Tonight’s dinner was a Puttanesca sauce on Rigatoncini. The puttanesca sauce was made with a 1/3 jar of capers in balsamic, 1/3 jar of Italian anchovies in olive oil, and 12 pimento=stuffed olive silce thinly in a half jar of Rao’s Puttanesca Sauce. Wine was a 2000 Luna Sangiovese (2% Merlot). With the rich puttanesca, the usual oak of Luna was not as obvious; the fruit was muted, acidity was low, with a medium muted fruit finish. With all its shortcomings, it was good with the rich puttanesca. This was much better then a more delicate Cal-Sangiovese would have been. It was a good use of oaky Luna Sangiovese.
Then for dessert. Carollee surprisingly suggested chocolates with a young Cal-Cab, based on something she’d had on a business flight some years ago. I had my leftover Ghiradelli 72% dark chocolate; Carollee had her usual TJ’s milk chocolate. Wine was a 2000 Serenidad Cab from California’s Shenandoah Valley - cork colored on only the bottom 1/8 inch; very dark ruby in color; rich nose and flavors of ripe dark fruit, currants, and spice; mid-palate of ripe fruit w/o the usual herbal notes of Cab; and a medium long ripe fruit finish. It was nice with dark Ghiradelli; not so good with Carollee’s milk chocolate. She even tried a piece of my 72% dark with the Cab, and surprisingly said it was better with the Cab than her milk chocolate.