One of my favorite things about going out to dinner is allowing a knowledgeable server to choose our wine for us. It’s always a fun surprise and nice to see what someone else picks, how it is similar or different than what I would pick for myself. It’s also a great way to go out of one’s wine comfort zone. I often choose a California wine, so when a server chooses something else, it gives me the opportunity to try something new and unexpected.
On Friday we returned to Sycamore in Newton, a really fantastic restaurant with delicious, always changing dishes, and a great staff. When a few of us decided on white wine with dinner, our server brought out this Valentin Zusslin Pinot D’Alsace.
I often expect wines from Alsace to be sweet, which I am not a fan of. This wine is made of Auxerrois, and it was nice and dry, exhibiting notes of honeysuckle and and peach, with a good body and some toasty undertones. It went so well with my potato soufflé, which had some buttery and earthy flavors in it. While the three of us sharing the bottle all had dramatically different dishes, we all agreed the wine was an excellent match.
I am hoping to discover a few more “Wines of the Week” this weekend when I visit the North Fork of Long Island again for some wine tasting!
Enjoy your Wine Wednesday!
