And just like that.....I suddenly have all kinds of time on my hands. I have been telling all of my readers how busy life is around our house during Lent. I run the Parish Fish Fry each Friday feeding some 300 plus people each week. Prep starts on Wednesday and we work hard until clean up is completed on Saturday.
This past Wednesday I got up early, ran and picked up the perishables for our Food Pantry Distribution, pulled the client files and made the appointments for them to pick up their distribution. Then I headed into the kitchen and began preparing pies and cornbread for our Friday Fish Fry.
I was in the middle of this when I got a phone call from my doctor's office informing me that the Teen had tested positive for COVID and that we all needed to quarantine for 10 days.
I had sent her to the doctor with what I thought were allergies. No fever present but a sore throat and stuffy nose. They did give her some nasal spray but they also did a COVID swab and a swab for STREP. The strep was negative however the COVID was positive. Suddenly life came to a screeching halt.
So I now had time to spend a full day smoking a brisket that was in my freezer and pairing it with this lovely bottle of Canvasback Cabernet from Yakima Valley in Washington. We had it for dinner last night instead of meeting our daughter and son in law as previously planned.
The Wine Pairing Weekend Post this month is being hosted by Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles. Robin arranged for many of us to be provided with sponsor samples from Yakima Valley for this event. I was scheduled to receive some, however my contact was forced to take an extended emergency medical leave and my wines were not shipped out. My prayers are with him and his during this terrible time.
So, at the last minute, I ordered up this bottle from wine.com. It had overnight shipping and the bottle arrived this past Wednesday. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to do a pairing and get a blog post written but God had other ideas and here I am spending time with all of you.
I am also going to be able to join in the twitter chat tomorrow, 3/13/21 at 11 AM ET, following #WinePW. I hope to see you all there. Here are the topics we will be discussing......
- Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla doubles up with Yakima Valley’s Sin Banderas Rhone Roses Compliment Dishes with Asian Flair and Mediterranean-Inspired Dishes Paired with Yakima Valley Wines from Dineen Vineyards.
- Linda at My Full Wine Glass invites us to Meet Kerry Shiels: A Yakima Valley winemaker with Vision.
- Terri of Our Good Life shares two posts: Fortuity…Taking Advantage of Life’s Great Wines! and Two Mountain Rose and Fennel Wild Mushroom Tarts.
- Payal at Keep The Peas declares Yakima Valley Wines FTW!
- Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm matches Smoked Beef Brisket with Canvasback Cabernet.
- Rupal the Syrah Queen offers Yakima Valley - Red Willow Vineyards Producing Some of Washington's Finest Syrahs.
- Jane of Always Ravenous makes our mouths water with Filet Mignon paired with Washington Yakima Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
- Martin with ENOFYLZ Wine Blog gives us A Taste of Washington State’s Yakima Valley.
- David at Cooking Chat has two posts for us also with Lamb Ragu Pasta with Red Wine from Dineen Vineyards and Sin Banderas Rosé with Corned Beef & More Yakima Valley Wine Pairings.
- Nicole of Somm’s Table shares Big, Beautiful Reds from Yakima Valley and Tasty, Meaty Fare.
- Jennifer at Vino Travels tells us about Italian Grapes of the Yakima Valley with Sleeping Dog Wines.
- Gwendolyn the Wine Predator explores Washington Syrah: Hedges, L’Ecole, VanArnam with Lamb Stew.
- Susannah at Avvinare pours Malbec from VanArnam Vineyard in Yakima Valley.
- Lori at Exploring the Wine Glass shares Tasting the Soul of Wine in the Heart of Yakima Valley.
- Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles writes Yakima Valley AVA – Blends of friendship and history with wines from Eight Bells and Pearl and Stone Co.
This brisket smoked all day long and it smelled so dang delicious. I will get numerous meals from this day's work. Thinly sliced and served with Corn Casserole and Baked Beans the first night, it was a perfect pairing with this deep, dark, spicy Cabernet Sauvignon.
This Canvasback wine is made following the model established by it's mother company Duckhorn Vineyards and was just recently established in 2014. I knew it was going to be well worth the $43 price tag and decided to splurge on myself. I am so glad that I did.
The winemaker, Brian Rudin, has background with L'Ecole No 41, another of my very favorite wines. It is definitely a wine that I will be serving up whenever we are able to get back to having dinner parties.
