Day 28 of #flatteningthecurve
How does Thai Turkey Salad and Red Electra Moscato from Quady North pair together? Well, the day started early, the sun had returned and I woke early. After giving Loki some attention I made some coffee to Copeland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man”. A friend had recommended making coffee to this music as being a wonderful way to start a day and I concur!
Next up was using up the bananas that had gone mushy. I have to admit to liking my bananas just a tad on the green side and these were decidedly not that! So banana bread to the rescue! Half the loaf is in the freezer, while the other half we will munch on.
There was writing to be done and the treadmill was calling my name. Luckily I had the perfect podcast to keep me entertained “Wine for Normal People” had a 41 minute pod cast on Mazuela or Carignan or Bovale Grande or Cariñena or Carinyena or Samsó or Carignane or Carignano…this grape has so many names and such a great story! Go check out the pod cast.
The flyover
The big event for the day was scheduled for 2:30. The Thunderbirds were doing a Las Vegas flyover in honor of the medical workers and first responders. We are blessed with a rooftop deck and headed up to watch. We waved to neighbors on their deck and one by one watched rooftops all around us fill with people looking to the sky. The Thunderbirds flew right over us! My footage was a bit patchy. They move fast! It was amazing. I grew up in Southern California with a father in the Navy and we were big Blue Angels fans. I now have a huge respect for the talents of those other flyers, the Thunderbirds.
Time to cook
After all that excitement, it was time to prep today’s late lunch, which was a Thai turkey salad from Sun Basket. Made of cabbage, ground turkey with lemongrass paste, radishes, cilantro, toasted coconut, cashews and a dressing of thai flavors with lime and a little hot sauce, it was beautiful and delicious.
The pairing and a confession on wine snobbery
Michael had picked the pairing for this last week. With the Thai and the spice, he chose a Moscato, to balance the spice. The Moscato we had was an Electra Red from Quady that we picked up when we visited Quady North.
This isn’t a fancy wine and quite honestly not a wine that if you read me the description, I would expected to enjoy. Okay, calling myself out…this is wine snobbery and it is kind of unacceptable. When you get into wine, you find quickly that sweet wines tend to be looked down on. It’s unfair.
My choice of beverages, after morning coffee, lean toward water or naked tea. I don’t drink sweet drinks. No sugar in my coffee and soft drinks are rare, but upon occasion I crave a coke with lots of crushed ice. This wine hits me in the same way. It is so enjoyable. Moscato with fruit notes and sweetness and just a bit of effervescence. It’s like the cherry coke of wine and I like it. It is immensely enjoyable and sits at just 5.5% abv. It feels like a guilty pleasure.
Would I have chosen this pairing? Probably not, but it did work well! The sweetness went well with the heat of the Thai turkey salad dish. Pairing the acid in the salad and the sweetness of the wine, also worked well. I was concerned that the wine would be too heavy a red with the food, but it worked nicely with the turkey.
I loved the salad and I loved the wine. To hell with guilty pleasures…this is a fine choice for a wine to enjoy. It was joyful and we can all use a bit of joy these days.
Quady Red Electra
So…a bit on the wine and the winery. We got this while visiting Quady North’s tasting room in Jacksonville, Oregon. We had spent the morning with Herb Quady out at his vineyards. Herb’s parents, Andrew and Laurel, started Quady in 1975 in a small town in the San Joaquin valley. His father Andrew found an unused patch of Orange Muscat and from there, Quady became a winery focused on expertise with the Muscat grape. In the ‘90’s they created the Electra Moscatos which they think of as picnic wines (that really puts it perfectly). They make these in the Moscato d’asti style.
Red Electra Moscato is made with Orange and Black Muscat. Black Muscat is actually pretty rare. All of their grapes are local. They ferment them low and slow. This wine would make a great sparkler or sangria, but it’s lovely on it’s own. On their site they say “Red Electra tastes like a bowl full of cherries”, they couldn’t be more right. They do say that it makes a great sorbet also! (I might need to find some more and try that!) In their tasting room they have an entire cocktail card with recipes and suggestions!
The beautiful label art is by Ardison Phillips.
And…on their site this wine will set you back a whole $14.99. They also sell this in a 4 pack of cans! Environmentally friendly and perfect for picnics or hikes!
They have a video on their Instagram page that gives you some details on this wine!
National Pet Day – spoiling the Loki
Lastly…this was #NationalPetDay, so we have to do a little celebration of Loki.
How was your day?
We hope that you have found a little joy in your day! Let us know how you made this #stayhome day bearable. Did you enjoy a great wine? Did you pamper your pet? Did you cook something spectacular? Or did you curl up with a simple comfort food? Let us know in the comments!
Robin Renken is a wine writer and Certified Specialist of Wine. She and her husband Michael travel to wine regions interviewing vineyard owners and winemakers and learning the stories behind the glass.
When not traveling they indulge in cooking and pairing wines with food at home in Las Vegas.
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