Wine with Pork Roast

[Angel182]

I am planning a dinner for a small gathering I am having for Easter. My in-laws will be attending, and I want to choose a good wine that will go with the meal. I am serving pork roast as a main course. What wine do you suggest I serve?

[mrdutton]

Well, you've opened up a realm of possibilities here.

If you like oaky Chardonnay from California, serve it with your pork roast but have a lot of apple sauce on the side. The apple sauce will help balance out the oak and the acidity of the wine with the pork.

However that would not be my choice. (I, personally, am now trying to shy away from the over-oaked chardonnay from California.)

You might want to look into a German Riesling. Try a Spatlese Riesling. It could be the perfect match, since riesling is such a good match with a great many foods. Or you could try a German Gewurztraminer.

If you are saucing your pork roast with a very rich sauce, then you might even go with a very powerful red such as a good Cabernet Sauvignon. But I'd only recommend the Cab with the heavy sauce. Otherwise, if you like red, go with a lighter red.

What lighter red, gamay of course! Second choice would be Cab Franc. If you shy away from the Riesling and want to go red with your pork roast, then by all means look for a good Beaujolais or a Cabernet Francs (both from France thank-you, not California). I would suggest a 1998 cru Beaujolais such as Morgon or Moulin-au-Vent. As for the Cab Franc, try to get one from the Loire (Saumur, Chinon, or Bourgueil, for instance).


[This message has been edited by mrdutton (edited 04-17-2000).]

[hotwine]

I'll second the motion on the Riesling. Suggest a Mosel-Sahr-Ruwer, 1998. A Kabinett would work very well. That's a natural pairing for pork roast - they seem to be made for each other. But by all means, serve the wine well-chilled: leave it in the refrigerator for at least a full day before serving.
By the way, that wine is about the least expensive type that a person can buy. And much as I love a cru Beaujolais, it is no match for a German Mosel for serving with pork. Suggest you plan on providing one bottle for every two adults at table.

[mrdutton]

Well here is what I've done. We'll be having roast pork tenderloins for Easter dinner.

I've selected two rieslings for our table. One is a Mosel-Saar-Ruwer 1996 Ockfener Bockstein Kabinett Riesling. I picked out this one.

The other is a New Zealand Riesling. Grove Mill, Marlborough Riesling 1999.

I think I should serve the Grove Mill first and then the Kabinett Riesling second.

Anyone have any thoughts or comments on that? They'd be appreciated.

[Scoop]

It might be six of one...but the MSR Kabinett is a more delicate wine with (probably) a low alcohol content, especially when compared with the New Zealand Riesling (which will most likely be a much fuller wine body-wise, and with less mineral qualities).

Hence, my preference would be start with the Mosel, especially when palates are still relatively "clean", and then move on to the NZ.

Cheers,

Scoop

[hotwine]

I agree with Scoop. The Mosel should only have about 9% alcohol content, so it should probably be served before the NZ. (When you're well into the Mosel, you may wish you had bought more of it!)