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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Try Some Delicious BBQ and Zinfandel Pairings in August

But first, a little about Zin...

Zinfandel has had quite a journey. Thankfully, winemakers decided to bottle Zinfandel all by itself in the 1960's and 1970's. Did you know it was primarily a blending grape beforehand? The first mainstream instance of Zinfandel was spearheaded by Sutter Home Winery back in the 1970's. The wine was pink in color, it was sweet, people went bonkers over it, and it was called White Zinfandel. At the time, and to this day, people buy White Zinfandel in droves. However, despite having huge sales to this day, White Zinfandel carries a reputation of being a starter wine, and many view it as cheap and non-worthy. After the pink version of Zinfandel had its time in the spotlight, red Zinfandel entered the scene with an entirely different personality.

100 Year-old Zinfandel Vine
Sonoma, CA

Red Zinfandels (also referred to as "Zin") typically display flavors of dark cherry, boysenberry, blackberry, and raspberry. Zins can present a berry jam taste as well, and you may hear people refer to them as being "jammy." In addition to lush fruit flavors, Zinfandel is usually spiked with spice, select herbs, and pepper. The level of taste varies and you can gauge this a little bit by the alcohol content. Unlike its older sister wine, connoisseurs respect Zinfandel and it routinely receives accolades from industry professionals.

Quick Tip: Look at the alcohol content on the label to help guide you

• Lower alcohol (13% - 15%) = More acid and fruit-forward. Typically food friendly.
• Higher alcohol (16%-18%) = Raging sippers. You may hear someone refer to it as "hot".

Good history, good wine, and some Zinfandel vineyards in California are 130+ years old! Pretty cool. A lot of excellent Zinfandels are produced in California… specifically in the Central Valley, Dry Creek Valley, and Russian River Valley.

Zinfandel Food Pairings
on the free Hello Vino iPhone app

In addition, Zinfandel is considered to be one of the best wines to pair with food at a BBQ. Here are some tasty food and wine pairings to try with Zinfandel:

• Grilled NY Strip Steak
• A Classic Burger (with ketchup or some bacon)
• BBQ Grilled Chicken
• BBQ Pork Ribs
• Romano, Kasseri, or Gorgonzola Cheese

Spice up your next cookout - Grab a California Zin and fire up the grill!

Cheers,
Hello Vino

This post is part of Wine Blogging Wednesday #60 - @Sonadora of www.WannabeWino.com came up with the "Zin & BBQ" theme for this week.

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