Reasons, both culinary and otherwise, why summer is my favorite season:

1 – long lazy days

2 – radishes with salt and butter

3 – tomatoes still warm from the garden with olive oil and salt

4 – late-evening grilling while it’s still light

5 – al fresco dining, no need for a sweater

6 – jubilee beetles! (aka fireflies/lightening bugs)

7 – scree beetles (cicadas)

8 – falling asleep to the sound of crickets

9 – rose on the patio

10 – vino verde

11 – sangria

12 – drunken fruit at the bottom of the sangria glass

13 – peaches

14 – cherries

15 – blueberries in lime sugar

16 – fruit tartes

17 – picking blackberries on the huckleberry trail

18 – all-day grilling: pork shoulder, ribs, brisket

19 – eating ice cream before it melts

20 – bacon, lettuce, tomato

21 – suntans

22 – the smell of suntan lotion

23 – flip-flops

24 – seafood on the east coast shore

25 – traveling to sweltering destinations

26 – sweet tea

27 – lemonade

28 – nightcaps on the patio

29 – espresso after dinner

30 – digestif after espresso

31 – pastis

32 – watermelon with halloumi

33 – farmer’s market cantaloupe and honeydew

34 – corn on the cob

35 – succotash

36 – vidalia onions

37 – mojitos

38 – after dinner twilight walks

39 – gaspacho

40 – cucumbers in dill yogurt dressing

41 – kachumber salade

42 – lavender

43 – bumblebees

44 – salade nicoise

45 – haricots verts

46 – sand pedicures

47 – grilled pizza

48 – margaritas

49 – near-daily garden harvest

50 – humidity that wraps around you like a blanket when you step outside

Yesterday we made bison burgers in the late afternoon on an unseasonably warm day in early March. We served them on a bed of lettuce dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar on a thick tortilla, topped them with Dijon mustard, aged New Zealand cheddar, and grilled red onions. They were delicious with a 2005 Bordeaux from St. Emilion, most likely a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc.

For lunch today, we heated and served the 2 leftover 1/4-lb burgers, again on a bed of salad greens dressed with olive oil and balsamic, with the aged cheddar and Dijon mustard and Greek yogurt as condiments. This is known as a burger salad at our house, and it’s a frequent use of leftover cooked burgers here, since we usually make and cook 4 burgers for 2 people. (While I undoubtedly could consume twice the amount of meat in one sitting and avoid having leftovers, neither my cardiovascular system nor my figure would be highly appreciative of that, I’m fairly certain.)

With the burger salad, we served a 2007 Albarino, and it was lovely. I would recommend most any medium-bodied white wine with this or similar meals – Chardonnay or Viognier would be delicious. A rose would be phenomenal. My inner oenologist/aroma-flavor chemist understands that the pairing works due to the balance of acid and fat in this pairing. The acidity of the wine complements the acidic elements of the salad, and is cut by the fatty elements of the cheese and meat. The meat acts as a foil to the wine in two respects, the fat contrasts with the acid, and the grilled crust on the burger is a strong flavor contrast to the wine. While perhaps a seemingly non-traditional pairing, the science makes perfect sense. The best pairings are either complementing or contrasting aroma/flavor or textural elements of the food and wine.

Of course, the Bordeaux from the night before (I would serve it slightly chilled) or any other red that would be smashing with burgers would be perfect as well. Wine and food pairing is so easy, so not rocket science. The “drink what you like” mantra could not be more spot-on. Oenophiles have a tendency to take these things too seriously, and I am reminded that sometimes the unexpected or non-traditional pairings are the most interesting, and surprisingly delicious!

So, yes, white wine with red meat. Highly recommended.

Cheers!

I’m not hugely enamored with the idea of big New Year’s Eve celebrations. I certainly don’t need an excuse to drink Champagne – any old Wednesday night is reason enough for me.

We hosted a New Year’s Eve party a few years ago, and it was great fun. We made tapas, drank lots of sparkling wine, and toasted the New Year with friends. The guests left by a reasonable 1:00 AM, and I was up until about 3 AM doing dishes. On New Year’s Day the post-revelry cleaning continued for a few hours. That part is not so bad, it is after all, part of being a host.

My husband made several attempts to rally on New Year’s Day. Hours before, while I was busy hosting and getting tapas to the table and topping off champagne, I failed to notice that he was doing an extremely fine job at entertaining the guests, exactly as a host should. Having a great time, enjoying the champagne. It should have been a red flag when after the guests left, as I was putting away the food and clearing the living room of dishes and champagne flutes, he poured himself a tall bourbon and decided that it was a good idea to smoke a cigar outside on the porch – at 2 AM. Why not!?

He got out of bed around 5:30 PM New Year’s Day. It was dark outside. Not a great way to start the New Year.

We have all endured the repercussions of over-indulging in it’s many forms. I have had my share of what-was-I-thinking and how-did-this-happen day-afters. Thankfully, they have become fewer and farther between as I age. Perhaps a testament to wisdom gained over the years, but probably not.

A holiday dedicated to getting hammered (and I realize that New Year’s Eve is not the only one) just doesn’t make sense to me. Even if it is on high-quality booze. Champagne is the sneakiest of inebriators – the carbon dioxide in sparkling wine accelerates the absorption of alcohol, leading to more rapid and severe intoxication. I am a huge proponent of wine consumption, and I am especially fond of Champagne. It’s celebratory. It’s sensorial. It tastes good. I am also a huge proponent of feeling well the next day, especially if that day represents newness.

As in the past few years, I bought two bottles of Champagne to celebrate the change of 2008 to 2009. We will have one tonight to toast the successes of 2008. We will have the second one in 2009. Not to be opened at midnight, but with our mid-afternoon New Year’s Day lunch, a nod to starting the year with good food and good wine.

Will we have Champagne left in our glasses at midnight? Probably not. On any other night, I would have finished my herbal tea well over an hour prior and my husband would have to wake me for the countdown. And there’s always next Wednesday (or Monday, or Thursday…), to drink more Champagne. I think tonight, however, I may open the late-harvest apple cider that a friend gave me for Christmas to welcome 2009 at midnight. We do, after all, have a lot to celebrate this year. Cheers!

Bon Annee!