Celebrating Spring with Raclette and Rosé #Winophiles

The French Winophiles are celebrating Joyeuses Pâques, the resurrection of our Lord and Springtime.  To assist us in this venture, Cam of Culinary Cam worked with  Kobrand Wine and Spirits  and arranged for us to receive some wines to pair with our Spring celebration.  

We were not given any monetary compensation and, as always, all writings and opinions on this blog are 100% my own.

I was provided two bottles of rosé one still and one sparkling for this event.  

My son in law is from France.  My Angel Face whose mother is 100% Chinese now considers herself French.  She has a French "daddy" and even though he wasn't in her life from the beginning the bond between them is strong.  

She wears a beret, and she corrects my pronunciation when I say French words.  One of those words is Raclette.  I always pronounced it Rock Let.  Angel Face informs me that it is Rack Lit.  How ever you pronounce it and whether you put it's roots in France, Germany or the Swiss Alps it is a lovely dish and a great way to celebrate.  

I explained to Julien that we had this event coming up and that I wanted to serve Raclette.  He said he was happy to come and make Raclette but that it isn't really considered a Spring dish because it is heavier and more often eaten in the winter months.

Spring in Michigan is very haphazard at best so I decided that Raclette would be fine for a Michigan Spring Celebration and had those who were available join us for Family dinner on a Saturday evening.

Raclette is a cheese that is best melted.  To melt this cheese there is a special Raclette grill to do the job.  The grill has little trays on the bottom where you put slices of the cheese to melt while you grill vegetables in a little olive oil.  You also serve boiled potatoes and charcuterie of choice.  For this event I served prosciutto.

If you are enjoying Raclette as they do in Germany, as I have with my friends, the Bendas, you would also include pickles on the buffet.  

Frank opened and poured the Bouvet Rosé Excellence for Julien to sip as he prepped the cheese for the grill.  It poured a very light pink and had fine, tiny bubbles.  Julien sipped and said it was great.  I took a sip of Frank's glass and was pleased to find it very dry and crisp.

Frank poured me a glass of the Chateau d'Aqueria Tavel Rosé.  It poured darker than most Rosés I have enjoyed.  It also had a heavier mouth feel than the Rosés that I have had in the past.  That's not to say that it wasn't lovely.  It was.  It had wonderful balance and complexity and it is a wine I look forward to enjoying again.  

I was happy to see that it is available to me through wine.com and learned that it is a blend of 45% Grenache, 20% Clairette, 15% Cinsault, 8% Mourvèdre, 6% Syrah, 4% Bourboulenc, 2% Picpoul.  I also learned that Tavel is the only all-Rosé appelation in the Rhone Valley and that they can actually be aged if one should wish to do so.  

Both of these wines are reasonably priced at under $20.  Frank enjoyed the Tavel Rosé more than others he has tried.  Perhaps because of the heavier weight of the wine making it more familiar for red wine lovers.

We enjoyed our Spring Celebration with Raclette and Rosé enen if it isn't a traditional Spring dish and pairing in France. 

The gang is going to get together with Cam on Saturday Morning at 11 AM ET to talk more about the wines we received and the pairings we made on Twitter chat.  We would love for you to join us.  You will find us by following #Winophiles.  Here are some of the topics that will be discussed.......

• Bring on Spring with Loire Valley Wines by Vino Travels
• Celebrating Spring with Raclette and Rosé by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Château Aqueria - Tavel Rosé Paired With The Perfect Spring Time Salad by Syrah Queen
• French Rosé, Sparkling Wine, and A Taco Bar for Easter? Si! by Wine Predator...Gwendolyn Alley
• French Spring Menu with Tavel Rosé & Cru Beaujolais by Always Ravenous
• Joyeuses Pâques with Champalou Paired Pork Loin by The Quirky Cork
• Roasted Salmon with Grilled Pineapple Pico de Gallo + Château D'Aqueria Tavel Rosé 2020 by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Woodfired Salmon Pizza with La Nerthe Les Cassagnes Rosé by Our Good Life