LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2018

WINE  WINTER WHITES

When a wine is labelled Pinot Gris (vs. Pinot Grigio, which is made with the same grape) it’s typically a nod to a richer, honeyed style, like the white wines of France’s Alsace region. With an aromatic, stone-fruity nose, Famille Cattin Pinot Gris Alsace AOC ( LCBO 481424, $17.00) has enough of a minerally backbone to stand up to meaty pairings.    Chapoutier Belleruche Côtes-du- RhôneWhite AOC ( LCBO 245340, $17.05) is a blend made of Grenache Blanc and other white grapes from the Rhône valley. At 14% alcohol, it has a mouth-coating richness, a spicy, tropical melon aroma and juicy pear flavours.    Oak-ageing gives Strewn Chardonnay Barrel Aged VQA ( LCBO 522730, $14.95) warm notes of nutmeg and clove and creamy flavours like coconut and vanilla. Whether your winter menu features pork tenderloin, a juicy turkey breast, thyme- scented roast chicken or even a firm- fleshed fish like halibut or tilapia, roasted recipes featuring herbs and oils or butter command richer white wines. Winemakers can oak-barrel ferment or age wines, rest them on their lees (the spent yeast cells left after fermentation) or employ an acid-softening technique called malolac- tic fermentation to develop more palate- coating body, creaminess and complex aromas and flavours in some whites. …CHOOSE rich, complex WHITES IF YOU’RE SERVING roasted dishes …

SKIN CONTACT

Aromatic white winemaking sometimes leaves crushed grape skins in contact with the juice to coax out gentle skin tannins, giving wines structure.

nutty chees e AND APRICOT-STUFFED PORK TENDERLOIN recipe at foodanddrink.ca

198  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2018