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Tempranillo and Zesty Pepper Steak with Jalapeño Reduction Sauce
April 1, 2011 by Colleen
Filed under Blog, Wine & Recipe of The Month
How about something substantial and spicy for a cold winter’s day? The liberal peppering of all kinds of peppercorns in this recipe will warm you from within! Paired with a glass of our fruit-driven, spicy Tempranillo it’s one of Colleen’s favorites and really hits the spot! This is quick and easy to make whether it’s a Tuesday night for just the two of you or a Friday night entertaining friends!
Ingredients:
2 rib eye steaks
2 tablespoons of 5 pepper blend peppercorns
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
For the Sauce
1/4 cup jalapeño pepper jelly
1/4 cup beef consommé
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon Goosecross Tempranillo
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Salt & pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon brined green peppercorns
Directions:
Roughly crush the peppercorn blend and press into each steak. Place steaks in a square glass dish. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over the steaks, making sure both sides are covered in liquid. Marinate the steaks for 2 hours at room temperature. Grill the steaks to desired doneness.
For the sauce:
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the pepper jelly, beef consommé, soy sauce, wine, vinegar, salt & pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for 5 minutes to reduce and concentrate the sauce. Add the brined peppercorns and simmer for a few more minutes. Set aside.
To serve, slice the steak into 1/2 slices and pour the reduction sauce over the meat. Serve with Goosecross Tempranillo.
Recommended side dishes: blanched asparagus drizzled with lemon olive oil & grated Manchego cheese with Spanish rice.
Serves 2
Discover more great recipes at Colleen’s Kitchen
Purchase the 2008 Tempranillo in our online store
2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Franc
May 20, 2010 by David
Filed under Blog, Cabernet Franc, Winemaker Notes
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
New release! Not so familiar with Cabernet Franc? It’s a little softer, leaner and more elegant than its offspring, Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes it easy to drink and very food friendly. 
When it’s blended with Cabernet Sauvignon, it’s often done to “bring up the nose”, which just means it smells really good. Expect lush, ripe cherry, blackberry and black plum with anise, spearmint, some mocha and toasty oak. Medium to full bodied with gentle tannins.
Cabernet Franc and food: As Colleen says, thanks to its moderate proportions and soft tannins it’s is a “slam dunk” when it comes to food pairing. Enjoy this with everything from grilled swordfish, to roast chicken, grilled Portobellos or a good steak! How about some comfort food? Try it with Colleen’s recipe for Coq au Vin with the Cabernet Franc as the “vin”! Bon appétit!
2007 Napa Valley Merlot
May 20, 2010 by David
Filed under Blog, Merlot, Winemaker Notes
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
This is no Cabernet wannabe. With its red fruit, velvety tannins and earthy, slightly herbal note it’s unmistakably Merlot. 
This is 100% Merlot, but you can still call it a blend because it brings together rich, ripe flavors from our Yountville Estate and the leaner, earthier character of Carneros-grown fruit. It all adds up to delicious! 2007, perhaps the best vintage we’ve seen since 1997, yielded flavors of ripe cherry, strawberry, turned earth, mocha and a hint of smoke and toasty oak.
Merlot and food: With its soft tannins, Merlot has a long-standing reputation for being versatile at the table. Colleen serves it with everything from poultry to pasta, to a good steak! Give it a try with her recipe for Spring Lamb with Honey-Thyme Root Vegetables.
Snap Peas
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Fun Fact by Sherry Page, Culinary Getaways: Snap Peas
Did you enjoy this? Here are more Fun Facts from Goosecross Cellars.
Chenin Blanc and Pork Medallions with Grapefruit-Ginger Chutney
April 1, 2010 by David
Filed under Blog, Wine & Recipe of The Month
We’d like to welcome spring with something just a little sweet. That’s our Chenin Blanc – fresh and light with just a touch of sweetness to accentuate the honeyed pear, bright citrus and pineapple character. The Chenin Blanc is wonderfully refreshing on its own, but Colleen came up with this quick and delicious recipe that features zesty citrus fruit and just enough heat and spice to make it interesting. The fruitiness of the Chenin Blanc is not only a perfect partner for the pork medallions – it can carry you through the whole evening. It’s a refreshing starter to welcome your guests, and can see you right through dessert. Try it with Colleen’s recipe for Lemon Meringue Tarlets. Happy spring!
Ingredients
2 white grapefruits, seeded & demembraned
1 cup fresh grapefruit juice
3 tablespoons wildflower honey
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 small red chile pepper, minced
1-1/2 tablespoons ginger, minced
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1/2 medium orange
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
One 1-1/2 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1-1/2 inch medallions
Directions
In a medium saucepan, combine the grapefruit sections, grapefruit juice, honey, sugar and red chile and simmer over moderate heat until thickened, about 15 minutes. Remove the chutney from the heat and stir in the minced ginger, lemon juice, orange zest, mustard seeds, and cinnamon. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat until shimmering. Season the pork medallions with salt and pepper. Add them to the skillet and cook over high heat, 5 minutes per side, until evenly browned. Transfer the pork to individual plates and spoon the grapefruit-ginger chutney on top.
