Vive le Vino! Holiday Wine Tips

Menu—check. Guest list—check. All you have left to worry about is what noteworthy vintage to uncork at your feast. Pairing wines can seem like a daunting task, but with Zupan’s Sommelier, Amber Kinjerski, on hand, choosing the perfect bottle for your holiday fare is a piece of cake.

For Thanksgiving, with turkey as the main entrée, there a couple of routes you can take to achieve a great food and wine pairing. If you want to go the traditional route, serve a German Riesling. A 2000 Jos. Christoffel Jr., Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Kabinett is a fantastic choice for a Riesling that has some age on it. It’s a classic match that is sublime with turkey. The sweetness of a Riesling complements the sweetness in the meat and isn’t overbearing or heavy. Remember, turkey is poultry; lighter wines pair better with it. Plus, we generally eat enough heavy food on Thanksgiving—there’s no need to add heavy wine to the mix.

Alternately, for red wine lovers, you can serve a Pinot Noir with turkey as well. Pinot is neither heavy nor tannic, but has enough body to pair well with meats. For the locally inclined, Amber recommends an Oregon favorite: A 2008 Ken Wright Cellars, Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir. The 2008 vintage is shaping up to be a great one—generously fruity, supple and full bodied—that pairs extremely well with any dish featuring cranberries.

Getting further into the holiday party season, and a more diverse menu, Amber also pulled a few sure-fire winners from the Zupan’s Cellar to serve at your table or bring to a party.

For the carnivores, try a 2007 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Le Vieux Donjon. The 2007 vintages from the Rhône are the best we’ve seen in the last 25-30 years, with fruit notes that are generous, dark and gripping. This wine will cut through the fat and gristle of any of the heavier meats (beef or lamb), and has enough body and texture to stand up to even the juiciest cuts!

For seafood lovers and vegetarian diners, a White Burgundy is an excellent choice. It goes with nearly everything. Like Chardonnay, White Burgundys are Blanc de Blancs wines (made with 100% Chardonnay grapes), but are an enchanting counterpart to traditional California Chardonnay. White Burgundys have less oak on them and more floral characteristics, making them a beautiful complement to white fish or salmon. Amber’s favorite is a 2006 “Les Bassets” Domaine Laurent Cognard, Montagny 1er Cru.

When it comes time for dessert, Amber is thrilled over the grower’s Champagnes she’s ordered for the 2009 party season. Grower’s Champagnes are small batch, artisan Champagnes sourced from their namesake region in France. The growers raise their own grapes, neither buying from nor selling to other growers. They personally attend to the entire wine making process themselves, which results in very unique and special wines. These Champagnes are all organic and often bio-dynamic.

Two of the best are the L. Aubry, Brut NV—offering a clean finish and high citrus fruit notes—and the Pierre Gimonnet, Cuis 1er Brut NV with hints of buttery brioche and an opulent, rich texture. Champagne is best with light, fruity desserts (torts, sorbets, etc.) rather than rich sweets such as cake or pumpkin pie (see below for Amber’s advice on picking a wine to pair with richer desserts).

Amber also has some excellent general tips for choosing which wines to serve at, or bring to, holiday meals:

• Always consider the weight of the food compared to the weight of the wine. The lighter the fare, the lighter the wine—and vice versa. For instance, if Dungeness Crab Cakes are the entrée, avoid pouring a bold wine such as a Cabernet. It will overpower the dish—you want to strike a balance.
• If you’re bringing wine to a party, don’t hesitate to ask your host/hostess what they are serving. This way you can be sure to choose a wine that will compliment the meal rather than distract from it.
• If you use a good deal of herbs in your cooking, Rhône wines—especially from the 2007 vintage—are the way to go. They have an inherent herbaceousness that naturally creates a stellar pairing.
• Port is fantastic for rich, holiday desserts. The darker flavor profiles (such as pumpkin, dark chocolate and spice) work well with Port’s caramel and molasses traits.
• Feel free to ask for assistance from Zupan’s wine stewards. They look forward to helping you choose a fabulous wine for every occasion and budget.

