wine with popcorn

My wine pairing belief: The most sublime matches are the result of simply taking great pleasure in whatever you are drinking, whatever you are eating, and whoever you are with. Its sort of like the 50 50 rule of wine scoring …which suggests that you cant really judge a wine alone…you must give a max of 50 points to the wine and the other 50 belong to the environment, to your conversation, to the lighting in the room, to the conversation, to the pairing, and so on …
I normally start with the same basic premise as I would any night of the week when I decide what’s on the menu. I take a look at the wines and think about what I’d enjoy eating with those wines, and from there I start to envision the recipe and what might work. Go with it …

When Hardy offered up this great idea to get folks engaged in some local restaurants though the food and wine pairing boulevard, i thought to make my contribution as simple as can be …simpler and more like what the non wine geeks and non industry peeps might do naturally or latch onto naturally. So, …take La Tavola, the affectionate little Pacific Heights esque, shotgun Trattoria in Virginia highlands..plop it into a crisp autumn evening …imagine you and a good friend nestled in a cozy booth, …soft light, bustling dining room, …here comes the pasta and here comes the wine …. Its just that easy if you want it to be …for all the fellas and the young lay-dees …so use your mind and set yourself free …

To learn more, visit Hardy's "Dirty South Wine" blog here.

Restaurant :La Tavola
Chef : Craig Richards
Preparation: Orcchiette with house mage sausage and rapini
Wine: Enzo di Sette Rue, Primitivo, Puglia, IT 2006