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> Weber Genesis EP-330
> Grilla Grills Original Grilla (OG) pellet smoker with Alpha/Connect
> Pit Barrel Cooker (gone to a new home)
> WeberQ 2000 (on "loan" to a relative (I'll never see it again))
> Old Smokey Electric (for chickens mostly - when it's too nasty out
to fiddle with a more capable cooker)
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Grill/Smoke/Roast = SnS Grills Kettle + SnS Deluxe Insert & Drip n' Griddle
Grill/Smoke/Roast = Hasty-Bake Gourmet Dual Finish with HB rotisserie and Grill Grates
Smoke = Weber Smokey Mountain 22.5"
Pizza = Blackstone Propane Pizza Oven (Stacy's, but she let's me use it sometimes)
Indoor Cooking = LG Studio 30" gas range
Camp Cooking = Coleman 2 burner white gas stove
Thermometer = FireBoard FBX2 with 2 ambient and 6 meat probes
Thermapen Mk IV = Light blue
Thermapen Mk IV = Black
PID Controller = Fireboard Drive + Auber 20 CFM Fan (FB gen 1 fan)
PID Controller = Fireboard Drive + Fireboard 20 CFM Fan (FB gen 2 fan)
Knives
Wusthof Classic Ikon set: 9" carving knive, 2X 8" Chef's Knife, 7" Santoku and three utility knives
Kamikoto Kuro set: 7" Santoku, 6.5" Nakiri, 5" Utility
Amazing Ribs Brazilian Steak knife set
Favorite wine = whatever is currently in the wine rack
Favorite beer = Sam Adams Boston Lager or Shiner Bock
Favorite whisky = Lagavulin Distiller's Edition 16 year old single malt
Best Cookbooks - Meathead's "The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling", Chris Lilly's "Big Bob Gibson's BBQ Book", Aaron Franklin's "Franklin BBQ"
Cookbooks to check out - Raichlen's "Brisket Chronicles" and anything by Adam Perry Lang.
Current fanboy cookbook - "Chasing Smoke: Cooking Over Fire Around the Levant"
Chuppy in my opinion, you're on the right track. You need a wine that can stand up to the beef, but can also cut through the fat. I like Italian wine for that. They serve a lot of big meaty foods with high fat content. Barolo, Barberesco, Brunello di Montalcino, etc. You could do a Super Tuscan as well, although it's going to be more like a Bordeaux and not so fruit forward (ie sweet).
Excellent point and where I run into problems, I'm an Ontario VQA wine snob which probably 95% of my purchases.
Other 5% being Cali wines, Josh and the like.
European wines I don't even consider, plenty of great wines outta there but not interested.
Scotch: Current favorite- The Arran (anything by them), Glenmorangie 12yr Lasanta, sherry cask finished. The Balvenie Double Wood, also like Oban 18yr, and The Glenlivet Nadurra (Oloroso sherry cask finished) among others. Neat please.
About meReal name: Aaron
Location: Farwell, Michigan- near Clare. (dead center of lower peninsula)
Occupation:
Healthcare- Licensed & Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) at MyMichigan Health, a University of Michigan Health System.
My favorite BBQ wines are reds for sure. And not sweet. That said, that hardly means that sweets or whites won't work, they absolutely will!
IMO the BEST wine advice is to drink what you like. Don't fret on what the interwebs and the "pros" say works better with each food. If you don't like it, then it simply will not be good with this or that food. Sometimes snobs focus too much on the trees and miss the forest.
Anyhow, my favorite reds with bold peppery BBQ (brisket fits that bill) are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Zinfandel (the bold red, not the pink 'white zinfandel'). I prefer a dry, spicier, high-tannin bold red with BBQ. Sadly, usually the cheaper $11 ones from the supermarket don't fit that bill, but that's a YMMV thing for sure. I like Bordeauxs and Barberas and all European wines too. They might be less bold, but they work wonderful with bold BBQ. Trouble is, in my area they're harder to find than California bold reds.
What I've also found is any of the above, sipping by itself pre-food, might seem so-so (especially a zinfandel) but after a couple bites of a bold brisket rub, that same wine explodes with fireworks in your mouth!
Chuppy - I think it will help if you clarify the 'sweet' comment. To me, and to any wine geek, sweet wine means wine that has some residual sugar and few reds are made this way. Port is an exception but it's also fortified so it's not really a table wine.
Many of the suggestions above will be fine, but virtually all of them are dry wines, that is they are wines with no residual sugar, it having been fermented to out by the yeasts. Any perceived sweetness is from the fruit.
The other main flavor axes are tannic structure and acidity along with oakiness. I think what would go best are wines with nice fruit, enough acid to cut through the fat in the brisket and something without big, drying tannins (lots of tannin feels like it's drying your mouth). I'd also minimize oak simply because it competes with the food (I also hate a lot of oak on my wine...).
