“What are we going to eat?”
I was already whining and it wasn’t even close to dinner time. Ever experience writer’s block? This was even worse. For the first time ever, I was at a total loss for what I would eat for dinner. I was excited to open my Cahors and my Malbec, but could not find the inspiration I usually have when it comes to cooking. I finally made up my mind, making Makenzie smile and say “Oh, Flower” in that cutesy voice she uses when she gets excited about something.
I was going to eat meat.
For those of you who have been paying attention, I’ve been vegetarian for 4 years now. I began for health reasons, and later decided to remain vegetarian for environmental reasons. I had been contemplating for a few months if I should remain vegetarian or not, and had always said that I would probably eat meat again one day as long as it was local or organic, but preferably both. We were at the farmer’s market at the time of this revelation, so it was the perfect time to find local, organic meat.
“I cant believe I’m doing this.”
That’s all I could think of as I placed the brown piece of meat in my mouth, leaving it hovering over my tongue for sometime before I finally had the guts to close my mouth and allow it to grind between my teeth. As I swallowed that first piece, I almost cried when I realized it was actually really good.
What was even better though was our choice of wine for the night. I brought home a bottle of Malbec from Mendoza, Argentina and another from Cahors, France. What many do not know is that Malbec actually originates around the village of Cahors located in Southwest France and was introduced in the 19th century to Argentina by Michel Pouget. It has lost much of its popularity in its birth place around the world due to its less approachable structure than the wines produced in Argentina. Cahors Malbecs are generally more rustic and have more noticeable tannins, whereas Malbecs from Mendoza have more of a lush texture with vibrant fruit-forward flavors. A wine from Cahors has magnificent aging ability and it could potentially take decades for the tannins to settle.
We started with a blind tasting, and it was immediately evident which was which. The 2012 Crios Malbec from the Domino del Plata Winery in Mendoza, Argentina was an alluring inky black. It had a strong aroma of chocolate and berries. The first sip proved to be very fruit-forward with soft tannins that made for an almost creamy texture. It had a short, tight finish that left us wanting more.
The Cedre Héritage from 2010 was noticeably different. Although it presented that same inky black color unique to Malbecs, it had a much more subtle bouquet. Its flavors took time to develop, providing the same red fruits as the Crios, but with earthy undertones that made for a more full-bodied wine. The finish was tannic, but taking that first bite of meat with this wine destroyed my vegetarianism forever. It rounded out, giving way to a burst of I have no idea what. It was shocking and complex to the point that I no longer cared what mysteries lay in my glass, but instead just focused on enjoying the wonderful wine in front of me.
Despite not being vegetarian anymore, you will still find a lot of vegetarian food pairings in this blog because being sustainable is still extremely important to me. That and I really can’t get over all that blood. It’s going t0 take me a long time to actually cook with the stuff.
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