A celebration of the love affair between steak and red wine
Most, if not all, of us are creatures of habit. We have favourite juice flavours and confection brands; we know how we like our coffee creamed and smoothies blended. Some of us are even particular about how we stack freshly made toast to minimise the risk of toast sweat.
In defence of my painstaking breakfast ritual, every preference and culinary quirk has been refined over years of trial and error. We like what we like because we've tasted what we don't - right? So as I enter The Hussar Grill for a steak and wine pairing one cloudy Thursday afternoon, I admit, I have to hold the door open for the obnoxious scepticism that had invited itself as my +1.
"I would never tell you that the way you like your steak is wrong," Tracy begins as she ushers in platters of steak tartare on melba toast. "Palates differ. We're just trying to get you to revisit what you've already decided; try something new," the Head Chef at Hussar Grill Moullie Point suggests. Accepting her invitation, I reach for an amuse bouche.
While a traditional steak tartare is served with raw egg yolk, Tracy has chosen to bind the protein with a mayonnaise instead. The delicate canape is packed with flavour, and I'm grateful the uncooked meat is supplemented by a thick yet tangy mayo because the entire dish would be too rich if the yolk had been included. The appetite whetter is paired with Nitida: The Matriach. The 2017 MCC has fruity flavour notes that subtly complement the sweetness of the tartare.
I have one and then another. I reach out for a third as Tracy replenished my champagne flute. "I can see you're all enjoying the first pairing; you don't want to fill up so soon," Gosha warns, but I sneak a final bite before cleansing my palate with sparkling water.
"Wine tastings always get very pretentious because people think they need to taste certain things and smell specific scents," our sommelier continues, "but there is no judgement at this table. Wine will taste different for all of us."
Following a brief cultivars education, Gosha gives the kitchen the go-ahead to bring in our first formal pairing.
"The leaner the meat, the lighter the wine," Gosha says as platters of fillet steak reach the group. Tracy's kitchen staff have prepared the meat in a number of different ways, and while the medium-rare platter has disappeared somewhere further down the table, the cuts of rare steak land right in front of me.
"The easiest way to ruin a cut of meat is by pairing it with the wrong wine, and vice versa," Gosha begins. As tasting glasses of Pinot Noir are poured, the wine writer explains that they've chosen this particular pairing because the acidity of the wine cuts through the delicate texture of the meat.
An incredibly nuanced pairing; the flesh is tender, and a sweetness is brought out by the coarse salt sprinkled atop the steak. The wine adds a muted earthiness to the well-rounded dish.
We move onto the rump paired with Merlot.
I've always been a fan of this particular varietal. The Switzerland of red wines, it's inoffensive because it's not too heavy or aromatic neither is it underwhelming. Merlot has always been just right. But as I match it with the juiciest rump steak I've ever tasted, I'm confronted by its ambivalence and I don't like it. The rump is soft but full of flavour while the Merlot is lackluster.
So I put the wine to the side and enjoy the steak.
Our third pairing is sirloin paired with Shiraz.
The bleu steak loving meat-eater in me has been taken care of up until this point. Many of my friends roll their eyes when I tell waiters, "shave the cow's backside and slap it on a plate," because they hear it so often. I'm being challenged to eat something a little more cooked, but this was Tracy's request at the beginning of the pairing.
Contrary to my concerns, the medium steak has retained its moisture despite sitting on the grill longer than I'd prefer. The sirloin is a little saltier than when cooked rare, and paired with the fresh rosemary garnish, the sweet herb competes handsomely with the saltiness of the meat.
Every sip of the spicy Shiraz is convincing, persuasive even. I'm enjoying its unapologetic boldness. Greedily draining the glass, I ask for a top-up and give it my undivided attention as Gosha moves onto the next pairing.
"We consider this cultivar the king of all red wines," Gosha says about the Cabernet Sauvignon we are about to sample. "We've cooked this [steak] medium-ish because we needed to render the marbled fattiness," Tracy adds as she bring in the meat.
The rib-eye oozes with flavoured juices of the rendered fat and tastes marvellous. It's complemented by a full-bodied wine that can stand up to the richness of the steak without overpowering it.
Eventually, Gosha proposes that we return to fillet and sirloin steak. We're having them on the bone as these cuts present a different flavour profile. "We're going to pair them both with different blends just to give you an idea of how, when you know the rules of steak and wine pairing, you can colour outside the lines a little bit," our host adds.
"When you cook meat on the bone, the marrow has a chance to release its own offering of flavour," Tracy explains as she presents us with the final platters. We are treated to The Hussar Grill 50th Anniversary wine to pair with our final cuts of meat. The Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon-Pinotage blend is a cluster of complex and complementing flavours. It is full-bodied and fragrant; nutty and dry with a hint of sweet smokiness.
Three hours since my scepticism and I sat down at the table, we are gathering our shattered preconceptions and heading out the door. With the leaner the meat, the lighter the wine replaying in my head, I've learned that even creatures of habit can afford to break their own moulds from time to time.
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Good food comes from good ingredients. Babel at Baylonstoren is proof that when you cultivate your own produce, quality control is guaranteed.
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