Wine pairings

Here's my list of top 20 fortuitous wine/spirit pairings (in no particular order), with the understanding, of course, that you are also warmly invited to share yours ...

1. Pinotage with pasta carbonara (heavy on the bacon)
2. Beaujolais Nouveau (chilled) with Thanksgiving turkey and REAL cranberry sauce
3. White Rioja with summer picnic food
4. Shiraz with venison stew
5. LBV ruby Port with chocolate torte
6. 20 yr old tawny Port with Gorgonzola
7. 20 yr old tawny Port with pierced Stilton (Brit-style. They pierce it and pour the Stilton in the holes, lay it aside for a few days till the port permeates the cheese, and you've got yourself some kickarse Stilton ...) or Bleu d'Auvergne
8. White port with toasted nuts (or Marcona almonds), Spanish olives and chorizo
9. New Zealand Sauv Blanc with goat cheese, also from Kiwi-land
10. Pinot Noir with goat cheese
11. Sparkling rosé with Chinese food
12. Riesling with Indian food
13. Riesling with almost anything (my opinion is, if you can't fix it with a Riesling, face it, it's feckin' BROKE)
14. Chianti with spaghetti alla marinara (my own recipe, heavy on the sun-dried tomatoes)
15. Gewürtztraminer with sushi (but only if the sushi has got plenty of the trimmings, like soy, ginger, wasabi ...)
16. Zinfandel with (I want my babybackbabybackbabybackbabybackbabyback) BBQ ribs
17. Sauternes with Roquefort
18. Rioja with Manchego
19. Alsace Pinot Gris with quiche Lorraine
20. Amontillado sherry with Irish cheddar. Ooo! ooo! ooo! [jumping up and down] and hot fresh roasted peanuts with sea salt!

I'm still trying to noodle out some other pairings but I'm hoping one of my readers can help me with those.
Calvados: I know crème brulée is the classic choice, but how about something with pears or cranberries (you know, fall fruity flavors)? Camembert? Brie with honey and gingersnaps? Or would that last one go better with Sauternes?
Scrambled eggs: Sancerre? Champagne? I guess it depends on what's in the eggs.

The Crab Shack rocks!

OK, here comes an unapologetic, shameless commercial plug/endorsement for an establishment, product or service ...

On the weekend of Sept 30 - Oct 2 a good friend and I took a road trip to Savannah to celebrate their annual Oktoberfest. We stopped by the Crab Shack on Tybee Island for their Capt'n Crab Sampler, which is a gloriously messy and delicious platter of several different kinds of crab, plus crawfish, shrimp, sausage, potatoes, and corn, all simmered in a simple yet unbelievably tasty lowcountry boil. This sampler is so ohmyGodincredible that I insist on having it every time I go to Savannah, and I honestly believe it's worth a 4-hour road trip from Atlanta to Savannah just to enjoy that sampler for dinner with a glass of one of their pleasant whites, on their deck as the sun sets over the salt marsh and Jimmy Buffett tunes play in the background.

But that isn't the main reason why I wanted to write this, even though it's certainly compelling enough ... I really wanted to give them props in my blog because they're good folks. After finishing the sampler, I went to the ladies' room for a thorough washup of my hands and arms, and left my favorite watch on the sink. I hadn't realized I'd left it there until we were already back in Savannah and didn't have another chance to drive back to Tybee. So, when we returned to Atlanta, I emailed the Crab Shack on the off chance one of the patrons or waitstaff had discovered my watch and turned it in. Sure enough, the general manager herself replied to inform me that somebody did turn it in. I asked her how much the shipping would be so that I could write them a check or PayPal them for reimbursement, but they insisted on FedExing it to me free of charge on the condition that I tell everyone about the Crab Shack. This condition was most readily and happily accepted. :-)

So, if you're ever down that way, GO to the Crab Shack. Heck, make a special trip down there, just for that. You won't regret it!