Men and women do not live by zinfandel alone. They must have hearty food to accompany it and the other robustly flavored wines we make here in Amador. Fortunately, our winemakers, winery chefs and local restaurateurs have developed numerous recipes to showcase our zesty zinfandels, bodacious barberas, succulent sangioveses, savory syrahs, snappy sauvignon blancs, vibrant viogniers, racy rosés and delectable dessert wines. We’re pleased to provide you with a selection of these recipes, which we’ll update periodically to reflect new ideas and recipes developed for our annual Big Crush, Behind the Cellar Door and Summer Solstice Wine Daze events. Each recipe is accompanied by a wine recommendation, and several include wine as an ingredient. Some also feature local Amador products such as lamb, corn, tomatoes, walnuts and figs. If you’d like to share original recipes you’ve developed to complement Amador wines, please email them to jamie@amadorwine.com. We’ll add the best to the site, and give you full credit.

Bon Appetito!

Spring | Summer | Fall | Winter

Sea Bass with Grapefruit Salad & Sobon Estate Viognier Cream Sauce

1 tsp. Olive Oil
2 Four oz Sea Bass fillets
1 clove garlic
2 pc shallots
1 cup Sobon Estate Viognier
2 cups Heavy Cream
1 bunch pineapple sage
Saute the seabass until 3/4 of the way done. Remove from saute pan then add garlic and shallots. Saute lightly; add Sobon Estate Viognier and reduce by 2/3. Add heavy cream and reduce by 1/2. Strain and add fresh chopped pineapple sage.

Grapefruit Salad
6 pc Grapefruit segments
1 pc red endive - chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. Honey
1 tbsp. olive oil
Combine all ingredients.

The Spanish word tortilla translates as a “flat, round cake”. In Spain, a tortilla is basically a flat round omelet, with many different filling variations, cooked to a perfect golden brown. Cut into wedges and served at room temperature, a tortilla makes an enticing appetizer or tapa. Still warm from the stove, this tortilla makes a wonderful light supper for 2 with a green salad.

1 large russet potato
1/2 onion
8 artichoke hearts (not marinated), canned or frozen
olive oil
6 x-large eggs
salt and pepper
Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Peel and cut the potato in half lengthwise, then slice the potato very thinly. Slice the onion thinly. Heat about 2 TBL. olive oil in a large skillet and heat on medium high. Add the potatoes, moving them around with a spatula to keep them from sticking. Keep cooking and stirring gently for about 5 minutes. Add the onions and continue cooking until the potatoes are just cooked through. Add the potato onion mixture to the bowl of eggs.
Squeeze as much water from the artichokes as possible and blot them with a paper towel. Cut them into quarters. Add 1 Tbl. olive oil and artichokes to the pan and sauté until golden brown. Add to the egg mixture.
To cook the tortilla you will need a clean 8” skillet, preferably nonstick. Heat 2 Tbl. olive oil over medium heat, and when hot slide the egg potato mixture into the pan. As the eggs set up, slide your spatula under the edge and let some of the liquid egg run underneath to cook. Keep cooking until the eggs have almost completely set and the bottom is golden brown. With oven mitts on, place a dinner plate over the pan, flip the tortilla onto the plate and slide the tortilla back into the pan, brown side up. Continue to cook another 5 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown. Slide out onto a plate to cool.
Cut in 6 wedges for appetizers or in half for dinner for 2. Serve with Romesco Sauce.

Recipe by Jane O'Riordan, Domaine de la Terre Rouge visit www.terrerougewines.com .

Wine Recommendation: 2002 Terre Rouge Syrah, Côtes de l'Ouest

1 each Eggplant - peeled, cut in 1/4 inch dice
3/4 cup Mozzarella - cut in 1/4 inch dice (substitute fresh mozzarella or goat cheese)
3 oz Prosciuto - thinly sliced and cut into small bite size pieces
3/4 cup Kalamata Olives pitted sliced in half
1 pint Grape or Cherry Tomatoes sliced in half
1 Tbl fresh Chives finely chopped
1 tsp fresh Marjoram chopped
3 Tbl fresh Basil chopped
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

1. In a sautee pan over Medium heat add 2 Tbl. Olive Oil and warm, add eggplant. Cook for about 8 - 10 minutes stirring occasionally until golden.
2. While eggplant is cooking, add all other ingredients (except olive oil, salt and pepper) to a medium size bowl.
3. Add Eggplant to the salad once it has cooled for about 15 minutes.
4. Drizzle about 1 Tbl of Extra Virgin Olive Oil over salad and gently mix to combine. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper (use caution with salt as olives and cheese already have a higher salt content).
For a twist on this recipe add your favorite grilled meat, use squash instead of eggplant, or toss with pasta.

Recipe by Chef/Owner Mark Berkner and his talented staff of Taste Restaurant in Plymouth visit www.restauranttaste.com .
Wine Recommendation: 2003 Vino Noceto Sangiovese

1/4 cup sliced sugar almonds (prep below)
1/4 head lettuce + 1/4 bunch romaine (torn up)
2 med. stalks chopped celery or pepperocinis, cherry tomatoes, and cheese
2 green onions or halved purple onion rings Sweet and sour dressing (dressing prep below)
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Sugar
1 can mandarin oranges (drained)

1/4 cup virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp. Charles Spinetta Winery Red Wine Vinegar
1/2 Tbsp. Charles Spinetta Winery Orange Muscat
2 pinches salt, 2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. snipped parsley & pepper to taste

Shake all ingredients in tightly covered jar and refrigerate until ready to
serve salad. Place lettuce, celery and onions in a lidded container or a
plastic bag. Pour on dressing, add oranges, and shake or stir to coat well.
Mix in almonds at the last minute.

Cook almonds and sugar over low heat, stirring sugar until melted and nuts
are coated. Cool nuts on foil, then break apart. Laura (Mom) Spinetta also
has a recipe with sour cream, but you have to visit the tasting room to ask her...

Recipe shared by a long-time customer of Charles Spinetta Winery and
Wildlife Art Gallery. Visit www.charlesspinettawinery.com and read our
Newsletter Page to find other fun and yummy recipes and neat things.

Wine Recommendation: Charles Spinetta Winery Chenin Blanc