In thinking about what my readers (if indeed I have any) would find most relevant and/or interesting, it occurs to me that this gastrological venture of “pairing the unconventional” is anything but. In any given week or month, I would suggest the average Pulse reader eats at least twice the amount of the foods I have been discussing than they do fine Italian or French cuisine. One reason for this is accessibility and another is cost, but I do believe that most of the time we really would just rather have some pizza, wings, Chinese take-out, burgers, etc. And while I will spare you (and myself) a White Castle review, I do believe that we might truly benefit most from these adventures than from the more obvious.
It’s easy to believe there are rules for this sort of thing, that you HAVE to have a Riesling with your Chinese, or what have you, but the truth is you don’t like Riesling and couldn’t bring yourself to spend $14 on a bottle of white wine with your $4.99 take out buffet. I couldn’t either. Just remember all that matters is that you enjoy it. If all you have in your expansive cellar is some Crane Lake Merlot then so be it.
Okay, so this week I figured with the hairy neck of spring soon upon us, it might be more pertinent than not to ready our palates for the inevitable beer-grill-and-frat-boy-fueled carnivorous feast sure to sweep the South in the months to come. What better place to host such an event than Kirkenburt’s Smokehouse Grill? With dishes like “Redneck Nachos” and “Kerosene Pickles” I felt quite comfortable that here I would find the fare I was after.
Kirkenburt’s kind of felt like an Outback molested the Slick Pig, granny in the corner with 30 proof drinking 80 proof. A plaid-laden picnic table and surprisingly good music greeted us next to the 40 oz. cooler, which I must say fit all to well.
So, in moving on to the vino, our arsenal of said Vitis Vinifera included a Shiraz, a Cabernet-Merlot, a Zinfandel and a Chardonnay:
Wolf Blass Presidents Selection 2004 South East Australian Shiraz
A jam-packed mouthful of blueberries, currant and minty spices. Moderately tannic and heavy, a full-bodied red with superb balance, being neither too fruity nor too dry, with enough acidity to keep it fresh and lively on the tongue, almost tangy. Fine tannins support persistent flavors. 90 pts.
(Available at Longhorn Liquors for $17.99)
Cousino-Macul Finis Terrae 2003 Maipo Valley, Chile
Oak Oak Oak! I cannot over-exaggerate just how oaky this is. Dry follows dry, accompanied by gritty, chewy tannins. Smoky, earthy and charred, with heavy notes of dusty mushrooms, leather and burned fruits in the mouth. A light touch of damp cardboard on the nose and palate is indicative of some TCA, but not to the point of being completely ruined. Not a bad wine if you’re masochistic. 78 pts.
7 Deadly Zins 2005
Considering this wines relatively high alcohol, albeit typical for New-World Zinfandels (15 percent) it lacked much of the over-the-top sweetness usually found in these same wines. Bright raspberries and Bing cherries fill the mouth carried by big fat tannins gifting you a purple grill. Only slightly dry and very low apparent acidity, making this a medium-full bodied Zin easy to gulp. A persistent vanilla-oak finish carries on for almost a minute.
89 pts. (Available at Longhorn Liquors for $17.99)
Buehler Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2003
A very light and sweet nose, difficult to detect without proper stemware. Only slightly nutty, most apparent are fresh pears and nectarines. Pretty light on the acidity, having a creamy texture and appeal but not tasting of a buttered barrel either, maintaining its freshness. Good bang for the buck. 88 pts.
We tasted with these wines all that Kirkenburt’s has to offer. From smoked Bologna, to Dill Bean Salad, we were the men that ate everything. Throughout the courses there were two main themes that arose, vinegar and smoke. Of course these are staple colors of the Southern palate, but this was an incredibly important aspect to consider. In some ways our wines reflected certain compatibilities, and in many ways complete incompatibilities.
Some of the smoked meats went beautifully with the Zinfandel and others with the Shiraz. The inherent sweetness in this case should serve as a continuing rather than a balance. For example, the Zinfandel did not work well with the prime rib, as its sweetness clashed with, rather than balanced with, that of the meat. The Shiraz proved to be just sweet enough, but less saccharine making a perfect harmony. The same was true for the pulled pork. The paprika-cumin that permeated most of the other meats, particularly the ribs worked seamlessly with the Zinfandel, their flavors proving synergistic. This was made no clearer than with the smoked bologna. It was a magical pairing, which is hard to say considering we’re talking about bologna here, but this is the type of thing this column is all about. Here is an example of where you have a truly unconventional food in context of wine being exalted by it. It wasn’t just good, it was great.
As for virtually all the sides, the Chardonnay was the only way to go. This is not as obvious as you might think though. Chardonnays are a . . . fickle variety. They carry what I feel is an undeserved reputation with food, as one of great reliability. In my experience Chardonnay has never really been objectionable as a food wine, but never desired as it really fails to bring much to the party. In this case I can honestly say that you could make a worse decision. The sweet vinegar and herbal flavors of the Dill Bean Salad worked very well with the mild acidity of the Chardonnay, as it did with the rest of the side items.
A brief word about the Cousino-Macul, it is almost unfair to even discuss how this wine worked with the food (it didn’t) because I feel this bottle to be victim of horrible affliction that some of you may remember from a previous Enofiles (“To Cork or not to Cork”) known as TCA, or 2-4-6 Trichloroanisole. This is a result of a chemical reaction between certain fungi and chlorophenols inherent in the wine. In short, it can give the wine the aromas of a damp basement, moldy newspaper, wet dog, etc. At the very least it severely handicaps the wine’s original flavors and aromas. I know this isn’t a popular sentiment, but this is just another example of why we should standardize the use of screw caps.
Kirkenburt’s really does have the best wings in town, and if you’re a wingo like me, then I would highly recommend them. After all, they were voted the Best Wings in Murfreesboro by the Murfreesboro Post and also took 1st place in Kappa Delta’s annual Wing Fling 2007. We thank them for their patience and hospitality.
