Sparkle & Pop: Wine and Popcorn for no Particular Reason

Food and wine pairings are to me the equivalent playing darts blindfolded. Sure there are some basic rules, but everyone’s so into finding the “perfect pairing” that we can lose sight of the simple joy of food and wine together. Yes, I love a big-boy Chardonnay and popcorn with a dab of goat cheese, even York Peppermint Patties with Ketel One Vodka (which I wrote about for The Hollywood Reporter), but the bottom line is not the ideal pairing, but the sheer fun of food and wine together and the company we share it with.

So J Vineyards based in Headlsburg, and Seattle based KuKuRuZa Popcorn….and go!

The J Vineyards Cuvee 20 Brut ($38) is always a winner. I’ve had this sparkler many times and it never disappoints me. The Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier are all from Russian River Valley. Designed as a  non-vintage to initially celebrate their 20^th anniversary, it’s actually become something of a stalwart sparkler. The nose is all bright crisp green apple and citrus. The acidity and carbonation have always been mild, which I appreciate in a sparkling –aggressive carbonation is like fighting with your beverage, no thank you. There are plenty of fruit notes here, from guava to tangerine to lemon-lime, but beyond that, it’s simply pleasurable to drink. The Brown Butter and Sea Salt popcorn is just that, no real explanation necessary. The butteriness mutes some of the tropical fruit notes of the wine, subduing them so that are compliment each other. And yes, this popcorn is exceptional all by its lonesome.

The 2015 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($40) utilizes 10 different Pinot clones including one of my personal favorites, Swan. If you care about soil types, it sounds more like a law firm: Goldridge, Arbuckle and Zamora, but these represent 5 different estate vineyards. This is the kind of Pinot that non Pinot drinkers (aka, my wife) might like as it doesn’t exhibit cola flavors, has a food-friendly acidity, is smooth and drinks more seamlessly that other Pinots – less fussy and taste specific and is more generous with its dimension of fruit. There is red raspberry, pomegranate, boysenberry jam and pepper spice, all wrapped up in a silky texture. The Tuxedo popcorn is all chocolate, brown sugar and white chocolate and sea salt but nicely balanced and not overwhelming (well, perhaps a wee bit too much chocolate for me but I guess I’m abnormal). So…chocolate and Pinot, huh? Actually here, yes it works. More often than not red wines and sugar together come off as astringent and non-complimentary, kind of like Nancy and Tonya – if you don’t get that reference go see the movie I, Tonya). But weirdly the sugared nature of this addictive popcorn subdues both the fruit of the wine and the chocolate of the popcorn.

So there you have it. Wine and popcorn. For no other reason than…why not?