A new taste for wine: wine bars are showing up everywhere—and they're pairing creative food with great wines

Sunset, June, 2004 by Charity Ferreira

If you think wine tasting is intimidating, you haven't tried the wine bars that seem to be opening on every corner. Their goal: to make trying new wines easy and fun.

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The surroundings range from clubby to ultramodern. The wine lists are written to amuse as well as educate, with categories like "bodacious" and "juicy." And the food goes beyond cheese and olives; chefs at these places are likely to offer ahi tacos, paella, or sushi rolls--dishes meant for pairing and sharing.

It all adds up to a great night out, which is why wine bars are the new way to socialize. "People are moving away from the typical bar scene; they want more than just a drink," says Christopher Potter, co-owner of Nectar Wine Lounge in San Francisco. "There's intellectual stimulation involved with wine."

Try recipes and wine pairings from some of our favorite spots, and check out our list of great wine bars near you.

WINE PAIRING

Riesling with grilled shrimp

Riesling is a delicate, fruity white wine with wonderful acidity; it often has flavors of peaches, apricots, melons, and minerals. It's well known as a versatile food wine, and it pairs especially nicely with the smoky-sweet romesco sauce that accompanies Andalu's grilled shrimp. Owner Calvin Schneiter suggests serving a flight of three Rieslings with this dish--one each from southern Australia, New Zealand, and Germany.

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ANDALU, SAN FRANCISCO

Grilled Shrimp with Romesco Sauce

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 hour

MAKES: 4 to 6 appetizer servings

NOTES: To toast almonds, place in a baking pan and bake at 350[degrees], shaking pan occasionally, until golden under skins, about 12 minutes. You can make the romesco sauce (through step 4) up to 2 days ahead; cover and chill.

  1 dried New Mexico or California chile, stemmed and seeded
  1 Roma tomato (4 oz.), rinsed and cored
    About 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil Salt and pepper
  2 tablespoons sliced garlic
3/4 cup drained canned roasted red peppers
  2 tablespoons toasted almonds (see notes)
  1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
  1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
  1 pound (26 to 30 per lb.) peeled, deveined shrimp

1. In a bowl, soak chile in 1 cup boiling water until soft, 20 minutes. Drain.

2. Slice tomato in half lengthwise; remove seeds. Drizzle about 1/2 teaspoon olive oil over cut sides; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Place tomato halves on a baking sheet, cut sides up, and bake in a 400[degrees] oven until browned and soft, about 20 minutes.

3. Pour 1 teaspoon olive oil into an 8- to 10-inch frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic and stir often until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

4. In a food processor or blender, combine chile, tomato, garlic, peppers, almonds, vinegar, and parsley. Whirl until well blended. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour into a bowl.

5. Rinse shrimp and pat dry. Thread onto four metal skewers (10 to 14 in.). Brush with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place shrimp on a barbecue grill over a solid bed of medium-hot coals or medium heat on a gas grill (you can hold your hand at grill level only 3 to 4 seconds); close lid on gas grill. Cook shrimp, turning once, until opaque but still moist-looking in center of thickest part (cut to test), 3 to 6 minutes total. Serve with romesco sauce.

Per serving: 123 cal., 29% (36 cal.) from fat; 16 g protein; 4 g fat (0.5 g sat.); 5.4 g carbo (0.9 g fiber); 148 mg sodium; 115 mg chol.

750 ML., PORTLAND

Seared Scallops with Garlic-Parsley Butter

PREP AND COOK TIME: 30 minutes

MAKES: 4 appetizer servings

   12 scallops (about 1 in. wide; about 12 oz. total)
      Salt and pepper
    1 tablespoon olive oil
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
    2 teaspoons minced garlic
    1 tablespoon minced shallot
    4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, rinsed, stemmed, and thinly sliced
  1/2 cup fat-skimmed chicken broth
    3 tablespoons chopped parsley
    2 tablespoons canned crushed tomatoes
    2 tablespoons dry white wine
    2 teaspoons lemon juice
      Yukon Gold potato puree (recipe follows)

1. Rinse scallops and pat dry; sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 10- to 12-inch nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add scallops and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides and opaque but still moist-looking in the center (cut to test), about 4 minutes total. Transfer scallops to a plate; cover with foil to keep warm.

2. Add 1/2 tablespoon butter, garlic, and shallot to pan. When butter is melted, add mushrooms; stir often until mushrooms are browned, about 5 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter, along with chicken broth, parsley, tomatoes, white wine, and lemon juice; bring to a boil and cook 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Spoon potato puree into four shallow bowls; top each with 3 scallops. Spoon mushrooms and sauce over scallops.

Per serving: 299 cal., 42% (126 cal.) from fat; 19 g protein; 14 g fat (6.4 g sat.); 23 g carbo (1.7 g fiber); 175 mg sodium; 56 mg chol.

Yukon Gold potato puree. In a 4- to 5-quart pan over high heat, bring 2 to 3 quarts water to a boil. Peel 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes; cut into 1-inch chunks. Add potatoes to pan; cook until tender when pierced, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain and return to pan. Mash potatoes with 1/4 cup fat-skimmed chicken broth, 2 tablespoons whipping cream, and salt and pepper to taste.