Hello Everyone,

We hope you are having a great week!

My wife and I recently visited a very cool Moroccan Chophouse and Tapas Bar called Tangierino. This chic spot combines the feel of a restaurant and lounge, and is located at the bottom of Bunker Hill in historic Charlestown, MA.

Even though you may not expect a place like this to be in an area that is notorious for Irish bars, Tangierino introduces you to Morocco in a romantic way. The restaurant is dimly lit, offers unique seating with small couches or sheer-styled sheets that veil you, and you may have the occasional belly dancer pass by.

Tangierino was a very nice surprise and definitely has a pulse when you're inside.

The dishes were spectacular with fresh ingredients from New England mixed with Moroccan spices for a flashy flavor.

We started with an appetizer Blazing Beef Tenderloin:
Sliced Prime aged beef, roll of sesame vegetables and ginger, harissa teriyaki

We then ordered Four Bone Za'atar Spiced Rack of Lamb:
Asparagus and Kalamata olives, truffle mashed potatoes, rosemary reduction

Tangierino's wine list was solid with 66 white wines and 92 red wines.  The majority of the wine list was dominated by wine regions from Italy, France, California, Australia, Argentina, Spain, Oregon and New Zealand.

With such a huge list to look at, I wanted to put our money where our mouth is and use the Free Hello Vino iPhone App to get a glass of wine to pair with the appetizer, and also one for dinner.

For the Blazing Beef Tenderloin, Hello Vino suggested a sweet Riesling, Gewürztraminer, or a Syrah/Shiraz. I personally was not in the mood for a white wine, but if I was, I would choose Gewürztraminer. We ended up trying Philippe & Vincent Jaboulet, Crozes-Hermitage, France 2005 Shiraz/Syrah.

I thought this wine was excellent with the harissa teriyaki. The dark berry fruit and hints of vanilla and toast mixed well. This was a full-bodied wine that proved to be a good start.

For the Four Bone Za'atar Spiced Rack of Lamb, Hello Vino recommended Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Merlot. Lately my wife and I have been fans of Zinfandel, so we chose two different glasses. My wife chose one of our recent favorites, Layer Cake Primitivo, Puglia, Italy 2006 (Italian Zinfandel grape)... and I tried DeLoach, Russian River Valley, Califonia 2005/2006 Zinfandel.

The Layer Cake Primitivo did not disappoint for a second time. The creamy balance of jammy fruit mixed with white pepper took the lamb to another level. The DeLoach Zinfandel was a bit hot (high alcohol), but did bring some black pepper, ripe blackberry, and possibly a little oak to the table. This was also pretty good with dinner, but not as smooth as the Primitivo.

Either way, it was fun to challenge the Hello Vino iPhone App in a restaurant with tons of wines to pick from, and to try a delicious food and wine pairing.

Next time you see yourself staring at a wine list, give Hello Vino a whirl and see if it can help you select a glass or bottle.

Cheers!
Jim from Hello Vino

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Many people, including my wife, have a book club get together once a month. Each person has a month where they choose the book, everyone reads it on their own time, and then all get together at a house to discuss the story over some food and wine...and there it is! Food and wine.

Some of the books spark great conversation because the stories were compelling, or it tapped into feelings certain individuals may be having at that time. However, there are times when a book falls flat on its face and the evening quickly turns into a fun social event with glasses being filled again and again.

What I find interesting about my wife's book club is that each person brings some sort of food with a certain level of creativity and thought, just like they do when choosing their book titles. On a very cool note, people have tried using Hello Vino for food and wine pairings!

Many times the night starts with some cheese, stuffed mushrooms, or perhaps some spinach dip with crackers of some sort. All of these appetizers play nicely with wine. Here are some wine pairing ideas for your next event:

Soft cheese candidate: Camembert
Wine pairing: Chenin Blanc (SHEN-ihn BLAHNGK): A sweet white wine with honey and nectar, & a creamy finish is a good match.

Semi-Soft cheese candidate: Havarti
Wine pairing: Rioja (ree-OH-hah): A jammy red wine with forest fruits & spice is a good match.

Semi-Hard cheese candidate: Cheddar
Wine pairing: Sauvignon Blanc (SOH-vee-nyawn BLAHNGK): A grassy white wine with herbs & smoke is a match.
Wine pairing: Cabernet Sauvignon (ka-behr-NAY soh-vihn-YOHN): A firm red wine with black fruit, oak and herbs is a good match.

Hard cheese candidate: Edam
Wine pairing: Champagne/Sparkling Wine (sham-PAYN): A dry (Brut) is a light sparkling wine that is refreshing and a good match.

Stuffed Mushrooms
Wine pairing: Merlot (mer-LOH): A lush red wine with plum, black cherry, & caramel is a match.

How about that Spinach Dip?
Wine pairing: Viogneir (vee-oh-NYAY): A dry white wine with peach & apricot flavor is a match.
Wine pairing: Dry Rose (roh-ZAY): A dry, pink wine with flavors of wild strawberry, watermelon & cherry is a good match.

Let's not forget about the main dishes! I was told that baked ziti was on the book club menu this evening. In addition, there were two vegetarian recipes that everyone was raving about. Here are some more food and wine pairings and a new recipe to try!

1) Baked Ziti
Wine Pairing: Chianti (kee-AHN-tee): A spicy red wine with flavors of red cherry and pepper is a nice match.
Wine Pairing: Sangiovese (san-joh-VAY-zeh): A red wine with tart cherry, plum, & spice is a match.
Wine Pairing: Syrah/Shiraz (see-RAH): A red wine with blackberry, plum, and pepper is a good match.

2) Vegetable Lasagna
Wine Pairing: Sancerre (sahn-SEHR): A fruity white wine that has vegetal flavors is a good match.
Wine Pairing: Beaujolais (boh-zhuh-LAY): A light, fruity red wine with soft flavors of banana and pear is a good match.

3) Portobello Musroom & Eggplant Casserole
Wine pairing: Nebbiolo (neh-be-YOH-lo): A red wine with wild cherry and truffles is a good match. This wine has plenty of acidity and body to stand up to the rich tastes of this casserole

Easy Eggplant Casserole Recipe

1 large eggplant
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped mushrooms (try fancy ones, like portobella)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp each dried basil and parsley
1/2 tbsp sage
1 tsp paprika
freshly ground pepper to taste
1-2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 - 2 cups cooked rice
1 cup of non-dairy "cheese"

Peel and cube eggplant into 1/4 inch pieces. Stir fry eggplant, onions and mushrooms in olive oil along with spices and soy sauce until tender. (To avoid scorching add water in small amounts.)
While vegetables are cooking, preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a casserole dish.
Remove vegetables from heat and stir in rice (amount will vary with amount of veggies) and 1/2 half the non-dairy "cheese"
Spoon mixture into casserole, sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
Serves 4.

Have a great weekend.

Cheers!

Jim from Hello Vino

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