Vintage Beacon Circa 9/10: Sweet and Savory

In one short week I was treated to some very tasty wine pairing ideas from two different sources. It’s part of the job, woe is me…

The Poached Pair

close up poached pair savory photoA Facebook pal, turned real-life friend, turned me on to The Poached Pair ladies, Megan and Marcy Gonzalez. She told me that the duo had been donating to Undergrounds – a coffee house in the basement of Real Life Church – on Friday nights.

“The Poached Pair is creating some savory pastries in addition to their already awesome selection of sweets. You guys should get together and do an event pairing wine with both sweet and savory pastries.” Said pal Carrie DuShey.

I contacted Megan and she had a box made up and waiting for me at the Undergrounds. Nestled inside with the goodies was a note,

Hi Eve,

The savory items are new but one of the local wine bars is interested in the Parmesan Thyme Crackers already. Our biscotti that pair particularly well with red wine are Chocolate Mole (double chocolate with cinnamon chips, pepitas, and a hint of cayenne – so good!), Chocolate Coconut Almond, and Double Chocolate Pecan.

Thanks,

Megan

The Poached Pair

661.269.0727

thepair@thepoachedpair.com

www.thepoachedpair.com

Check us out on Facebook and Yelp!

I couldn’t wait, of course, to get home, I found myself sampling the Parmesan Thyme Crackers and Blue Cheese Walnut crackers on the drive. Both, in my humble opinion, would have paired well with a dessert wine, the sharp bite of the cheese against the sweetness of the wine.

Once home, I opened a bottle of red wine, forgive me for not noting which red but I think it was my house Joseph Phelps Syrah, with the chocolate mole biscotti. Liked how the spices intermingled…and yes…you guessed it, I dipped that biscotti right into my wine glass like any wine 101er should. Way coolest thing I’ve ever done with wine!

The scones that Megan also included were: Sundried Tomato Basil Parmesan, Goat Cheese Rosemary, Chipotle Cheddar, Bacon Cheddar Green Onion and Blue Cheese Rosemary. I loved the unique flavors of each one, all would be awesome with wine, but we had them for breakfast because we couldn’t eat anymore the night before. I’m a big Rosemary fan, as well as all cheeses, so you can bet I was more than happy.

Kind of want to try the Poached Pair sweet scones now, may have to make a dash to the Underground if I can’t get them in my wine bars asap…

Dove Chocolate Discoveries

I got this in my e-mail:

l-r: Angela Freeland and Cathy Meschner
l-r: Angela Freeland and Cathy Meschner

Please join me for The 2nd Annual Chocolate & Wine Night! We will be tasting our fabulous new products and enjoying them with a glass of wine.

Angela Freeland and Cathy Meschner

Independent Chocolatiers

Dove Chocolate Discoveries ™

http://www.dove-chocolate-discoveries.com

661-305-9876

dovechocolatediscoveries@nwlmail.com Cathy

ChocolateMartinis4me@gmail.com Angela

The pairing was set up at our local Vino 100. Lil LePore had a lineup from Corinot, my favorite was the Merlot that night. But, once again as with the Poached Pair, the wine took second behind the decadent chocolate.   Maybe it was because I brought my chocoholic husband Eddie along?

Angela Freeland and Cathy Meschner, our pair of chocolate hostesses, shared some specials and news with us. I tried to listen, but at the same time I was very busy sampling Cinnamon Apples A La Mode, Artisan Marshmallows, Chardonnay Wine Brittle, Sea-Salted Caramels, Dove Chocolate Covered Cinnamon-Dusted Almonds, Chocolate-Covered Espresso Beans and…

They also deftly used some of the Dove dry mixes, say for cookies, to make biscotti. We found that the mixes were enjoying several different incarnations that night, much to the pleasure of the guests assembled. They filled Chocolate Toasting Cups with whipped this and a drizzle of that.

The Sea Salted caramels were one of my favorites – and on sale – but I queried Cathy, why couldn’t I just put sea salt on my own caramels? Because Dove gets seat salt from all over the world.

I listened when Cathy and Angela talked about Dove’s Mudslide and Chocolate Martini mixes, and was even more enraptured, if that was even possible, to their description of Dove’s Pro-Series Chocolate Tempering Unit – to make my own candy at home! Yikes!

We bought – which came hand delivered a week later by Cathy to prevent melting via normal mail or shipping – chocolate covered Graham Crackers, the decadent Sea Salt Caramels, and when Eddie begged enough, the Chef-Series chocolate for me to make truffles for his birthday.

So who wants to come to a Savory and Sweet pairing at Chez Bushman? (Editor’s Note: Sadly, the owners of the Poached Pair decided to shutter since I wrote this article, and Vino 100 is also closed.)

Eve Bushman has been reading, writing, taking coursework and tasting wine for over 20 years.  She has obtained a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, has been the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video, authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and recently served as a guest judge for the L.A. International Wine Competition.  You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits that may be answered in a future column. You can also seek her marketing advice via Eve@EveBushmanConsulting.com