Saturday, January 20, 2018

A Classic Pairing; Revisiting Languedoc #FrenchWinophiles

This month's French Winophiles is hosted by Jason and Jill of L'Occasion.  Last October, also under the guidance of L'Occasion, we visited Languedoc as well.  I found that Cassoulet originated from this region of France and shared a Slow Cooker version along with my wine pairing.



To kick off the New Year, Jason and Jill asked us to revisit Occitanie (formerly Languedoc) specifically the AOP's of Minervois and Corbieres.  You can learn more at their preview post.

They chose this month because January 9th is National Cassoulet Day.  To help us out, the folks at L'Aventure Languedoc sent each blogger a bottle of each AOP to sample.  I did not receive any monetary compensation for this post and all opinions are my own.  Well, I'll be stating my husband's opinion as well.


Another group of which I am a member, The Kitchen Matrix Cooking Project, was also celebrating Cassoulet this month.  I decided to make a Cassoulet using my Instant Pot and paired it with these wines for dinner one evening.  You can find my recipe here.


While I put the finishing touches on dinner, Frank opened and poured both wines.  He tasted each and  jotted down his thoughts:
Gerard Bertrand Minervois 2013:
              • Good legs
              • Lighter color 
              • Black Pepper on the nose
Domains St. Eugenie Corbieres 2016: 
              • Good legs
              • Deeper finish
              • Purple in color
I took a sip of each and added that I found hints of raisin in the Minervois and found the Corbieres to be fruity and dry.


We sat down for dinner and we were surprised how differently we felt the pairings were with the Cassoulet.  Frank absolutely loved the Corbieres with his dinner.  I told him I thought the Minervois was much smoother with the Cassoulet than the Corbieres.  

His response?  Good.

Then he took the bottle of Corbieres and set it in front of him, leaving me to enjoy the bottle of Minervois with my meal.  



Here are what the others are sharing this month.


Please join us this morning at 11 AM ET for chat following #Winophiles on Twitter.







23 comments:

  1. I love it, his and her bottles of wine. Sometimes things just work out! You are the cassoulet queen, having made so many cassoulets lately.

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    1. Well, mine have both been knockoffs. The title of Cassoulet Queen goes to those who spent days creating the "real" thing.

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  2. Checking out that cassoulet recipe. I'm trying to find some good slow-cooker recipes for some upcoming busy weeks. Thanks, Wendy!

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  3. Wow, I never would have guessed cassoulet would work so well in a slow cooker -- I'll have to give that a try. Thanks for the tip!

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    1. You're welcome Rob. I was more surprised by how well it turned out in the Instant Pot.

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  4. I will have to try the slow-cooker method of making cassoulet - seems a lot simpler than the whole kitchen method! And how wonderful that you and Frank each fell for a different wine. Everybody's happy!

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  5. I need to get up to speed on this Occitanie thing! Looks like some tasty cassoulet.

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    1. I'm lost too David. Something to do with the Government in France.

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  6. What fun! I love how many cassoulets we all made. Thanks for sharing yours, Wendy.

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  7. Sounds like you and Frank had a great dinner. I appreciate you enjoyed the wines differently. That's what makes wine drinking fun. I am growing in curiosity about the InstaPot. Thanks Wendy.

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    1. I'm loving it thus far Michelle. We were supposed to meet friends for dinner out tonight but they canceled so now I have a frozen pork loin in there. Keeping my fingers crossed that it turns out.

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  8. What luck you each liked a different wine with your cassoulet, I'd hate to battle Frank for the bottle!

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  9. I am always interested in slow cooker ideas, especially with lots of flavor and texture. You paired some great wines too, well done Wendy. Did you get a thaw in Michigan yet?

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    1. Yes, Jill....it is in the 40's this week. Snow is all melted and my back yard is a mud pit filled with poop. We have 4 dogs so you can imagine......

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  10. Ha! My wife and I had the same issue. She preferred one of the bottles, while I preferred the other! Was making the cassoulet in the instapot easier(or faster) than it might have been otherwise?

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    1. It is absolutely faster Martin. It was no easier than when I used a crockpot but I haven't made a "true" cassoulet yet.

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  11. Ah, the slow cooker, what a great invention, nice how it simplifies things. And with cassoulet, be interesting to see if in the end, there really is a taste difference. Yours looks delicious Wendy! Tell Frank Mark and I experienced the same with the wine ;-)

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  12. It's so funny how this can turn out -- each with a different clear favorite. Works out though since you each got more of the one you loved!

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    1. It certainly did Nicole and it just goes to show that there is no right or wrong when it comes to wine. It all depends on the palate.

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