Wine Blogging Wednesday: Comfort Wine

The theme this month with wine blogging wednesday is "comfort wines". Joel from wine life today has asked all us bloggers to choose a wine that we love to unwind to and write about it. For me this is a bit of a problem since I rarely drink the same wine twice unless I absolutely love it. So, like Sonadora, over at Wannabe Wino I am going to write about a 'type' of wine that I love. For me this is not a varietal, a winery, or a region. The wines I love to relax to are wines that go exceptionally well with food. I don't always drink wine with food or look for wine that matches well with food - but there is something special about finding that flavourful match for the food you love.

I am no expert at matching wine and food, but I love when I discover those magical combinations like Riesling and sushi, or Barbera and a simple tomato pasta. There is nothing more comforting after a long day than simple tasty food highlighted by a simple tasty wine. In this spirit, today I'll be writing about what has been an absolutely fantastic combination: a 2002 Woodward Canyon Charbonneau with some fantastic sushi (if you live in Vancouver you know that sushi is a staple of life here).

There's something special going on here. Pairing a Pacific Northwest Wine with a Vancouver speciality ended up being pretty much the definition of comfort. Woodward Canyon, a renowned Washington winery from Walla Walla, is known for their Cab Sauv's but this lovely white blend was simply fantastic.

The wine is 65% Semillion and 35% Sauvignon Blanc. Dark mellow yellow in the glass. This is seriously vibrant stuff. It's so unique that its secondary and tertiary flavours actually made me not only appreciate its boysenberry core, but actually enjoy boysenberry - something I don't generally do. The nose of this wine was a beautiful combination of caramel and hay and some sort of floral scents I couldn't strictly identify. The palate was heavy on the boysenberry, but it had a tinge of caramel and peaches without being over-toasted. The beautiful structure and pretty much perfect acidity made for a great match with sushi. One bite of a spicy tuna roll and a sip of the Woodward Canyon was the essence of comfort and I couldn't recommend this wine highly enough. Brilliant stuff.

P.S. For those who have been following my Vancouver Wine Festival coverage, I will be continuing that within a few days (it's been a busy week!).

Excellent
$47 at Marquis (Bought on sale for $33)