Discover more great recipes in Colleen’s Kitchen
Purchase the 2008 Goosecross Chenin Blanc in our online store.
Rancho Gordo
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Fun Fact by Sherry Page, Culinary Getaways: Rancho Gordo
Did you enjoy this? Here are more Fun Facts from Goosecross Cellars.
Culinary Getaways
Suffering from cabin fever? Love to cook? And EAT???
You should know Sherry Page of Culinary
Getaways. Whether it’s Napa Valley, Paris, Sausalito, Tuscany or Provence you’ll cook with the very best local ingredients and eat the best that the region has to offer. This 2-minute Fun Fact fills you in!
PS: There are just two places left for her three-day Napa Valley Getaway beginning February 26!
Pairing Wine and Chocolate
Scroll down for a 3-course, all-chocolate menu for Valentine’s Day!
In 1528, when Hernando Cortez first brought chocolate to Spain from the Aztec Empire, it was considered the ultimate gift to bestow upon a loved one. Its rarity and seductive powers made it an unequivocal declaration of passion and devotion. The Aztecs believed chocolate to have aphrodisiac qualities they called it the food of the Gods.
And, of course, wine has romantic qualities of its own. This time of year, it’s natural to want to combine them! Science tells us that chocolate has stimulants to energize and induce feelings of well being and wine sets the mood, relaxes us and lowers inhibitions. Science aside, it’s really about slowing down, relaxing and indulging your senses.
But, now, I need to be straight with you. Pairing chocolate with wine isn’t a slam dunk. I write this regretfully because, generally speaking, pairing wine and food is remarkably simple. The structure of most any wine makes it a natural with most foods.
But, sweet foods? That takes a little thought. Here’s a concept to etch in your memory: when pairing sweets with wine, the wine should be at least as sweet as the food. Why? Because otherwise, almost every time, a wine that was delicious moments ago becomes sour by comparison.
I qualified that statement because there are mitigating possibilities when it comes to chocolate since it’s really quite bitter before it’s sweetened.
Chocolate and dry wine: So if you want to pair chocolate with dry table wine, like a good Cab, Merlot or Zin your best bet it to go with dark, bitter and bittersweet chocolate with a high cacao content. Bitter nuts, like walnuts and hazelnuts help. So does espresso or coffee. And, berry fillings if they aren’t too sweet. And, in this day of chocolates with unorthodox fillings, I’ll recommend black pepper — maybe it’s out there, and its bitterness is a great bridge builder.
Chocolate and sweet wine: Now, this is MUCH easier! Because chocolate is a strong flavor, red dessert wines like late-harvest Zinfandel, Port and Banyuls wine are a good way to go but you won’t have any sourness problems with other choices like Sauternes, sweet Madeira (Malmsey) or Tokaji. Or, even a sweet Muscat, like our Muscat Canelli.
If the chocolates have caramel fillings, keep in mind caramel is very sweet, but it also presents a luscious opportunity: Vin Santo, tawny Port and Madeira have wonderfully caramelized flavors and will be yummy partners!
Nutty fillings are also great with nutty, sweet Sherry (Pedro Ximenez), tawny Port and Madeira.
White Chocolate: Now, you can stop worrying about red wine altogether! This is usually fairly sweet, so you want quite a sweet wine to go with it. The Muscat comes to mind immediately and so does Sauternes.
Advice: When it comes to sweets and wine, taste the pairing before you serve it to friends — especially when you’re trying to please that special someone!
To celebrate Valentine’s Day, Colleen, our proprietor and in-house chef has designed the following menu, including a little chocolate in each course for all of you romantic chocoholics. Cheers!
All chocolate menu for the romantic chocaholic
first course
Cocoa seared scallops
Serve with Goosecross Chenin Blanc
entree
Short ribs with coffee-cocoa sauce
Polenta (side-dish, recipe listed along with Short ribs)
Serve with Goosecross Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
dessert
Chocolate crazy cake
Serve with Goosecross Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon
Goosecross: Favorite Family Dishes for Thanksgiving
In our last video you heard from Colleen, Sherry and Diane about suggested wine pairings for Thanksgiving.
If you’re in the mood to do something a little different for Thanksgiving this year, in this brief video you’ll hear from them again, talking about their favorite Thanksgiving food traditions and how to pair them with wine. Happy Thanksgiving! To get their recipes:
Colleen’s recipes at goosecross.com
Sherry’s recipes at culinarygetaways.com
Diane’s recipes at letsgocookitalian.com (just send Diane an email with your recipe request).
Goosecross: Thanksgiving Wine Pairings
It’s almost here! Are you ready for Turkey Day? Wondering what wines to serve? Here’s some great advice from three wine and food experts, all within two minutes! Here’s what Colleen Topper of Goosecross Cellars, Sherry Page of Culinary Getaways and Diane De Filipi of Let’s Go Cook Italian have to suggest! Happy Thanksgiving!
To get their favorite recipes for Thanksgiving:
Colleen’s recipes at goosecross.com
Sherry’s recipes at culinarygetaways.com
Dian’es recipes at let’sgocookitalian.com (just send Diane and email with your recipe request)
