T O P I C R E V I E W |
melody |
Posted - Oct 18 2011 : 5:02:09 PM I made some braised beef tonight and it took about 4-1/2 hours using for the first time, wine in this particular recipe and I have to tell you the beef was "permeated" with a definite "winey" after-taste that we did not enjoy. My recipe called for quite a bit of Cabneret Sauvignon. I ignored the amount called for promptly cutting that in half-Maybe it was a mistake?
Since I am a novice at choosing wines I need some advice on a really good cooking wine.
Talk to me ladies!
Melody Farmgirl #525 |
15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
Okie Farm Girl |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 12:40:05 PM Wow, Jonni, you are quite the gourmet!! You and your hubby that is!! The only things I've ever learned about wine came from watching Frasier!! :-) Just like in Melody's case, I walked in the store, told the guy what I was doing and he said, "Oh! I have just the thing" and handed me a bottle of Barefoot. I figured it had to be good because I'd seen Lucy and Ethel stompin' those grapes in bare feet, don't you know!!!
Mary Beth
www.OklahomaPastryCloth.com www.Oklahomapastrycloth.com/blog The Sovereign Lord is my strength - Habakkuk 3:19 |
melody |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 12:35:14 PM Ahhhh....that explains it Jonni!
When Bruce and I were first married we used to drink Asti Spumante on Fridays with dinner. I had an unusually long day at the bank 7:00 in the evening and I would come home.... he would have dinner ready (he grew up in a catering family) with the table set and the Asti chilled-It was glorious or maybe it was the company?
Mel |
FebruaryViolet |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 12:27:09 PM Nope, never a Sommellier, but married to a maitre'd :) I'm really more of a white wine girl (Reislings, Savignon blanc, and Pinot Gris) but I do a lot of cooking with reds. There are some really wonderful and refreshing choices out there on the market. And I'm always thirsty for wine :)
"Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile..." The Only Living Boy in New York, Paul Simon |
melody |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 11:37:02 AM Thank you Jonni....You're a sweetie! Are you sure you weren't a Sommellier in a former life? I LOVE how you described your wines! I don't even like wine but you made me thirsty.....
Mel |
FebruaryViolet |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 11:10:42 AM LOL about that Rhine, Melody!!! That was a kick in the head, no doubt!
The key, I think, is knowing your flavors, and cabs can be really oaky and dry with heavy tannins (that desert dry feel after you take a drink), or they can range from cherry, mocha to chocolate with moderate to light tannins. I prefer the latter flavors for cooking with beef.
Two of my favorites to cook with (coming in about $9.00) are Columbia Crest Grand Estates cabernet sauvignon, with light tannins and a really smooth flavor heady with cherry,strawberries and mocha. Also, Hogue Cellar's cab. Wide range of fruit flavors, but it's finished with a merlot grape, so it makes the end flavor subtle, no bite, no oak. Moderate tannin levels, also. Those are my two go-to's for cooking with meat (I usually add a cup or two to a beef roast--studded with garlic and sprigs of fresh rosemary--along with a cup of beef broth to deepen the flavor. No recipe, just playing around, and it always turns out wonderfully.
I'd love to know if you try it again, or simply buy a bottle of this, and try your hand at a beef roast in the oven with a glass of cab tossed in and a glass for yourself while your at it! That's how I cook, anyway--a little for the meat, a little for me. A little more for the meat, a lot more for me... ![](icons/icon_smile_wink.gif)
"Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile..." The Only Living Boy in New York, Paul Simon |
melody |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 09:25:21 AM Jonni,
I went directly to the little liquor store right off the main grocery store where I buy our food. He was a young boy and I asked him for his help-Right away he grabbed the bottle of Barefoot and said "There you go mam!" I should have done a little more research as I have NO palate for wine of any kind-Except for that one huge bottle of Rhine I split with a girlfriend back in'82---Again, a very big mistake!
What kind of cooking wine would you advice for a novice like me?
