Wine, bacon pair up for bit of heaven in Aspen

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Jul 16, 2003 | by TERESA J. FARNEY

As a former member of the Bacon of the Month Club, I knew I had to attend the Wines for Bacons seminar at the Food and Wine Magazine Classic in Aspen, held June 12-15 this year.

I wasn't alone. At 10 a.m., the room filled with 120 people who crammed themselves elbow-to-elbow in front of places set with six wine glasses. We waited in anticipation to hear from "Captain Bacon," Dan Philips, founder of the mail-order food company Grateful Palate and creator of the Bacon of the Month Club featured in his food catalog. He and Danny Meyer, owner of several New York City restaurants, led the seminar.

"You're looking at one-and-a-half Jews up here this morning, doing what no one else in the universe is doing right now: pairing wines with bacon," Meyer began. (Meyer's parents are both Jewish; Philips' mother was Jewish.)

With apologies to Jewish dietary laws, Meyer and Philips say they are bacon fanatics. They also are wine experts.

"Why are we doing this? " Meyer asked. "Bacon has all the flavors you'd put with wine: smoke, salt, spice, sweet, fat and texture. It's a fabulous backdrop for tasting wine."

He promised to turn our tongues into "flavor trampolines," using a variety of specialty bacons.

"After you taste this range of artisan bacons, you'll never want the grocery store stuff again," he said.

(Philips, apparently, has no problem with the grocery store stuff: "Bacon is like sex," he said. "Even when it's bad, it's good.")

On that note, festival helpers emerged from a side door with paper plates, each holding six strips of bacon.

"Taste bacon like you taste wine," coached Meyer. "Wave it under your nose to catch the aroma. Now be sure to take little sips of wine and little bites of bacon. You will want to taste each bacon with each wine and maybe even go back for another comparison."

Of the more than 30 U.S.-produced bacons Philips offers in his catalog, he selected the following for the tasting: Nodine's Applewood Smoked (sweet, smoky and thickly sliced), Burgers' Pepper (sugarcured sweetness and chewy), Scott's Bacon (dry-cured and salty), Tripp's Bacon (brown sugar-cured and spicy), Gatton Farms Father's Bacon with Dan Philips' Cure (dry-cured with intense bacon flavor) and Summerfield Farm Bacon (molasses and brown sugar-cured super-intense bacon flavor).

The wines he selected for pairing were: La Spinetta "Biancospino" Moscato d'Asti 2002, Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay 2001, Bernhard Hackenheimer Kirchberg Scheurebe Spatless 2001, Glatzer Zweigelt 2001, Rusden Grenache 2001 and Marquis Philips Shiraz 2002. The first three are whites; the rest are reds.

I learned that I like sweet on sweet. My favorite pairing was Nodine's bacon with the Moscato d'Asti. However, the Grenache, which is a great food wine, went pretty well with all the bacons.

I also learned that the best way to cook bacon is in a castiron skillet.

"It kills me when someone says they cut away the fat," Philips said. "Don't do that. Put the bacon in a cast-iron skillet on low heat and let it cook slowly for about 45 minutes. It doesn't get any better than the smell of bacon to start the morning."

The exception: Don't cook pepper bacon in a skillet because it burns.

"Cook it in a microwave," Philips said. "It's radar love."

Will the seminar be back? No doubt, since it was a sellout both times it was offered. But it might have a new name.

"We wanted to call it something different," Meyer said. "However, Food and Wine didn't like our suggestions."

Wonder why? Names under consideration were "Cork & Pork," "Swig with Pig," "Wine with Swine," "Traif for Waifs," "Macon for Bacon," "Makin' Bacon," and "Fruit with Snoots." Whatever name it goes by, the seminar left its mark: I think it's time for me to rejoin the Bacon of the Month Club and stage a wine and bacon pairing of my own.

If you want to join the club as well, call 1-888-472-5283 or visit www.gratefulpalate. com.

Teresa J. Farney's column appears Wednesdays. Reach her at 636- 0271.