Food & Wine — Holidays

Some of the world's greatest wines are sweet. No, we are not referencing wines that have been altered with levels of sugar or halted fermentation to achieve sweetness. We are  talking about Sauternes, a golden colored, sweet French wine from the Bordeaux region. Drive about 25 miles southeast towards the Graves appellation, there are two neighboring sub-regions, Barsac and Sautneres.  These two regions are along side the Garonne and the Ciron tributary. The two rivers provide an unique microclimate along with the morning fogs and warm afternoons. The water of the Ciron is cooler than the Garonne, thus in the...

Whether you're celebrating Hanukkah or Christmas, this blintz recipe will delight your families. Wake up to a special breakfast on Christmas morning or light the menorah with blitzes for dessert. There are so many ways to flavor and top your cheese blintzes, but for this recipe we've decided to use cherries jubilee as our inspiration. The pleasant kick of orange flavor brings a lot of seasonal taste and complexity to the filling. Since making crepes can be tricky for a first timer, we recommend making a little extra batter since your first couple of tries may not be successful. Luckily,...

We are huge fans of puff pastry! But really, who isn't? It's crispy, flakey, buttery and delicious. Puff pastry is incredibly versatile and can be shaped into so many forms. For this recipe, we've decided to focus on something that could function as a breakfast pastry or as little bite size cups at your holiday party. Get creative with different ingredients. Your guests will not be displeased. Try pairing these treats with a crisp and aromatic dry White wine. Ingredients:  1/2 cup Crème Fraîche 1/2 tsp Dried Thyme 1/2 tsp Lemon Juice 6oz Porcini or Crimini Mushrooms 1/4 Onion 1/4...

  Finding the perfect wines to match the diverse dishes on your Thanksgiving table can be a daunting task. From cranberry sauce to mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, how does one find the right pairing to satisfy everyone’s palate? To solve this overwhelming task, one may use the classic approach and serving something to compliment both the meat and vegetable spread. Truchard Pinot Noir Dr. Tony Truchard was one of the first physicians in California to become a winery owner in the 70s. He started off with 20 acres in 1973 while still practicing internal medicine in Reno.  Wine was...

Chardonnay from California has definitely gained a specific style for the pass few decades. However one winery continues to consistently make great Chardonnay without adapting to the mass commercial style that dominates store shelves. Mount Eden Vineyards is considered one of California’s original boutique wineries that was founded in 1945. Focusing on small lots of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, the winery is perched at 2000 feet overlooking Silicon Valley in the Santa Cruz Mountain Appellation. Planted in infertile Franciscan shale, exposed on the mountain top, these low –yielding estate vineyards have produced world class wines for over half-century....