Beaujolais, Barbera, a red Zin, a nice Syrah (talk to the wine shop person about tannin and oak in the latter two) would be my recs.
Last edited by rickgregory; December 2, 2021, 02:49 PM.
" My understanding is that wine drinkers refine their tongue over time and move from "sweet" to "dry."
I know where you got that, it was long ago a way to describe people and their wine journey but in reality what people tend to do is move from simpler wines whose predominant feature is good, straightforward fruit to wines that show other characteristics - tannic structure, some acidity, complex aromas, etc.
Almost no red table wine is what you'd consider sweet.
the three varieties you're thinking of are fine but rather than a full on Barolo, you might look at a Nebbiolo Langhe. Same grape, same region but usually younger vines and less expensive.Obviously it depends on what you want and how into wine your guests are. Me, I'd love the Barolo
Oh boy, I bet that was yummy!!! There's a lot of things about California that really suck, but the wine isn't one of them!! I was blessed to have grown up in wine country when California didn't suck. Maybe someday it will un-suck itself.
Last edited by CaptainMike; December 2, 2021, 05:15 PM.
My toys:
Weber Summit Charcoal Grilling Center (WSCGC) aka Mr. Fancypants
Pit Barrel Cooker (which rocks), named Pretty Baby
Weber Summit S650 Gas Grill, named Hot 'n Fast (used mostly for searing and griddling)
Weber Kettle Premium 22" named Kettle Kid, eager to horn in with more cooks in the future
Camp Chef Somerset IV 4-burner outdoor gas range named AfterBurner due to its 30kBTU burners
Adrenaline BBQ Company Gear:
SnS Low Profile, DnG, and Large Charcoal Basket, for WSCGC
SnS Deluxe for 22" Kettle
Elevated SS Rack for WSCGC
SS Rack for DnG
Cast Iron Griddle
Grill Grate for SnS
Grill Grates: five 17.375 sections (retired to storage)
Grill Grates: six 19.25 panels for exact fit for Summit S650
gasser
Grill Grates for 22" Kettle
2 Grill Grate Griddles
Steelmade Griddle for Summit gas grill
Fireboard Gear:
Extreme BBQ Thermometer Package
Additional control unit
Additional probes: Competition Probes 1" (3) and 4" (1), 3 additional Ambient Probes. 1 additional Food Probe
2 Driver Cables
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Pit Viper Fan new design (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
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Maverick ET 73 a little workhorse with limited range
Maverick ET 733
Maverick (Ivation) ET 732
Grill Pinz
Vortex (two of them)
18" drip pan for WSCGC
Ceramic Spacers for WSCGC in Kamado Mode: 2 sets each 1/2", 1", 2". The 2" spacers work best with the 18" drip pan. The 1+1/2 inch spacers work best with the 14 inch cake pan.
Two Joule Sous Vide devices
3 Lipavi Sous Vide Tubs with Lids: 12, 18 and 26 quarts
Avid Armor Ultra Pro V32 Chamber Sealer
Instant Pot 6 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Instant Pot 10 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Charcoal Companion TurboQue
A-Maze-N tube 12 inch tube smoker accessory for use with pellets
BBQ Dragon and Dragon Chimney
Shun Classic Series:
8" Chef Knife
6" Chef's Knife
Gokujo Boning and Fillet Knife
3 1/2 inch Paring Knife
A cab is perfect, IMO, but not for folks who like sweet reds. I have found the Apothic reds so sweet they nearly set my teeth on edge, but then I'm not a sweet red wine person unless it's a 20+ year old port.
BTW. I recommend a sweet red for those who like it but for those who want something less sweet, then a Cab or Cab/Shiraz blend works nicely for my palate.
Kathryn
Last edited by fzxdoc; December 2, 2021, 04:22 PM.
Have had this with beef before. Good choice, pleases a crowd and not expensive. Apothic also has a red aged in whiskey barrels. Not for everyone... but a nice chef's treat.
Funny peoples palettes, I was gifted a bottle of this wine and in my case it was too dry for even me and I want sand in the bottom of the glass when finished.
Whatever their taste are, do not go too sweet. We're talkin' beef here. California, Australia and Spain would be top list of my for this crowd. And, you are in luck. The lesser expensive bottles lean away from the dry earth and more to the bold sweet fruit. Merlot, Zin, Shiraz, and Rioja would all pair well. Also, because of the sides you are cookin', I would open a white too. Offer choices, and/or ask your guests to bring a bottle and open them to share. -not a wine critic here- just like 'em all.
I've had the Vietti and the Avignonesi. Very nice wines. The Corvina will be more dense and have purplish fruit flavors. Not had that frappato but the ones I've had are lighter reds - think strawberry and raspberry fruit. Never had the Lambrusco.
Chuppy Hope you had an awesome Christmas.
So what wine did you end up choosing? Did it go down well with your guests? And how did it pair with the brisket?
I'm sure klflowers would be interested in this also.
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