pairing wine with caramelized onions

[phoebe]

Although we've made this dish many times before, we've never really tried to match the wine further than choosing some sort of red .
The dish is from Evan Kleiman's Cucina Rustica. It calls for cooking several onions in EVOO in a covered pan for 3 hours. Red wine is added during the first 15 minutes, and small amounts of stock (we use chicken) are added periodically as the liquid evaporates to deglaze. Half-way through the process, slivers of prosciutto are added to the pan. Toss with penne and Parm and serve.

So which red wine could we pair with this dish?

[phoebe]

Well, perhaps I can answer my own question (though not until later tonight when we actually drink the wine with the food ). We went to our local wineshop and a fellow there recommended a Dolcetto d'Alba (Corino 2001). When we got home, we looked in some books and online. The little we found called Dolcetto an "everyday wine" for the Piedmont area of Italy. That sounds good to us. "Special Occasion" wines tend to taste a little too, too . . .something on our peasant palates .

any thoughts?

[craigcamp]

Certainly the Dolcetto will be lovely, but I would also consider a nice smooth Vapolicella to go with the sweetness of the onions. Look for San Rustico, Speri or Novaia for some very nice wines - avoid mass produced grocery store brands like Bolla.

If you have a great Italian wine store nearby, try a beautifully fruity Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato from Piemonte like Sant'Agata.

[phoebe]

Thank you so much for the great suggestions! We do have a couple of really good wine stores nearby, and one of them has a fairly large Italian wine section. So I'll be looking for these names.