Last night’s dinner was left-over prosciutto chopped and crisped in olive oil and added to an Alfredo Sauce. The Prosciutto-Alfredo sauce was served over Saffron Fetttucine. The prosciutto gave a good flavor to the Alfredo. The pasta was enjoyed with a 2000 Luna Canto Reserve, a proprietary blend of Sangiovese, Merlot, Cab Franc, & Cabernet Sauvignon. It was better with the pasta than by itself - with deep, dark ruby garnet color; nose and flavors of dark cherries and berries, with an herbal undertone; mid-palate with barley adequate acidity, some soft tannins and herbal fruit; and a medium long herbal fruit finish. We ate inside at the dining table since there was cool wind, rain, and hail during dinner prep.
Then for dessert, while watching some TV (via TiVo) in the den, we had four cheeses - Brie, Affinois Goat Brie, Raw-Milk Morbier, & Robiola Bosina; with three fruit pastes - mango-pineapple, ginger-orange, & plum, Whole Foods Deluxe Mixed Nuts, and TJ’s Jumbo Raisin Medley. We enjoyed the cheeses and goodies with a 2001 Ridge Zinfandel Pagani Ranch (88% zinfandel, 8% Alicante Bouschet, 4% petite Sirah) - dark garnet in color, bright nose & flavors of spicy berries; rich mid-palate with good acidity and berry fruit; and a long spicy berry finish. The Ridge was great with the cheese and accompaniments and would have been better with the pasta than the Canto.