Mel |
FebruaryViolet |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 09:17:32 AM Alright, Melody, I'm going to weigh in :) I cook with wine quite a bit, and only one recipe I've made (a Jamie Oliver roast) called for a whole bottle of wine. It was wonderful, though, I did try it before it had been cooked through and thought, "this might have been a mistake...". What I've found, and what I've been told is this: cooking with lower quality wines can ruin your meal. While it may seem like a waste to put a $15.00 bottle of wine into your roast, there are some really "good" wines (tasting wines) out there for under $10.00 and sadly, Barefoot isn't one of them. Don't put this recipe in the "permanent filing cabinet" yet, try it with another wine (recommended for cooking by your local wine shop) and see how that goes.
Also, most Cabs are an acquired taste when it comes drinking, let alone cooking :)
"Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile..." The Only Living Boy in New York, Paul Simon |
acairnsmom |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 08:44:40 AM Oh you two! I was wondering if the reason you didn't care of it was because they didn't wash those bare feet very well!
Audrey
Toto, we're not in Kansas any more! |
Okie Farm Girl |
Posted - Oct 19 2011 : 08:18:14 AM Well, there you go...wine that has to do with bare feet can't be all bad!! :-)
Mary Beth
www.OklahomaPastryCloth.com www.Oklahomapastrycloth.com/blog The Sovereign Lord is my strength - Habakkuk 3:19 |
melody |
Posted - Oct 19 2011 : 07:42:55 AM Oh that's too funny Mary Beth... I bought a bottle of "Barefoot" Cabernet Sauvignon and I think I might have not given the wine enough time to reduce after browning the onions and celery come to think of it. All is not lost though there is still a 1/2 a bottle left and I plan on trying it again.
Thank you girls for all the GOOD advice.
Melody |
Okie Farm Girl |
Posted - Oct 19 2011 : 06:45:20 AM Melody, that sounds like a LOT of wine. But if you aren't used to the taste of wine, it probably is very overwhelming. I love cooking with wine, but I never use as much as they say. The French want the meat to taste like wine, not the meat, and so they use boatloads!! I remember the first time I had Coq Au Vin and the chicken was a deep purple when it was served. It tasted so much like wine that I didn't care for it at all. I don't drink wine and so it is a bit strong for me. However, I really do like wine in sauces and in cooking - just not so much. You might consider reducing the wine to even a fourth of what the recipe called for just for your tastebuds. And I use a cheap Gallo Vermouth for cooking chicken and fish (red for Coq au Vin). My favorite red wine for cooking with beef is a cheap one by Barefoot called Sweet Red. I love it. I also use burgandy when called for.
Mary Beth
www.OklahomaPastryCloth.com www.Oklahomapastrycloth.com/blog The Sovereign Lord is my strength - Habakkuk 3:19 |
Alee |
Posted - Oct 19 2011 : 06:06:28 AM Melody- Did it say to cook covered? Usually with wine sauces you reduce in an open pan before putting a lid on anything- otherwise the alcohol taste can't go anywhere. Also some people like the winey taste, I personally dont so if we cook with wine I just put a splash in- sometimes up to a cup depending on the size of the dish but not more than that.
Alee Farmgirl Sister #8 www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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melody |
Posted - Oct 18 2011 : 9:43:25 PM Alee....I cooked the roast at 300 degrees in a covered cast iron dutch oven. But, first I browned my chopped onion and celery after browning the beef, then I added beef stock, a can of crushed tomatoes and then the wine, brought that to a boil put the meat back in the dutch oven covered it and slow cooked it.
I never cook with wine....so this was a first for me. Oh and 750 ml of wine (I checked the bottle and that's exactly what was in a full bottle)listed in the recipe and I cut that in half.
The "sauce" was a very deep and rich color after it finished, but oh Alee the taste of that wine just enveloped everything---darn it!
Melody |
Alee |
Posted - Oct 18 2011 : 9:37:20 PM Depending on how high your heat was- the alcohol might not have cooked off completely. Were you cooking it in the same way as mentioned in the recipe? Was it covered or uncovered? How much was requested? Perhaps the requested amount was a typo?
Alee Farmgirl Sister #8 www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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walkinwalkoutcattle |
Posted - Oct 18 2011 : 5:23:17 PM I use burgundy for cooking. Not sure why-my mom always said to use Burgundy.
Farmgirl #2879 :) Starbucks and sushi to green fried tomatoes and corn pudding-I wouldn't change it for the world. www.cattleandcupcakes.blogspot.com
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