Staff Pick: Berry Branches

‘Tis the season! The holidays are here and it’s time to celebrate with family and friends. That means throwing at least a party or two, and possibly hosting a holiday meal. When it comes to your tablescape, Susan, our floral department manager at the Burnside Zupan’s, has some fantastic tips for making a statement without investing a lot of energy. She’s a fan of simple, elegant arrangements that compliment a table rather than stage a takeover—and berry branches are one of her favorite tricks for creating instant ambiance in a room.

Some of Susan’s preferred local varieties of berry branches are Ilex berries, pumpkin berries, bittersweet berries, rose hips and gorgeous purple Callicarpa berries. She fills a tall, cylindrical vase with apples, pomegranates (cut in half, so you can see the beads inside) or persimmons and uses the berry branches to complete the piece (you can also add willow or dogwood branches). The result is quite striking—and this arrangement is both hypoallergenic and long lasting.

If you have your menu down, but need some inspiration for your centerpiece, head in to your neighborhood Zupan’s and check out our European style floral market. Our staff is always willing to help you with a full arrangement, or suggestions on how to create the perfect piece for your home.

From our table to yours—Happy Holidays!

Staff Pick: Langres Cheese

Just when thought we couldn’t get any more excited about Champagne season, along came our Burnside Cheesemonger Susan with this special treat: Langres cheese from the Champagne region in France. Cheese from Champagne? We’re in heaven.

Langres is a washed-rind, cow’s milk cheese that offers a creamy, decadent flavor. It’s distinctly dimpled orange rind is formed by regular rinsing with a pigment from the Annatto tree during the aging process. Its texture is smooth and dense, which pairs nicely when contrasted by the most famous export from this region in France—Champagne wine. In fact, you’ll notice a concave depression in the top of the wheel—this is an intentional divet made to hold a small well of Champagne!

Susan loves this cheese so much that she suggests pairing it with only bubbly or at most s a thin cracker that won’t detract from Langres’ delicate flavor (her favorite is a Natural Crispbread from 34°).

Difference In The Details: Fresh Turkey For Your Thanksgiving Table

Thanksgiving is about celebrating the things we’re thankful for, like friends, family and time off from the daily grind.  It also gives us an excuse to bring out the good china, cook up a storm and break open that bottle of wine we’ve been saving for a special occasion. We love to feast together and have put the Thanksgiving meal at the center of the day’s festivities.

For many, the meal will most likely be built around the traditional Thanksgiving Turkey. The goal is to serve a bird that is moist and flavorful—and luckily it’s not difficult to achieve these results when you start with the right ingredients.

The most important ingredient of a turkey dinner is, of course, the turkey. Several factors contribute heavily to the quality of a bird: Hormones, antibiotics, exercise and whether or not the turkey has ever been frozen. There’s a common understanding that an all-natural, free-range turkey is a better option when available. The factor that often gets neglected is whether the turkey has been frozen or not. Just like other meats, a fresh turkey (one that has never been frozen) makes for a tastier entrée on your Thanksgiving table.

A fully frozen turkey is often a mushy and less flavorful turkey. Freezing comes with a big issue in a tiny package: ice crystals. Ice crystals, with their sharp edges, form and expand as the turkey freezes, poking microscopic holes into the cell walls and causing breakage that results in loss of moisture and flavor. This is a major problem, because nobody wants a dry, bland turkey on Thanksgiving!

So what’s a Thanksgiving chef to do? Simple. Get a truly fresh turkey that will have your guests gobbling up every last morsel. By USDA standards, turkeys can be labeled “fresh” so long as they haven’t been held at temperatures lower than 26° Fahrenheit. This is called deep-chilling and allows turkeys to be transported safely—without heightened risk of harmful bacteria growth—but also keeps the birds from freezing solid.

