I Scream! You Scream!
We all scream for WINESCREAM!
Ice cream is not just
for the kiddies! Wine and ice cream? Is
it really possible?
I’m here to tell you that it is - without a
doubt - possible!
Wow! So who would have thought that ice cream and wine could
possibly be paired together? Taking two of life’s greatest and guiltiest
pleasures and combining them together… now what could be better? I know I had
never given the combination a thought until one afternoon when I was asked to
think about how we could celebrate National Ice Cream Month. Well, being that
this is a winery and we serve wine, I began to ponder what would happen if I
combined the two: and thus our official wine and ice cream pairing event was
born!
I set out looking for research and ideas
that would support this crazy theory of wine and ice cream paired together. I wanted to determine which of our wines (based on its complexities and sugars)
would be best paired with basic ice cream. Who could have thought about how
much information there is on wine and ice cream together?
The internet lead me to find a plethora of information: ice cream made with wine such
as the one from Mercers fine ice cream shop (www.mercersdairy.com), blogs on different
types of ice cream paired with specific types of wine (check out drvino at
www.drvino.com), an actual wine float recipe at www.myreceipes.com, and the list goes on!
Did
you know we aren’t just limited to ice cream and wine? There are many frozen
treats out there. Frozen Margaritas are yesterday’s news. Today its wine
popsicles! (www.glassofwine.com search
for booze pops) Long gone are root beer floats – its wine floats now! Enough
about other treats though, let’s get down to the true frozen treat at hand, ice
cream!
Now let’s be realistic.
When I say ice cream, we aren’t talking about Mint Chocolate Chip or
Cookie Dough. However yummy they are, it just doesn’t make my mouth salivate to
think of Cookies & Cream soaking in Chardonnay. We are talking about good
old fashioned vanilla and chocolate ice cream! From Italy to Spain to the USA,
wine of all kinds has been paired with basic ice cream.
So now that I’ve got a little more knowledge under my belt
as to the reality of ice cream and wine pairing, there are rules to follow.
Whether pairing wine with food or ice cream, there is no exception. I needed to
think about these rules while trying to determine which of our wines to use. Here
is what I decided was important: remember
not to match strong to delicate, acidity is your friend, tannins pair well with
fat, follow the ‘don’t upstage the star’ rule. (http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/an-experts-pairing-advice)
In regards to the last rule though, which one would we determine is the star -
the wine or the ice cream? Both are just so darn good! Co-stars perhaps?
Now it was time for me to determine which
wines to use and with what I might be able to pair them. So I sat down and
wrote out a list of all the different things the wine made me think of when I
smelled it and tasted it. The palate can be a magical thing since no two
pallets are the same, so if you try my suggestion don’t get frustrated if you
don’t like the same things as I do.
Let’s start with the Vidal Blanc. This is one of my personal
favorites. It’s light, crisp, refreshing, with a hint of sweetness and boasts
fruitful flavors. As I swirl it around in the glass trying to release the
aromas it starts to make me think of peaches. So I have decided to soak a can
of peaches in 1/3 cup of the Vidal Blanc wine for 24 hours in the refrigerator.
Meanwhile I decided to do the same thing for two other wines.
Courtney’s Christmas which has hints of all sorts of spices
always reminds me of homemade apple pie. So what would be better than baked
cinnamon apples soaked in Courtney’s Christmas? The Late Harvest Alyce boasts
hints of pineapple and pears, not to mention how fantastic it already is paired
with milk chocolate (we’ll save that pairing for another day)! I have decided
on pineapple for the Late Harvest Alyce.
So everything has been soaked in wine, the ice cream is
bought, the bottles are chilled and now it’s time to experiment. I have decided
to use vanilla ice cream with the three wines, however at last minute I decided to pick up some chocolate ice
cream and see how well it might go with the Reserve.
Starting with the Vidal I scooped out some vanilla ice cream
and poured the Vidal Blanc over top of it. I then add some of the wine soaked
peaches to the top. The taste is incredibly powerful on the palate. The wine
makes the peach flavor pop. It is a great combination, I’d like to scoop myself
some more, but I remember that I’ve got three more to go! Yeah!
On to Courtney’s Christmas, vanilla ice cream, and baked
cinnamon apples drizzled with the wine. Wow, ice cream just got even better!
Best word to describe this is YUMMY! Two for two I’m on a roll now! The next
two were both great as well. The pineapple added to the ice cream made the
fruit flavors of Late Harvest Alyce come to the forefront of the palate.
Chocolate ice cream with the Reserve drizzled on top was very tasty. I could
probably see this one being turned into a wine float.
So there you have it. I have researched, tested, and tasted
the pairing of ice cream and wine. Anyone who says this can’t be done or that
it’s yucky has obviously never tried it before! Ice cream and wine can definitely
be matched together. But don’t take my word for it! Come test this out for yourself on Saturday,
July 21, 2012 from 11-5 at the winery. I will have copies of my recipes
available for you to pick up and I will be sure to have a ton of our fantastic
wine on hand!
Spoons Up!
