Do you have a favorite fall food? I don’t have one but I do enjoy preparing soups as the weather begins to cool off. When preparing a hearty soup such as steak, split pea, or lentil, wine pairings can be easy. However, when preparing a spicy ethnic soup, wine pairings can be a challenge. Today, I have a treat for you!

The Wine: As I have shared with you earlier this year Craig Camp left Cornerstone Cellars for a move to southern Oregon to work with Troon Vineyards. One of the reasons Craig has shared for his move is the excitement of being in a wine region that has the right climate to produce an interesting variety of wines. Case in point, how many Vermentinos have you seen coming out of southern Oregon? Well, I am excited to introduce you to this one.

2014 Troon Vineyard Black Label Vermentino Applegate Valley Southern Oregon USA ($29): Crafted of 95.5% Vermentino and 4.5% Early Muscat; poured a golden yellow into the glass; aromas of fresh pears, lemon verbena, and roasted hazelnuts all on a bed of minerality rose from the glass; it offered a smooth and creamy mouth-feel, almost oily due to well utilized oak that added depth to the wine, flavors of green almond and grassy herbal notes add to the aromas on the palate, rich yet balanced wine with vibrant acidity creating a long, tangy finish; a wine of length and elegance. A great value on this delicious and versatile wine.

The Food: I typically select food to pair with wine; however, for this pairing the food came first. I was shopping at one of my favorite local grocery stores, Central Market, found only in Texas and like Whole Foods on steroids. While shopping I came across fresh lemon grass, unheard of at a non-Asian market. I immediately knew what I had to make for dinner and which wine to pair with it!

My Choice: I love Tom Yum Gai soup. It is fresh, easy to make, has a touch of heat, and really healthy. Recipes for this soup can differ; it is important your soup contain lemon grass, galangal, lime juice, coconut milk, cilantro, basil, ginger and some source of heat. You can adjust the heat to taste as it should not overpower the dish. Furthermore, you can serve straight up in a bowl or over rice. This Thai soup is a winner in our home and I felt like the creamy, almost oily, texture of the wine along with its lovely lemon zest would pair beautifully with this soup.

The Results: This was a great pairing. Like I said the Vermentino was fresh on the palate with great minerality and nice lemon flavors, additionally, the texture and mouth-feel of the wine was perfect for a soup that is also creamy with lots of lemon and lime flavors. Furthermore, the touch oiliness of the wine was a perfect balance to the touch of heat on the back end of the soup; they really balanced each other out. My husband and I had a couple of cups of soup with a couple of glasses of wine. We were blown away by how well these two worked together. I highly recommend the Troon Black Label Vermentino with any spicy Asian cuisine for a great pairing.

More about Troon Vineyards from their web site:

From the pristine mountains of southern Oregon come the wines of Troon Vineyard. Surrounded by the natural beauty and organic agriculture of the Applegate Valley, Troon Vineyard is making world-class wines from our vineyards on the granitic soils of the Kubli Bench.  For thousands of years wine has been an integral part of life. Continuing that tradition is the vision of Troon Vineyard where we make wine for life. We make wines for your life from every day occasions to the most elegant moments. Wines from our vineyards are made to share in life’s moments with you and your friends and family. We invite you to visit us, either at the winery in Grants Pass or at our tasting room in Carlton, and share some of life’s moments and our wines in person.

My Song Selection: This wine was not your typical Vermentino. It offers everything loved in a Vermentino with added depth and texture. It is not what is expected, it’s better!

Have you had a great food and wine pairing lately?

Get your own bottle of 2014 Troon Vineyard Black Label Vermentino and let me know what song you pair with it. Cheers!