portebello mushrooms

[jody4151]

we're having dinner with friends tonight who love wine. They eat a lot of grilled mushrooms, pasta and chicken. What is a good bottle of wine to take to them as a gift?

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jody4151

[hotwine]

Howdy Jody and welcome to the board. We like a Cabernet Sauvignon with grilled 'bellos; see http://wines.com/ubb2/Forum9/HTML/000644.html. But watch out for the marinade used with the mushrooms; as noted in the refernce, we last used an Italian dressing for that purpose, and the Simi cab initially had a problem with that before coming around quite nicely. Suggest you not go with an expensive cab; one in the $10-$14 range should work. If you'll look down the board under the cab thread, you'll see lots of tasting notes with retail prices paid. I've got a pair of 'bellos in the fridge to be grilled, and will be doing that tonight or tomorrow.

[Drew]

Oregon Pinot Noir. Many have an earthiness component that I think matches well with shrooms as well as the chicken.

Drew

[jody4151]

Thanks so much for the quick replies. We picked up a bottle of Cabernet Savignon and when we arrived they already had a bottle of it opened! They were delighted with our pick so obviously we made the right choice. Thanks again to all who replied.

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jody4151

[hotwine]

Glad it worked out, Jody. But I like Drew's rationale for Oregon Pinot... will try that, if any Oregon wines are to be found in this area.

[Drew]

Also like some southern Rhones, Cotes du Rhones and CDP's, as well as some Spanish Garnaches. Many show an earthy side, some with hints of mushroom, that pair nicely. Also some California zins that display the bramble notes and are not to sweet or too big in the alcohol department. An Australian wine that might do the trick is d'Arenbergs "The Stump Jump" for around $10.

Drew

[wondersofwine]

"Stump Jump" is on the tasting wine list at Vin Restaurant currently. I considered it at my last dinner there but went with something else and haven't tried it yet.