinking well now, should be fully awake and not require special prep. The Tresor should also be showing well; recent tasters praise it but mention the tannins and the need for food. Which doesn't daunt me in the least: what hunk of beautifully prepared beef doesn't love being put to that test? Like Walt, it would be my first choice for a special day and two special men, though this wine of the three has the longest life ahead of it if left in the cellar. And the Brunello, from what I just read, would be last. The most recent note on it suggests that it's a bit thin for a Brunello; save that for lighter fare.

Great menu, Krista.

Piling on... What Jenise said.

One question for you, though: Why add prosciutto to the dish? It's not like it lacks for salt and I would expect it to be overwhelmed by the other flavors in the Wellington.

Thanks for the opinions so far.. I am leaning towards the Tresor and seeing how it holds up against the beef. I'll def let you know.. and since there are four of us eating, I might bring a second bottle of something different and do a comparison. Sadly - I am 24 weeks pregnant and will only be able to sip the wine to see how it pairs with the dish *sigh*.. always depressing to watch the rest of the family polish off a couple of good bottles without me

Jeff - as for the prosciutto.... the simple fact is I have tried several other Beef Wellington recipes, and loved many of them, but am always open to trying a new one. A friend recommended I try Tyler Florence's recipe - which I looked up, and it includes prosciutto. It is actually the one ingredient I was iffy about, but decided based on the rave reviews, and my friends recommendation that it was worth trying at least once. It's served with a green peppercorn sauce that sounds scrumptious (probably should have mentioned that in the OP)... actually, the prosciutto was the ingredient that triggered the idea for grilled asparagus, since I LOVE prosciutto wrapped asparagus!

I'll see how it is and let you know the impact it had on the Wellington. Also I'll do some feedback on the wine pairing(s) as well

Piling on... What Jenise said.

One question for you, though: Why add prosciutto to the dish? It's not like it lacks for salt and I would expect it to be overwhelmed by the other flavors in the Wellington.

If your Dad is a Sommelier, and you are doing this for him, why not just ask him his preference?

Because my dad doesn't know I am making him a special dinner, he thinks I am going to just take them out like normal. And sometimes it's nice to try to impress the "sommelier" side of my dad by serving a nice good (correct) wine with a really good homemade dinner. I ask his opinion about wine with a lot of different meals and I like to *think* I am learning, lol

If your Dad is a Sommelier, and you are doing this for him, why not just ask him his preference?

[Jenise]

Krista, I'm sure it will turn out great. I like the idea of the proscuitto--does it act as a wrapper to hold the duxelle to the meat before it all goes into the pastry?

Congratulations on the baby, btw, what a special fathers day for your husband!

Thanks Jenise... yes you do the duxelle inside of the prosciutto, then wrap the prosciutto all the way around the tenderloin, securing the duxelle to the meat. The pastry then goes around the prosciutto. It sounds simpler than a lot of other wellington recipes I have tried where I struggled to get the duxelle to stick and wrap the pastry at the same time!

Krista, I'm sure it will turn out great. I like the idea of the proscuitto--does it act as a wrapper to hold the duxelle to the meat before it all goes into the pastry?

Congratulations on the baby, btw, what a special fathers day for your husband!

t

ried where I struggled to get the duxelle to stick and wrap the pastry at the same time!

Did you try turning it upside down?

Yes... lol I really think it just boils down to the simple fact that much as I love cooking, I am a total klutz in the kitchen. The end product usually ends up tasting very good, but the process of me getting there usually involves lots of things dropped and a huge mess. It's always worth it in the end, but somehow I end up making things harder than they really need to be.

t

ried where I struggled to get the duxelle to stick and wrap the pastry at the same time!

Did you try turning it upside down?

OK, then. The wines you picked are not going to be great. They are, quite frankly, run of the mill wines that are fine for the grocery stores.

Run out and get something that will impress your dad.

Make sure it is Pinot Noir or Red Burgundy. Ask the advice of your retailer, and tell them you are making beef wellington. Expect to spend $50-75 for a really nice bottle.

Welcome, Krista!

I think you could take Bernard's suggestion to go out and look for something spectacular, but the fact that you're taking time to really think this out will add immeasurably to the meal. In the end, I'm sure that's what your dad and your husband will take away from the experience more than anything else. It will help elevate an otherwise decent wine to something wonderful.

And by the way, congrats on the baby! If you want, you can have your husband do what I did during my wife's pregnancy: have him drink his wine from a coffee cup. Then you can pretend there's no wine in the house and you're not missing anything. My wife appreciated that quite a bit. (Of course, you should give him a pass for really good wine and nice suppers!)

Thanks for the advice everyone
Bernard I took your advice and went out to buy a new bottle of wine yesterday. Unfortunately, living in a relatively small town in Idaho has it's disadvantages - one of those being that we have no real wine shop anymore (it closed 2 years ago) and the only place to find wine other than grocery stores is a gourmet kitchen store that carries a small amount of wine. I went in hoping for the best, and after asking the owner for advice I left without buying a bottle I thought would be appropriate. The selection wasn't fantastic. If I need a good bottle of wine I usually try to plan ahead by going to Sun Valley or Boise where actual wine shops exist, with employees that know more than I do . I probably should have asked this pairing question much sooner than 2 days before the event. So my hope is that my dad will appreciate the thought, and dinner will turn out good. Next time I plan on cooking a nice meal for the family I will ask for advice at least a week in advance .

So today I'm going to go ahead and do the Tresor, and hope it pairs well. I also found a bottle of Yorkville Cellars 2005 Richard the Lionheart that I had forgotton I had, and while it's not my favorite - it should be an ok sipping wine prior to the meal... if nothing else it will be nice to have some cheese and wine on the back porch and enjoy the sunshine and relax with family before sitting down to a nice dinner.

Mike - thanks for the congrats . I will remember to suggest to my husband that from now on he only gets coffee mugs for wine. I'll give them a free pass today and let everyone enjoy the wine out of the crystal rather than mugs, but for the remaining 16 weeks of pregnancy he gets ceramic and cheap wine. We actually used to have a Kahlua and Cream a couple nights a week before bed, and now that I am not partaking we have started a new tradition by putting chocolate milk on ice in the tumbler for me while he still gets his Kahlua and Cream. It looks about the same and makes me feel not quite so left out

[Jenise]

So, how'd it go?