Wine works well for gifts
When time and money come up short during the holidays, wine steps in as a fun and affordable solution to a number of dilemmas.
When I'm rushing between stores and have little time to cook a delicious meal, here's what I do: Open a can of soup. Simmer. Add a spoonful of Madeira. Simmer a little more. Serve as an elegant first course or - with warm French bread - a delicious light meal.
Or, you could place ingredients for chicken or beef stew in a crockpot and cover with broth and a flavory red wine (see Malbec below). Shop, wrap gifts, write holiday wishes and by mealtime, the stew has morphed into coq au vin or boeuf Bourguignon.
For versatility, nothing beats Madeira. You can cook with, serve it on its own or pair it with food for a delicious meal or gift. Madeira is made in several styles, to match your taste and budget.
"Cooking" Madeira adds Madeira-like flavors to your dish, along with salt and other preservatives, not recommended for drinking. (Widely available, less than $10 per 750 ml).
"Rainwater" Madeira, with not-quite-dry flavors of fruits, butter cream and smoke, all refreshed by an acidy finish, is an all-purpose style to add to recipes such as French onion soup, chicken livers in Madeira sauce, or filet mignon with mushrooms and Madeira.
For a unique cocktail party-ready gift basket, pair "Rainwater" with smoked meat (such as jamon Serrano), olives, roasted nuts and Spanish cheese.
Leacock's, Blandy's, Broadbent and Cossart & Gordon are excellent producers you'll find at wine and liquor shops, about $15 per 750 ml.
Blandy's 5 Year Old "Alvada" is my little luxury. With flavors of dried fruits and caramel, it is just sweet enough to be decadent, but with a firm acidy finish to invigorate my palate, appetite and mood (about $16 per 500 ml).
For delicious red wine at value prices, look for Argentina's Malbec grape. Originally, Malbec was a component in Bordeaux's blend with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Transplanted to Argentina, Malbec grew in stature, with complex flavors (dark fruits, herbs, spice and earth) with firm but pleasing texture.
To enjoy at casual occasions, look for labels including Alamos, Altos las Hormigas, Septima and Valentin Bianchi ($10 to $15).
At higher prices ($20 to $30), Malbec combines impressive flavor with impressive value. Labels including the single-vineyard selections from Achaval-Ferrer, Alta Vista "Grande Reserve" and Catena Zapata offer juicy blackberry and currant flavors laced with coffee, licorice and mocha complexity with firm structure, to be paired with rich red meat.
There's etiquette to giving and receiving wine. Don't give a wine you wouldn't want to drink; at the same time, don't expect your host to pop the cork in your presence.
On the receiving end, the offer "Should we open this now?" relieves your guest's disappointment of not tasting a wine she's saved for an extra-special occasion, which on this occasion is you.
• Write to Mary Ross at food@dailyherald.com.
<p class="factboxheadblack">Ross choice</p> <p class="News">Hugo Gruner Veltliner</p> <p class="News">2007</p> <p class="News">Huber</p> <p class="News">Austria</p> <p class="News">• Suggested retail and availability: $12 at wine shops (Distributed by Pure Wine, Burr Ridge)</p> <p class="News">Can any wine hold its own with spicy meats, pickled vegetables and smoked seafood? Gruner Veltliner can and does, every day in the heurigen (wine cafes) of Austria, the grape's home turf. In Chicago - which has become a U.S. center of Austrian wine - this dry-ish style with delicate stone fruit and white pepper notes is a refreshing complement to a buffet bulging with wurst and other sausages, kraut and other salads, smoked trout and other flavory noshes.</p>