The Wine Ladies

Wine Pairing for Pasta with Wild Mushrooms, Cream, and Mascarpone Cheese

Dear Wine Ladies,

We’re finally back on carbs (my wife and I have lost 45 pounds collectively) and we’re ready to dive back in head first entertaining with a fabulous recipe for pasta with wild mushrooms, cream and mascarpone cheese.

First of all we’d like a few suggestions for wine to go with the recipe and secondly what would you recommend to serve as an aperitif for when the guests first arrive? We usually begin with a white wine but are ready to consider something different.

Joseph

 Dear Joseph,
 
Before we dive into the wine recommendations, congratulations on your collective weight loss!
 
Now to the wild mushroom pasta dish – our first thoughts are to automatically gravitate to a Pinot Noir – a wine with complexity but not overpowering in alcohol and tannins. It also can have a hint of earthiness to it that echoes that of the mushrooms.  A second option, a full bodied, buttery Chardonnay, a wine that can stand up to the creaminess of the dish, if you would prefer to go with a white.
 
What to serve your guests when they first arrive? We’ve got two suggestions here as well, both under appreciated or utilized in their own way. Why not begin the evening with a rose? There are currently a great variety of wonderful roses available, many of which are fresh, crisp and lively, including being dry, contrary to what many expect or believe roses to be. Look for one from Ontario or search out a Tavel from the southern Rhone in France. These wines are perfect as an aperitif for the summer season.
 
Our second recommendation is to go with a sparkling wine or Champagne. Always a crowd pleaser, and a palate pleaser, preparing it for what’s to come. Sparkling wines, with their “bubbles” and good acidity excite and cleanse the palate, and pair very well with a wide range of foods, including most hors d’oeuvres.