lake sonoma

  • #PairitwithPed: Dinner on the Lake

    June 30, 2020 09:50

    #PairitwithPed: Dinner on the Lake

    I received a text from our son Joe last month-he was excited because he had found our Mother Clone Zinfandel at the Whole Foods and had sent along a photo-he lives in Reno Nevada. He also included an idea for a blog post: #pairitwithPed. I loved it and this is the second in a series of pairing wine, food and experiences.

    The first hot day of June rolled around on the second day-95 degrees and it was time to take out the boat and go to Lake Sonoma. This year we had to wait for the public boat ramp to open—COVID19 etc which took place toward the end of May. Our 'dinner cruises' are something Ed and I do every year during the spring, summer and fall. We plan at least one day during the week when we would prepare a picnic dinner, pick up the boat from storage and launch at the lake in northern Dry Creek Valley.

    There were some firsts however-Jasper had never been to the lake or on a boat before. I am recreating recipes from our website and had chosen a Grilled Chicken Salad with Mint, Feta and Toasted Pita Bread. We had a guest along too-my sis-in-law Carol who was staying with us and is from Maui. And of course there is the first time to put the boat in and remember all the details that go along with it-fan on, pump the gas a couple of times, remember to put the motor down all the way and the like. The lake was beckoning and it was time to go relax in the cool!

    Sauvignon Blanc and chicken saladWe brought along a bottle of our Sauvignon Blanc which always pairs well with dinner on the boat, especially with this recipe. With a lemon-cumin marinade & dressing with kalamata olives and  feta the wine and food pairing was perfect-plus did I mention we were on the boat? Carol commented that she typically didn’t like mint but in this salad it worked with the lemon zest in the dressing and the tomatoes. I used a locally made Feta which was delicate not salty and chalky-it made a difference. And grilling the chicken ahead of time helped this to become an easy midweek meal that was also easy to transport.

    Jasper the dog sleepingJasper, seen here post-excursion over and out in the boat, had a blast zooming along the shore, trying to get sticks out of the water, barking and listening to his ‘counterpart’ bark back from across the cove, bothering a squirrel that was outraged at the idea of a dog running below his tree, chirping aggressively. It was our evening's entertainment besides the chorus of birds, the gaggle of geese swimming along and the occasional splash of a fish hitting the surface-the big on that got away.

    Our evening ended as the sun set and it became noticeably cooler (and darker). Sometimes on our way back in-we are typically about 10 miles from the ramp-I need to dig out our sweatshirts to keep warm. But not this time-the bands of cool and hot air as we took the boat in at 45 miles per hour were sensational. An experience which filled all our senses from the wine to the food to the views. 

    Each month I'll have a new #PairitwithPed story. If you send me your stories (and many of you have) I’ll share them here in an upcoming post.

    Tags: Pedroncelli, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, Pandemic, Sauvignon Blanc, Lake Sonoma, Wine & Food
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