My brother in law is visiting from Australia, and we took him wine touring. He purchased a very nice, rather expensive, bottle of Johner Pinot Noir Reserve, and I'd like to cook something really gorgeous to show it off...ideas please ladies (and gents).

I think lamb is a good partner for Pinot Noir, and it's hard to beat lamb racks or lamb backstraps for a special dinner. Or if you want to be less formal, a marinated boned leg of lamb roasted in a covered barbecue.

You don't want anything too harsh that would overpower the wine, so I would use Ras al Hanout to spice the lamb, and serve vaguely Middle Eastern accompaniments such as a pilaf with dried fruits and nuts, a salad of tomatoes, olives and onion, and a salad of cooked silverbeet or spinach dressed with NZ olive oil, lemon and garlic. if you would like any detailed recipes just ask. I have had great results marinating lamb legs in kefir and Ras al Hanout.

Lucky, lucky you. Johner Pinot Noirs are usually not at fruity as some New Zealand Pinot Noir can be. They are more full bodied with layers of taste and generally made to go with food.

My first choice would be roast lamb, but you could serve it with duck with maybe a pomegranate glaze.

Griz, if you have time up your sleeve you could email Johner Estate and ask for their recommendations. They want their wines to be enjoyed in the best possible way..

Oh that's an idea Marnie! I'll do that.

TPANDAV, I served pretty much that exact meal last night!

Really! Great minds.

Boned out lamb leg on the BBQ is one of my go-to things for catering for a crowd. I went Middle eastern in theme so did a rub with cinnamon, cumin, etc. A proper bulgur tabouli with heaps of parsley and mint and fresh tomatoes from the garden, a haloumi, date and rocket salad, and a couscous and apricot salad, I also made a dressing for the lamb from yogurt and coriander.

Here is the response from the vineyard : "This wine is very good with rich casseroles ie beef cheek or game like
venison even game birds like duck also very good with New Zealand Lamb
and hard cheeses, The wine has very good tannin and structure, the spice
I would use would be cinnamon, cumin, Star Anise & clove but in small
delicate amounts "

I'm reluctant to do a rich casserole in the heat, so I'm wondering about duck breast (I've not cooked duck breast before so I'd need very good instructions) or lamb racks (more familiar with these).

I think lamb racks are more forgiving than duck breasts; both need to be cooked only to the rare side of medium-rare but because the racks have the bone they don;t cook so quickly and respond well to a long rest.

I sometimes cut racks into cutlets, dust them with spices or oregano, and cook very briefly on a very hot grill, maybe two minutes on one side and one minute on the other. For whole racks with the fat cap removed I give them about 8 minutes in a very hot covered Weber, rest for at least ten minutes.

I haven't cooked duck breasts in the barbecue because I'm worried about overcooking them. I usually cook them on a medium-hot cast iron ridged grill pan, skin side down, pouring off the fat often until they are golden brown. By this point they are almost cooked, so I turn them once and give them about two minutes on the flesh side, then rest for at least ten minutes. Score the skin before you cook them and salt it well.

I decided to go with lamb, as it's what I know. I'll work on getting duck right when it's just me and Mr Griz.


So our menu for this evening is:

Rocket and manchego salad with toasted pine nuts, pear and dates
Roasted Lamb Fillet in parma ham with armagnac and prune jus, braised lettuce and peas
Coconut rice pudding with caramelised pineapple and toasted coconut biscuit.

That sounds wonderful, and not too heavy. Do report on how the wine pairing worked.

Mmm this thread is making me hungry - it all sounds so delicious.

Griz your visitors must feel as if they've been to a top restaurant when they dine at your place........you should be running a restaurant I reckon. You certainly have the knowledge, confidence and skills to produce beautiful main dishes and ability to co-ordinate the right blend of side dishes to compliment! Me too Cheese Lover, makes me feel hungry!

Same with TPANDAV who obviously cooks beautiful and interesting food at home and certainly has a vast knowledge and repertoire of recipes from so many nations and is so willing to share them.

I AM impressed!
Regards,
Dawn.

I agree Dawn, they are excellent cooks.Oh to be like them.

Aw shucks! Of course anyone can type out a menu, the truth is in the eating! Both the starter and main are lifted directly from Simon Gault's "Nourish" book, so I can't take any credit for menu planning really.

I'd love to be doing something with food, but don't think I'm up to restaurant cheffing! All prepped here and waiting on the guest of honour to arrive, she's been delayed due to an aborted take off from Brisbane.

Thanks for the kind words Dawn and Marylew. I love to share food ideas and it's always nice to get feedback.

I've always thought the best meal combination for a good bottle of wine is a good risotto dish! I find the best risotto recipes using Riso Scotti's brand of rice risotto, so I could definitely recommend that to you if you feel like pairing your pinot noir with, say, a mushroom risotto next time.

I would say a steak - well done

Flora205 Warsaw/Poland
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2017 11:09PM by Flora205.

There is absolutely no way I would ever ruin a steak by cooking it well done.

I can understand that however I think that it is always the question of own taste and the preferences - and there are different "well dones" of course

Flora205 Warsaw/Poland
[www.home-madepatchwork.com]
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Nope, in my house you get your steak the way I cook it, and that is usually medium-rare or rare depending on the cut and the way I'm using it.

We do them all different ways depending on how everyone it orders.

Flora205 Warsaw/Poland
[www.home-madepatchwork.com]
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