We won't be eating at the Fish Fry this week so I am making a quick and easy shrimp and green bean stirfry for dinner tonight.
My Weekly Menu is looking completely different as well. No family dinner on Sunday, no birthday dinner for my brother on Monday and no working the Fish Fry next week either.
We are scheduled to go up north to hold a CPL class for our TC family and their friends on Friday. This is the last day of our quarantine so fingers crossed that we get no symptoms and are able to still follow through with those plans. For now...I'm just going to put TBD on my menu.
Slow Smoked Beef Brisket
Ingredients
- 5-6 lb. beef brisket
- Montreal Steak Seasoning, to taste
- 2 c. beef broth
Instructions
- Season the brisket liberally with the seasoning of your choice. We love Montreal Steak Seasoning on our beef.
- Turn a smoker grill to 250* and let preheat for 15 minutes.
- Place the brisket directly onto the grill grate, insert the probe thermometer, close and cook for about 4 hrs, until an internal temperature of 160* is reached.
- Remove brisket from grill, double wrap in aluminum foil and add pour the broth over all. Seal and replace on grill for another 2-3 hrs until an internal temperature of 204* is reached.
- Remove from grill, place onto a baking sheet with sides to catch the broth and drippings. Unwrap and let rest for 15 minutes before slicing against the grain.
- Serve with BBQ sauce , if desired.
- Reserve the broth for another purpose. I will make gravy for Beef Pot Pie to use up leftovers later in the week.
Notes:
Cooked using a Traeger Smoker Grill
Calories
724.99Fat (grams)
46.08Sat. Fat (grams)
18.28Carbs (grams)
0.14Fiber (grams)
0.03Net carbs
0.10Sugar (grams)
0.01Protein (grams)
72.48Sodium (milligrams)
346.70Cholesterol (grams)
264.44
Sorry to hear about the Teen and your quarantine, but at least you'll have more time to cook and pair wines. I think I need to get a brisket for this weekend. Good idea.
ReplyDeleteYes, there is always a rainbow. That brisket will serve us well all week long.
DeleteI hope you all stay well. The wine pairing sounds delicious. It seems like you got hit all around you.
ReplyDeleteNo complaints Terri. We are all doing fine, life is good.
DeleteAfter all of that you ended up tasting a wonderful wine from Red Mountain and had time to make and enjoy Brisket! I hope the teen and the rest of your family stay well, you are in my thoughts. I'm sorry that you will miss the fish-fry, but it's lucky for us that you will now be able to join the chat with us.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy I can join chat too...Saturday mornings are clean up duty LOL....not missing that at all.
DeleteWendy,
ReplyDeleteI am sorry that you have to miss all those family and community engagements but most of all I hope everyone comes out from quarantine feeling well. In the meantime, you seem to have used your time well and yes, splurge on yourself with a great bottle of wine. Sounds like you made a good choice.
Thanks, ordered up a lot of bottles to see me through LOL
DeleteWow Wendy, I feel like a big time slacker after hearing your schedule! I hope your teen will be okay and hopefully you and your family stay safe. Slowing down does have some advantages and I would say your dinner was one of those gains! Smoked brisket and Canvasback Cabernet are two of my favorites. Take care!
ReplyDeleteLooks like you found a good way to roll with the news! Hope everyone in your home emerges quickly and healthy from this.
ReplyDeleteThanks David, so far so good.
Deleteso sorry to hear about the teen. Hopefully it isn't bad and everyone else remains healthy. On the positive. you do have some pretty good wine to pass the time!
ReplyDeleteThat is definitely a plus LOL......
DeleteI am so sorry about the teen and very much hoping everyone stays well! Despite the annoyance of having to quarantine, it sounds like you made the best of a bad situation with the smoked brisket and Canvasback, which I know firsthand is a beautiful wine!
ReplyDeleteIt sure is Nicole and today we found out that we are no longer required to quarantine. Woohooo.
DeleteThis pairing sounds so amazing I don't even have words! At least you're eating and drinking well by waiting things out. Hope you stay well and the teen recovers quickly.
ReplyDeleteThanks Linda....we are all well and quarantine is lifted!!
DeleteSorry about your teen having Covid Wendy, but glad you seem to be looking at the bright side of it....and having time to prepare a smoked beef brisket and this wine sounds great!
ReplyDeleteThanks Martin, she is well now, had very mild symptoms and my husband and I never had any symptoms at all. We are out of quarantine and life is good.
Delete