Wine tasting appetizers???

[gkoziol]

A few of us are having a tasting of a wide range of different wines. I'm looking for suggestions for appetizers that would work in a situation like this. So far I plan a cheese platter and a fruit platter. Duck breast? Something spicy?

What would you do?

Thank you,

--- George Koziol
--- gkoziol2@earthlink.net

[cape chef]

Welcome George.

Can you please let us know a few of the wines you are pouring at your tasting?
Also, I would be careful with spicy foods...they tend to dry out the wines...beer is best with spice
I look forward to your reply on the wines
cc

[ccuisine]

Sounds fun
1. roasted tomato and garlic bruschetta
2. pork tenderloin on toasted tiny buns
marinade pork in mango juice-garlic rosemary
and chipotle sauce
3. roasted tri-tip with chipotle mayo on fried tortilla chip
4. roasted salmon bites-mini quiche type with goat cheese with dill mayo dots

[Lost Spice]

Please, What is Tri-Tip ?
Thank you.

[shroomgirl]

end of a sirloin (beef)

Depending on the wine and season.....I'd have chocolate...for me that is El Rey, Valharona, the 50+ coca content.
Breads
Cheeses
some shroom dishes
Again depending on the wines, and I'm more apt to do a vertical than pull in a huge variety....would dictate the more specific dishes....also the budget, guests coming, number, location, etc....

[markdchef]

Of course I would do a marinated tofu and roasted red pepper appetizer, but that's just me.

At Gary's wine and marketplace there are the most wonderful imported roasted eggplant and kalamata olive dips that are excellent with focaccia cracker chips (Whole Foods) or whole wheat crackers.

Puree of edamame (boiled green soybeans) and garden peas on toast points.

Broiled apricot halves with a touch of balsamic (the real stuff).

[vloglady]

My friend and I go to beer tastings every few months at a brew place in Jersey. There is a somewhat dinner served afterwards, very small. Some people bring things to nibble on during the tastings, there's about 8 beers, takes maybe 2 hours. Last time we went, I decided to bring some nice nibbles for us.

there were just two of us---about half a loaf of that Rubeschlager bread, about 4 inches square slices. 8 ounces of smoked salmon, cream cheese with chives. Fixed up a fancy plate for us, so we could make some smoked salmon appetizers. You could add capers and red onion if you like.

Red grapes
some salty snacky thing, mixed. Like a trail mix but more elegant, find it in the health food store.

Well, he was floored! This went over very well. It was perfect. Much better than the sandwich we got afterwards.

So I vote on the smoked salmon appys.

[Suzanne]

I think there's a saying, "Buy on bread, sell on cheese." The fewer extra flavors you introduce to your palate, the more honest the taste of the wine. Lactic acid in cheese will tend to make wines taste richer than they are. So if your purpose is to really get into the wines, keep it very simple.

HOWEVER, if the event is mostly for fun, the suggestions so far sound good in general. As Cape Chef asked, what wines are you tasting? Good food matches will make a big difference in how much you enjoy the wines.

[The Saucy Cajun]

Yes, I agree with the Cape Chef - nothing too spicy. Also, no curry, and definitly stay away from things with vinegar or a lot of lemon juice. Makes the wine taste "off". Other than that, it would depend on the wines. I did a wine tasting once where I paired certain apps with specific groups of wine. The old "white with fish" sort of. Then I printed up little signs on my computer for each of the dishes that had the name of the app and "try me with______" (whichever wines worked well with that particular dish). I printed 2 copies of each sign & glued them back to back with a skewer in the middle & then stuck them in the food. Everyone really seemed to enjoy matching them up. It was a good icebreaker.
The Saucy Cajun

[Britcook]

A little bit late, but never mind. Wine tasted by itself will taste different if tasted with food. The best example I can think of is if you are eating an authentic Greek meal then retsina tastes terrific. Drink it by itself and it tastes like disinfectant. Some foods or ingredients just do not go well with wine such as citrus, vinegar, chocolate and others (yes I know there are always exceptions, but in general this is true). The phrase to remember is "buy on an apple, sell on cheese", the sweetness and acidity in the apple will show any flaws or weaknesses in the wine whereas cheese usually improves the taste of the wine and conceals problems.
So if you want to taste the wine (rather than check out how well it goes with particular foods) then what you should have is something bland - crackers or a basic artisan bread, no butter or spreads, just to help clean the palate. If you want to eat then serve food before or (preferably) afterwards.