Provençal Pairings: Wine with Food Feeling Guilty
by David Scott Allen
Winery: Domaine Comte Abbatucci
Cuvée: Faustine Vieilles Vignes
Appellation: Southern Corsica
Type: White
Vintage: 2020
Grape Varieties: 100% Vermentino (Rolle)
Alcohol: 13%
Average Retail Price: $40.00
Today’s wine is outstanding. It is nothing that I expected and yet everything I wanted. And I feel a little bit guilty because it’s a truly fine wine and I served it with a cod cake. Yes, a cod cake. But do trust me that it’s not a “lowly” cod cake; it’s a really wonderful cod cake. In fact, I called them Oh My Cod [Cakes]. You can get the recipe on Cocoa & Lavender. Still, should I have found something a little more fancy to serve with this?
I went out and bought this wine because Susan had just sent me the article from the Wall Street Journal questioning if Vermentino is the new Chardonnay? That’s a tough one. I don’t think there’s a definitive answer but, perhaps, it will eclipse Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio.
Vermentino is the name of the grape in Italian, while Rolle is the standard usage for the same same grape in France. Being that this is a Corsican wine and Corsica is one of the 18 regions of France, I’m surprised that the bottle refers to the grape by its Italian name. Potato-potahto. If the wine is this good, I don’t really care what name they use for the grape. However, I absolutely prefer how the French make Vermentino versus the Italians. I’m sure it’s a terroir thing.
One of the most surprising aspects of this wine was its nose. When I poured a glass and took it outside to photograph, it was at least two feet from my nose at any given point, yet I could smell the incredible green apple, citrus, honey, and jasmine wafting toward me. I’m my experience , a chilled white wine generally doesn’t have this intense a nose. You can only imagine how excited I was to finish the photography so that I could taste the wine.
As you can see, the wine is pale yellow with a touch of gold. On the palate, the flavors of gooseberry and ripe orange-fleshed melon dominated. It has an intense, savory minerality that made it such an interesting pairing with the cod cake and its lemony mayonnaise. Honestly, I promised myself we wouldn’t drink the entire bottle but we couldn’t help ourselves — it was just that good.
I’ll get another bottle soon and maybe serve something fancier. But maybe not.
This Vermentino sounds delicious and a perfect match for the cod cakes!
Vermentino, particulary one made in Provence or Corsica, is indeed perfect — it begs for something from the sea!
It sounds heavenly and there’s nothing lowly about a good home made fishcake!
Let’s toast to that sentiment — with the Vermentino!