Zupan’s carries Shelton’s Fresh, All-Natural, Free-Range Turkeys from 10-34lbs. These turkeys are the real deal—never held below 26° Farenheit and packed with flavor. With a fresh turkey from Shelton’s, you get the foundation for a Thanksgiving meal your friends and family will remember long into 2010 for all the right reasons.

From our holiday table to yours—Happy Thanksgiving!

To pre-order a Shelton’s fresh turkey from Zupan’s, drop by your neighborhood store, or visit our website. We offer uncooked fresh turkeys with or without a variety of side dishes, and fully cooked holiday turkey dinners as well.

Calling All Choc-O-Holics: One Week To Go!

There’s just under a week until we find out who is the most creative choc-o-holic chef in the Portland area. Who knows—it could be you!

We launched our first ever Chocolate Decadence Recipe Contest to highlight the stellar culinary prowess of our city and the versatility of chocolate as a featured ingredient in both sweet and savory dishes. We’ve been floored by the creative cocoa visions that have come in and wanted to remind you all that there is still time to enter—the deadline is Monday, 11/16 at 11:59pm.

Of course, your efforts won’t be without reward. We’ve put together a prize package that any cook would love!

1st Place Receives:

• $200 Gift Card to Zupan’s Markets
• Recipe and photograph featured in Indulge magazine
• Recipe cards placed in all Zupan’s locations with author attribution
• Recipe featured on Zupan’s Markets Blog

1st and 2nd Runners-Up Receive:

• $50 Gift Card to Zupan’s Markets
• Recipe and photograph featured in Indulge magazine
• Recipe featured on Zupan’s Markets Blog

Contest Rules:

• Entries must creatively highlight chocolate as one of the featured ingredients
• Recipes can be sweet or savory from any dish category (appetizer, entrée, dessert, cocktail)
• Any category of chocolate may be used (white, milk, dark, flavored, cacao, etc.)
• Entrants must reside within the Portland Metro Area
• Recipes must be entrant’s original work or an adaptation of an existing recipe using chocolate as a main ingredient
• To enter, send the following to: recipes@zupans.com

—Your first and last name

—Telephone number and email address (for contact purposes only)

—Twitter ID (if you have one)

—The names of any blogs or books you author, articles written, etc.

—An attached Microsoft Word/Works document of your recipe

—A photograph file(s) of your finished product (.jpg, .gif, .tif) and written permission to publish your photograph with your recipe in Indulge magazine if selected as a winner (note: photographs do not directly affect your chances of winning)

Deadline for entry: 11:59 pm, November 16, 2009

May the biggest choc-o-holic win!

Staff Pick: Tutto Calabria Hot Spread Sauce

Peter Kost, manager at the Burnside Zupan’s Markets can’t get enough of this stuff: Tutto Calabria Hot Spread Sauce. This fiery compilation of chili peppers, olive oil and vegetables is sure to knock your socks off! Peter puts it on tacos, makes a spicy pasta sauce by adding olive oil, mixes it with Zupan’s canned albacore tuna for a zesty tuna salad, spreads it on pork loin before grilling—the list goes on and on.

You could also add it to dips for an extra kick, sauté veggies in it or add it to a burger. Tutto’s Calabria Hot Spread Sauce is versatile and a little goes a long way. If you’re looking for one ingredient that can take things up a notch, this is it. Find it with the dips + spreads at any neighborhood Zupan’s.

From Peter’s table to yours—Buon Appetito!

NW Bounty: The Mighty Hazelnut

A list of Oregon’s quintessential flavors wouldn’t be complete without mentioning a fall favorite: Hazelnuts (or filberts, as the locals like to call them). Like pears, hazelnuts are suited particularly well to grow in Oregon’s heavily seasonal climate—and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Gorgeous orchards of these tiny nuggets of goodness line the Willamette Valley and their bounty is harvested every fall for our enjoyment. Around this time each year hazelnuts begin to pop up in recipes all over, sweet and savory alike. There’s just something about a touch of hazelnut that says, “holidays.”

