What Goes With Greek?

Why? Do you think there are no good Greek wines?

No, just that, well, it's all greek to me.

Any vintage of DRC La Tache goes great with greek food.

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Any vintage of DRC La Tache goes great with greek food.

Or save that money and put a down payment on a greek restaurant instead.

Ok, I'll bite. What is Greek food? I mean, like French, Chinese and Italian, Greek cuisine is pretty broad in terms of ingredients, spices and the like.

Any particular dishes you're trying to match?

PH

I think Burgundy, Bordeaux and most Italian wines go well with Greek food as most Greek wines are made in an old world tradition. I would stay away from modern styled wines unless you are having lamb on the grill.

Brunette's

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Originally posted by sonshine:
Brunette's

, I had a much less tactful response...

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Originally posted by AZVinoVeritas:

quote:

Originally posted by sonshine:
Brunette's

, I had a much less tactful response...

Sheep?? That might cost me 3 2004 Pegau's, but I couldn't resist.

I am, most likely, the only person on this board that actually likes retsina...

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Originally posted by Darlene:
I am, most likely, the only person on this board that actually likes retsina...

I read a very dull book called Ancient Wine: The Search for the Origins of Viniculture. I can not recommend it. However, one of the tidbits that stuck in my brain: it mentioned that retsina is one of the few wines made today that has a direct lineage to ancient wines by the use of adding tree resin to grape juice.

And yes, the title of this thread is screaming for a homoerotic response, which I will refrain from writing...

Actually, pine resin wasn't added to the graoe juice in the origination of retsina. It was used to seal the jugs in which the wine was kept. The aroma and resultant flavor were unitentional results.

Board-O, thanks for the clarification!

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And yes, the title of this thread is screaming for a homoerotic response, which I will refrain from writing..

tanglenet, did you have to make that connection???
I was trying to ignore that response........till you brought it up...LOL

Assuming for them moment the Greek food includes lamb, I'd suggest a wine from Apulia or even Sicily.

If there's feta cheese involved, and no red meat, then a steely cold sauvignon blanc from New Zealand is our favourite.

Thought you might be interested in this interview with Greek-American chef Michael Psilakis:

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Features/0,1197,4026,00.html

Of these 3 wines below, which would you choose to go with Greek in general. We will also be having a 2005 Kistler Mcrea chardonnay.

Domaine Des Baumard, clos du papillon, chenin blanc 2002 @ $60
William Fevre MOtee Tonnerre chablis 1er cru 2004 @ 90
E Guigal hermitage, marsanne-roussanne 2004 @ $99

i would lean towards the Hermitage bc when i eat greek i tend to lean towards the more lamb-laden dishes.

i have greek about once a month (a pretty tasty spot delivers to my condo), and i usually go with lamb shank. i normally order greek when there's a bottle of syrah in the fridge i've been wanting to crack open...

Yogi,

It depends on what your having. Greek meat dishes? I would opt for a red but would agree with jorge that the Hermitage is the best match. Greek seafood, well then I would opt for the Chablis. Greek vegetarian dishes, I would opt for the Baumard.

Yogi,

Not the Chablis.

As between the Baumard and the Hermitage, I would go Hermitage unless you think you will be eating lots of yogurt-based sauces, in which case the Baumard.

My buddy is bringing the red and he likes California classics. I know we are having a 2002 Insignia and something bigger and maybe a bit younger.

As for food we are going to have a variety of things (I am having lamb). We all love food and will share everything. The restaurant is Dio Deka in Los Gatos.

We will also order a couple of glasses of greek wine off their list to try as well.

Thanks for the input. I will let you know what we decide on.

For our big Greek Easter Picnic at my Church I brought I think 5 wines, most of which were Rhone, or Rhone blends to pair with lamb.

I brought a Phelps Le Mistral, a 100% Grenache from Vaucluse, a Chateauneuf-du-Pape. I recall them all pairing very well. I also brought a bottle of Sangiovese to pair with some of the casserole dishes with tomato-based sauces (Pastitsio, Moussaka).

I was asked pick out something nice for a visiting dignitary - got a bottle of '06 Beaucastel - while young, was delicious as I was fortunate to snag a taste for myself.

This discussion makes me think about what I might bring for next year. Maybe something Aglianico based would work for lamb - or a good Italian Merlot.

Certainly Greek food is diverse and there are lots of spices/marinades that you don't get with French or even Italian cooking.

I'm hoping to try Dio Deka at some point. Some guys I work with have a connection with the owner.

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Originally posted by Yogi8938:
My buddy is bringing the red and he likes California classics. I know we are having a 2002 Insignia and something bigger and maybe a bit younger.

As for food we are going to have a variety of things (I am having lamb). We all love food and will share everything. The restaurant is Dio Deka in Los Gatos.

We will also order a couple of glasses of greek wine off their list to try as well.

Thanks for the input. I will let you know what we decide on.

I just checked out Dio Deka's website.

OMG. (a) Some amazing stuff on that wine list at reasonable prices (relative to actual value). (Some not-so-reasonable prices, too.) Menu looks amazing. Please give a restaurant report? Thanks!

The best pairing with Greek Salad, IMHO:

G. Chavet & Fils Menetou-Salon S-B

The restuarant was very nice. It is loud, but not overbearing. The food is very good...my favs of the evening were grilled octopus, lamb meat balls, and my lamb chop entree. The wine I chose off the list was the 2004 E Guigal hermitage blanc. Holy smokes!!! This wine was wonderful and paired perfectly with the lamb dishes. I do not have much experience with French wines in general and this was a truly memorable wine experience for me. I will be buying some of this and found it a great value on the list at $99/bottle. The going rate I can find it for is $60/bottle. The restaurant also waived corkage on the other 3 bottles we brought and offered fresh stems for each wine. Thanks again for the helpful advice!!

WOW!! No corkage? Sounds like a great restaurant to recommend.