St Patty's Day Fare

Happy St. Patrick's Day to you! I'm not Irish, but I love green and all the things that go along with St. Patrick's Day (even if they're not, technically, "traditionally" Irish). So I figured tonight was going to be Corned Beef, boiled potatoes, and carrots. No, no cabbage. I find I don't like cabbage. Plus it doesn't go so well with wine. I have to be honest, I wasn't quite sure what I was going to go with for my wine pairing tonight, because even though it's technically beef, it's sweeter than most beef. Plus there's all those spices... but in the end, I just walked into the cellar and grabbed whatever my hand first landed on. Which turned out to be a pretty good idea!

Wine: 2001 Penfolds Bin 28 Kalimna Shiraz
Meal: Corned Beef, Boiled Potatoes, and Buttered Carrots

Tasting notes on the wine:
First off, decant this for at least a half hour. Not because of the heat or the tannins - those are barely present, but because it just needs that time for the fruit to come out and for it to really blossom. I did not, and remembered hearing some great things about it, but the first taste was really "meh". Please give it some air.

Color: 5/5
Dark brick red, with good clarity and the color extending just about to the glass, which is pretty impressive in an 8 year old wine. It's nice and saturated, but maybe not lustrous. Or maybe my glass just has fingerprints all over it.

Nose: 12/15
Powerful nose. I can smell it as it sits in the glass on the table, about a foot away from me. Nice, not super special, but nice. Earthy tones, a little musty at first, but after a while that fades away into a rich scent of dried figs, cracked peppercorns, and mulberries. Given a bit more time, chocolate pushes out with a vengeance.

Flavor: 8/10
Very earthy, leathery, followed shortly after by a snap of fresh fig, sour and black cherries. Tasting after having some of the beef helps to provide the "meat" flavor that is so typical of Syrah & Shiraz that I was just missing. Definitely improves with time and is now producing an intoxicating mix of white and dark chocolate as well. And the tannins, just this minute, showed themselves.

Finish: 8/10
At first this was a little twiggy on the finish, reminding me of much of the Pinot Noirs I've had (which isn't many, mind you) and it turned me off. But I pressed on, had some of the potatoes and sipped again, and that twigginess went away. Time also served to get rid of it. Quite smooth, and there's no heat. You'd never know this wine was 14.2% ABV. Except I just told you. The tannins are really announcing their presence now - I was missing them earlier and I'm so glad they showed up. I'm also beginning to get some dried meat on the finish as well.

Aging: 3/5
This is well balanced, and there's definitely enough tannin, structure, and fruit for it to continue drinking well for at least the next 5 years. Maybe more.

Overall: 4/5
I was not impressed at first sampling of this, but as it opens up and develops, I'm appreciating it more and more. I would have to say this truly is a great "dinner" wine, as the early stages of it go beautifully with food, and as it opens and progresses throughout the meal, comes to its own to become an enjoyable after-dinner conversation wine.

Total: 90pts

Want to make this meal?

I admit, I cheat when it comes to corned beef. I go out and pick up a pre-packaged Vienna Chicago Classic corned beef brisket, so that's what I suggest doing. All of the wonderful flavor of corned beef, less of the hassle of doing it right. Follow package instructions for cooking - mine was a 3.5 lb brisket and I boiled it for 2.5 hours.

The potatoes I like to cook up are fingerling potatoes, simply because of the colors that come out of them. Pretty simply, place potatoes in a pot with about 6 cups of water and a few pinches of Kosher salt, and bring to a boil. Boil 10-15 minutes or until desired tenderness is achieved.

Buttered carrots is a side dish from my youth, and no one made them quite like Mom. And so simple to make! Peel and slice as many carrots as you need, and place in a microwave safe dish with enough water to come just to the surface of the carrots. Microwave on high for about 5 minutes, until fork-tender. Drain, and stir in a pat of butter until the carrots are nicely coated.

All of these items reheat nicely, so you can make them all the day before and just reheat before serving. And if you have any leftover corned beef when it's all done, try making some corned beef hash the next morning for breakfast, or toss lightly with a mild, sweet BBQ sauce and serve on a bun for lunch.

Enjoy!