Press > Detail

'Three Daves' find vouvray puts spin on Indian cuisine

The Oregonian
By Katherine Cole

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

The people: Three Daves: David Holstrom, the wine consultant known around town as Guy du Vin; David Anderson, chef de cuisine at Vindalho; and Vindalho's chef/owner, David Machado. Got that? Good.

The place: Vindalho is a Southeast Portland restaurant that serves "spice route cuisine." That is, classic Indian dishes updated with fresh local ingredients and modern methods. Likewise, the cocktail menu gives time-honored drinks a tropical new twist: Think tamarind margaritas and ginger-lemongrass martinis. Once past these liquid enticements, you're in for another treat: A concise wine list Holstrom hand-selected to match the sultry, spice-laden fare. (2038 S.E. Clinton St.; 503-467-4550; www.vindalho.com)

The problem: To find wines that would match Vindalho's cuisine, Holstrom gathered sample bottles of all the varietals that the reference books said would work. Then he sat down with Anderson and Machado to taste these wines with the food. It was a total failure.

"This is the shortest wine list I've ever done, but it was the most difficult in terms of the amount of effort and time," says Holstrom, who has been consulting for restaurants for some three decades. "I thought we'd go through 15 or 20 wines and decide. We went through well over 100 wines."

Holstrom's wine list is finally finished, and it's working well at Vindalho. But we decided to make his task even more challenging. We asked Anderson for a simple recipe that would bring an Indian twist to fresh summer produce. The chef selected green and yellow wax beans -- notorious, like artichokes and asparagus, as difficult wine matches. Then we asked Holstrom for an appropriate accompaniment.

The pairing: Anderson's recipe for spicy beans uses mustard seeds and curry leaves, which are classic seasonings of Southern Indian cuisine. In Goa or Kerala, a dish like this might be chopped up and cooked down. The Vindalho version keeps summer's garden-fresh vegetables crisp, bright and whole.

"The black mustard seed has a pungency that carries through the rest of the dish, while the acidity of the lime juice and the salt keep everything in balance," Anderson says. "The curry leaves are very, very fragrant. And there's a nice little bit of chile heat that keeps everything very interesting."

With so many diverse flavors going on, most of us might opt to drink water or beer. But not Holstrom. This intrepid oenophile has discovered an ace-in-the-hole for Indian food: vouvray.

Through research and experimentation, Holstrom has found that the ripe sweetness of this French white wine made from the chenin blanc grape makes it the ideal match for many ornery Indian dishes.

Holstrom's choice has a honeylike, mouth-coating quality that mimics the luxuriance of the seasoned oil known in Indian cuisine as tarka. Unlike more acid-forward wines, it softens the impact of hot chiles on your palate. Its sweetness also acts as a counterbalance to the pungency of the lime, salt, mustard seeds and beans.

The profile: Holstrom's choice, the 2003 Champalou Vouvray La Cuvee des Fondraux, comes from the Loire Valley, a wine region that follows the River Loire from western to central France. It's made from chenin blanc, a white-wine grape that can be vinified into anything from a bubbly to a dessert wine.

The 2003 Cuvee des Fondraux comes from a hot, dry vintage, which means that this wine's quince, honeysuckle and melon aromas and flavors come across as ripe and sweet. This luscious quality is what makes it an ideal match for hot, spicy Indian cuisine.

Find the 2003 Champalou Vouvray La Cuvee des Fondraux for approximately $20 at Haggen Beaverton-Tanasbourne Town Center and John's Market Place. You can pick up the lighter and fresher 2004 vintage of this wine, which is just becoming available, by special order through your local wine merchant or for $17 through Guy Du Vin (www.guyduvin.com or 0224 S.W. Hamilton St., Suite 100; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays or by appointment).

Katherine Cole: 1320 S.W. Broadway, Portland, OR 97201

Press > Detail

Sign up for updates on our menu, wine list and special events.