2021 Wood Family Vineyards Malbec – And a Couple of Paso Robles Wines!
The Winery
Photo from Wood Family Vineyards
Wood Family Vineyards, located in eastern Livermore Valley, with Rhonda Wood owner & winemaker, has been producing award winning wines for over two decades. You can read more on her background from airline pilot to award winning winemaker at:
https://californiawinesandwineries.com/2016/02/10/wood-family-vineyards-2/
Her awards are extensive and too numerous to list here in this article. Check out their website at the bottom of this article.
The Wine “Wine is bottled poetry” – Robert Louis Stevenson
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This wine on the eyes is medium viscosity with a deep royal purple coloration, yet around the rim it is almost translucent. On the nose blackberries and dark red plums are the leaders rushing in to claim dominance in the olfactory senses. Also present were violets and roses. On the palate almost overpowering black and dark red fruits (blackberries and plums) come to the forefront with tobacco, French oak, chocolate, black licorice and fresh leather. The finish is velvety smooth with medium acidity and rounded embracing tannins with no sharpness. Also on the finish the presence of ground stone minerality provide a juicy and mouth filling finish. Alcohol was 14.2 % and listed at the winery at $36/bottle with only 93 cases produced from their estate vineyard. This Malbec has been on my list of Best Wines Tasted yearly for the last three years and continues to be in 2023. That list comes out mid-December annually.
The Food and Wine Pairing “Food without wine is a corpse; wine without food is a ghost. United and well matched, they are as body and soul: living partners” – Andre Simon
We started the evening off with fresh shrimp in tasty dipping red sauce that included cayenne pepper. Also served was a fresh bowl of Guacamole and chips! Those two alone could have been dinner.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
This evening was a newer recipe called Jalapeño meatloaf.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Ingredients included ground beef, panko breadcrumbs, egg, minced jalapeño peppers, minced garlic and shredded sharp cheddar cheese. The topping was a combination of tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, honey and chill powder. Served with optional Raspberry Chipotle sauce from Stewart and Jasper.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Accompanied by twice baked Russet potatoes with cheese (because it is required by law to serve potatoes with meatloaf!),
Photo ©Michael Kelly
sautéed asparagus,
Photo ©Michael Kelly
and a fresh garden salad that including Kalamata olives, feta cheese, garbanzo beans, tomatoes and onions. The Wood Family Vineyards Malbec with its fruit surrounded this spicy but not hot meatloaf to perfection. An excellent food and wine pairing.
Photo ©Michael Kelly
Our guest also brought wines that paired wonderfully with this tasty dish: 2021 Austin Hope Malbec, 2018 Justin Isosceles Reserve and I brought out a bottle of 2020 Wood Family “Viva” Cabernet Sauvignon. It was a Livermore Valley and Paso Robles wine evening with good food!
Sláinte,
Michael