The Perfect Pairing: Zabaglione and Dry Sparkling Rosé
OK, maybe I’m a bit of a wine snob. When I hear “rosé,” my first thought is usually, “Blech!” I know, it’s an unenlightened view—just a gut-level reaction that comes from my early years of wine drinking as a young college student, when “rosé” usually meant the bland, generic, cheap, fruit-punch taste of white zinfandel. But thanks to some wonderful folks in our local chapter of the American Wine Society, I’m glad to have learned that all rosés are not white zinfandel! An evening spent with some fantastic dry Tavel wines from France made me look at rosés with new eyes—and appreciative taste buds. That’s probably what gave me the idea for a fantastic pairing we made at one of our recent dinner parties.
Now, to be clear, we don’t provide wine or spirits for our clients. But if our clients purchase wine and spirits on their own, our team is trained and certified to serve them responsibly. And we’re always happy to offer advice, of course!
Our client hired us to prepare a five-course gourmet meal for about thirty-five guests, and for each of our courses he wanted us to suggest a paired wine that he could purchase on his own at the local state store … something that wouldn’t break the bank.
For dessert (and, therefore, the last wine of the evening), our recommendation struck many as a delightful surprise: a dry sparkling rosé. Our client purchased I Castelli Prosecco Doc Rosé, and given how much they loved it, I think his guests would have been shocked to discover that he bought it for the modest price of $9.99/bottle! (To be fair, I think he got a great deal—I’ve seen it for as much as $14.99 in our local wine and spirits stores, though that’s still a pretty great price!)
Dessert was zabaglione—a warm Italian custard that we prepared à la minute, starting the process of beating together the egg yolks, sugar, and marsala wine as soon as we got the entrees out the kitchen door. Zabaglione is frothy, boozy, sweet, light. Serving it over some fresh berries, it was nicely complemented by the strawberry and cherry notes in the wine. But here’s the thing: It was the dryness of this particular sparkling rosé that turned out to be the key to such a happy food-and-wine marriage; the dryness of the wine balanced the sweetness of the zabaglione perfectly. And if we eat in part with our eyes, I’ve got to say: Its pale pink effervescence made a spectacular presentation and added to the deliciousness of the dessert. Festive, fizzy, fruity, fun—the perfect ending to a beautiful meal.