Wine with Buffalo Steaks

I was thinking of serving an approximately ten year old First Growth with buffalo steaks.

Any thoughts?

gotta be more specific than that.

anyways- buffalo/bison all require something very robust depending on the cooking style. can you give me some more info on how they will be prepared and what will be served with them? also a price range?

I was thinking of doing something very simple with the buffalo steaks -- treat them like beef.

In a pan for roughly 8 minutes possibly spiced a bit.

For the wine, I was thinking of opening a 1998 Mouton. In the alternative, I might open a younger (and less expensive) Bordeaux.

That can be a pretty pricey bottle to drink with those steaks- the Mouton that is, though it will stand up nicely to them.

One thing to watch for on buffalo is that even the most tender piece can still be as chewey as an onglet- I try to do a deep seasoning with salt and pepper on mine. Enough of that.

Let me suggest a Pinot Noir that I think is a bit softer than the Mouton and will work really nicely with a simple preparation (you'll be surprised at how inexpensive it is compared to the Mouton, but it's ready to drink right now. This is also something that while ready to drink now could use a year or two in the cellar to make it really top quality). Patton Valley (OR) 2003 Pinot Noir. Yummy.

Also, for a Cab Sav with some real muscle take a look at the vertical selection available from one of my favorite producers- Cathy Corison (Corison Vinyards). Get a bottle (any year) from her Kronos collection. I especially like the 03.

I've got a bottle of 93 that I'm going to break out tonight from the regular napa vinyard.

Thanks.

Needless to say, the Mouton is for a special occasion. I am going to open some nice bottles on the night in question, including the 1998 Mouton, a 1989 Veuve Cliquot, and I am going to try and find a high quality wine to pair with a salmon course.

I was thinking of something simple to pair the Mouton with, and thought of steaks. Buffalo tends to have less fat and depending on the cut, can be a bit more interesting than beef so I thought of that.

Any other ideas for something simple to make that will pair with the 1998 Mouton?

Are you open only to certain areas (like only wines from the AOC) or are you willing to look to Italy and CA?

jpschust wrote:Are you open only to certain areas (like only wines from the AOC) or are you willing to look to Italy and CA?

For the white to prepare with the salmon, I am pretty much open to anything. My current inclination is to go with a caper sauce and pair it with a Sauv. Blanc., but I am open to suggestions.

For the main course, I did want to open the Mouton.

That being said, we do make buffalo steaks pretty often (about once every two weeks), so I am open to suggestions for that dish on other evenings.

let me ponder on it. i've got 1-2 wines in mind. also- how big is your cellar- i'm coming across some stuff right now that is just a year or two shy of drinking and is going to be smokin good.

jpschust wrote:let me ponder on it. i've got 1-2 wines in mind. also- how big is your cellar- i'm coming across some stuff right now that is just a year or two shy of drinking and is going to be smokin good.

That's my situation also. I am trying to drink up some of my older whites, and I want to try the Bordeaux over time. Some now, some in five years, some in twenty.

did some research for some reds off my notes for pairings with something like buffalo steak and here's what I've got right now:

99 Ciacci Picolomini Brunello di Montalcino - My notes say that this felt like a really late harvest full of berry flavors, but with very little residual sugar. Some great balance.

01 La Salette Amarone - Very very spicy, could take another year in the cellar but ready to drink now. Might mellow in a bit though.

I recently got my hands on a bottle of the Lot XIV of Thackary Orion. Superb huge wine. Old vines.

If you can get your hands on it the 91 Ridge Montebello Cab Sav. Holy hell this is a great wine. Perfectly ready to drink.

For whites- oak or no oak?

jpschust wrote:did some research for some reds off my notes for pairings with something like buffalo steak and here's what I've got right now:

99 Ciacci Picolomini Brunello di Montalcino - My notes say that this felt like a really late harvest full of berry flavors, but with very little residual sugar. Some great balance.

01 La Salette Amarone - Very very spicy, could take another year in the cellar but ready to drink now. Might mellow in a bit though.

I recently got my hands on a bottle of the Lot XIV of Thackary Orion. Superb huge wine. Old vines.

If you can get your hands on it the 91 Ridge Montebello Cab Sav. Holy hell this is a great wine. Perfectly ready to drink.

For whites- oak or no oak?

Drinking Brunello with the Buffalo is an interesting idea. I like Buffalo and I like Brunello. I should try them together.

At risk of sounding like I am big fan of White Zin, I will confess that I like a decent amount of oak in the whites.

That of course raises the issue that the salmon probably should be heavy on the butter in the sauce, rather than going with something like a honey mustard sauce which would not do as well with the oak.

For the white, what about a Meursault? That should hold up to your buttery sauce.