Crab & Avocado Salad and New Zealand
The two crabs we shared on Open That Bottle Night had me wanting more… So last week I picked up a small container of lump crabmeat along with other items for my new favorite salad. For the dressing, squeeze 1/8 of a grapefruit into a bowl. Add a splash of white vinegar and a splash of white wine (sparkling if you have it): this time I used the Clos LaChance Rose’. Whisk with salt and pepper–I also chose to add a bit of minced garlic–then stream in olive oil until the dressing is emulsified. Then mix the greens and add sliced avocado, small pieces of grapefruit, and the lump crabmeat, with crumbles of goat cheese on the periphery. I drank the same wine with the salad that was in the dressing, but secretly I was wishing for Sauvignon Blanc.
Therefore, the next night I had the same salad. Only this time I paired it with a 2006 Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough. I love New Zealand for its SB: acidic, grassy, and tons of fruit. And this one did not disappoint. Aromas of citrus and grass welcomed me into flavors of grapefruit and passion fruit. A perfect wine for my salad, seamlessly matching the sharpness of some ingredients and subtly contrasting the creaminess of others.
A culinary coup.
2006 Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc pairing, grapefruit vinaigrette, crab and avocado salad
….Farley Walker
March 5th, 2007 at 11:40 am
Fabulous salad, Farley. I will definitely be making that. And I love the Nobilo, too. Sounds like an ideal pairing.
May 3rd, 2007 at 1:04 pm
[...] This is the first white of his that I’ve tried. Having really enjoyed the reds, I was expecting good things. The only disappointment was not for what the wine was but what it wasn’t–my idea of a typical Sauvignon Blanc. And the only problem with that was that I was drinking it with my yummy crab and avocado salad with grapefruit vinaigrette. While there was no grapefruit in the wine, it had lemon, faint floral notes, and even a bit of white pepper. The acidity was not overwhelming, as it had a nice roundness to it. When I had it later with basil pesto, the pairing was much better. The wine worked nicely to soften the sharpness of the garlic. [...]