I like to make my own vegetable stock since I find most of the ready made stocks to be little more than salt water. In order to get some more flavor, the bulk of the liquid I use in my stock is wine–since it simmers for over an hour, and then gets reheated when I add it to whatever recipe I’m making, most of the alcohol burns off. I feel the wine really gives it the added punch that you need with something so mild like a low salt vegetable stock.
The number one thing I use my own stock for is a cream sauce which I serve with shallots and mushrooms. I like to use an inexpensive–but good enough quality that I’d drink it from the glass–bottle of Pinot Noir, as that’s a common suggested pairing for mushrooms.
So, I present you the following: A Pinot Noir from Burgundy which I picked up at Trader Joe’s for a whopping $7.
It’s a very simple, easy drinking, light Pinot Noir. All the nose really gives me is earth, I don’t smell much fruit–just dirt. The palate is no surprise: lots of earth. I detect a bit of cherries and blackberries as well, but make no mistake, this is an earthy wine. It’s light but it’s acidic, giving it a bit of tartness. It’s a very simple wine, very little finish, not much complexity, but did you expect that for a $7 Burgundy?
It’s ultimately very good--most cheap wines are either harsh or sweet and overly jammy, this is neither. This actually tastes like a Burgundy. It’s not phenomenal, it wouldn’t last in the cellar, but at this price, you simply will not find a wine this characteristic of the region.
It seems like a shame I’m dumping the rest of the bottle in the saucepan, but next time I’m at Trader Joe’s I’ll be picking up another bottle.
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