Leftovers and a Remembrance

No, not sun spots, just a skillet full of shrimp in a saffron and cream sauce.

We cooked a Spanish style shrimp a couple of days ago, so tonight the rest of the container of shrimp was introduced to Italy. For lack of a better description let's
just call this a Mediterranean phase in cooking.

A few, very finely sliced onion were sauteed in olive oil, then some garlic and a chopped tomato were added. Once all of that was fragrant we introduced some Vermouth. Once the vermouth was added the saffron and some Italian seasoning went into the skillet. At the end some heavy cream was added along with some red pepper flakes and salt and pepper. Just before serving some freshly cooked penne pasta was added and the whole was thing tossed together with some freshly chopped parsley.

The wine of the evening was a definite link to the past. To quote Star Wars, 'a long, long time ago in a galaxy far away...."

My first ever purchase of a bottle of wine was from a friend and his father who had just opened a wine store. They served me a glass of Lambrusco and I thought it was great. At the time that was the "in" wine in the U.S. After more than several cases it began to taste sweet and these folks introduced me to a modest Bordeaux wine, Chateau Timberlay. It was the proverbial long, slippery slope that lead to where we are today.

On a sad note, I realize that this was more than 30 years ago - though it seems like only ten.

I had not seen Lambrusco in the local market for a long time until I saw it a couple of weeks ago. For old times sake I picked up a bottle of a much better wine than I drank when I first met Lambrusco. Fresh, fruity and effervescent at 7.5% alcohol it was just a delightful partner for the shrimp. Full of acid and truly fresh fruit and just a little fizz it made a wonderful pairing with the food. Who cares if it was a red wine in a white wine situation!

There are many more memories of Lambrusco, but most of them are other stories that will probably surface if this blog gets some longevity. The wine made for a fun evening and that's what's really important.