Most things we add to the holiday menu don’t exactly have a reputation for healthiness, but this time we’re in luck. In addition to their delightful taste, hazelnuts are also quite nutritious. Filled with monounsaturated fats, fiber, magnesium and valuable B and E vitamins, hazelnuts add a dash of nutrition to the decadent desserts we sprinkle them on and make a fantastic on-the-go snack during the hectic holidays.

Another selling point for the mighty hazelnut? Versatility. They can play the starring role (try a hazelnut stuffing with your Thanksgiving Turkey this year—your guests won’t be disappointed!) or provide rich support for other ingredients, as they do in the Chiffonade of Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Hazelnuts on page 24 of the holiday issue of Indulge Magazine.

Some other fun ways to infuse your holiday fare with hazelnuts:

• Toast with a dash of olive oil and herbs (rosemary and/or thyme are heavenly), chop and sprinkle over salads.
• Toast, chop and substitute for almonds or other nuts in cookie and brownie recipes.
• Use hazelnuts instead of pine nuts for an incredibly tasty variation on classic pesto. Just toast and then chop the hazelnuts in a food processor. Add basil, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, garlic and salt + pepper to taste. Pulse until the mixture reaches the desired consistency and enjoy!

From our table to yours—Happy eating during this year’s holiday season!

Staff Pick: Pomegranates!

Pomegranates are an ancient fruit with a noble history. Originating from Persia, they’re also full of flavor and healthful properties. It’s no wonder Ronnie, the produce guru at our Burnside location, chose them as his staff pick this week.

Pomegranates are versatile, with a distinctive flavor profile. Their tangy, yet sweet beads (arils) are carefully preserved by a thick skin and inner padding. Release them from their natural packaging and you have the perfect salad topper, snack for on-the-go or cocktail ingredient. Pomegranate seeds or fresh pomegranate juice can also be added to your holiday dishes as a sauce ingredient (pomegranate cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving turkey is superb), meat marinade or dessert garnish (pomegranate glaze on pastries is fabulously decadent).

Even better—pomegranates are full of antioxidants. That’s good news with cold and flu season creeping in on us. Zupan’s even carries packages of fresh seeds, so you can grab a quick handful of healthy goodness and be on your way. These are great for the kid’s lunches or after-school snacks too.

From our table to yours—Nush-e jan (Food for you and your soul)!

You Tell Us…What’s Your Favorite Halloween Treat?

Tomorrow is Halloween! We’ll see lots of ghosts, goblins and holiday treats. What’s your favorite Halloween goody?

Difference In The Details: Air Chilled Chickens

Many things appear the same on the surface—the difference is in the details. Sourcing, processing and ingredient integrity are all factors that, though often overlooked, have a major impact on the quality of your food. Mary and family, of Mary’s Chickens, pay close attention to those details and the consumer benefits from their commitment to excellence.

The difference, in this case, is that Mary’s chickens are air chilled using a process that has been standard in Europe for over 45 years. Per USDA standards, chickens must be cooled to 4° Celsius within four hours of slaughter in order to curb the growth of harmful bacteria. In the United States, the typical cooling process for chicken is through water immersion. It’s an efficient process if you’re concerned with time, but does have drawbacks.

In immersion cooling, chickens are cooled by multiple dips into massive communal vats of chemically treated (most often chlorinated) cold water. This methodology creates the potential for cross-contamination from bacteria, such as Salmonella, and also zaps the chicken of its natural flavors by diluting it with the retained water—water you pay for when you purchase chicken at the market.

In air chilling, chickens are individually spaced out on conveyor belt racks and cooled by blasts of frigid mist until they reach the required 4° Celsius. The process takes longer, but avoids cross contamination and water retention. The end result? The chicken you serve at your table will be less likely to contain harmful bacteria and yields a perfectly crispy skin, fabulously tender meat and out-of-this-world taste that is lost through immersion cooling.

From Mary’s table and our table to yours—happy eating!

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