A great threesome

Pairing wine with food is more art than science, and the Kadoya Gallery knows this viscerally.

Housed in the historic Tutt Building in downtown Pueblo, it was built in 1890 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Every month a new show comes to the Gallery which is crafted by the Gallery’s chief storyteller and owner, Gregory Howell, along with a team of art curators who consider not only the masterworks to hang and display in the various galleries, but also what type of reception will be required to enhance the visitor’s experience.

From the outset, Kadoya Gallery considered the intersection of wine, food and art to be at the core of balancing mind, body and spirit.

Wine and food matching is the process of pairing food dishes with wine to enhance the dining experience – an age-old hospitality tradition. But the modern “art” of food pairings is a relatively recent phenomenon which opens up a whole new world of presenting wine with food.

If this isn’t yet computing, read on.

The current exhibitions featured at Kadoya Gallery through May 16 include digital paintings by Nicki Hart and watercolors from the Signature Members of the Southern Colorado Watercolor Society. The Gallery and chef/caterer extraordinaire Ernie Duncan (formerly of Restaurant 1521) decided for this show to offer a simple and savory Apricot Curry Cheese Spread with a presentation of crackers and round off the evening tasting experience with bittersweet chocolates.

The Gallery also decided to push the culinary production limits and print the digital artwork and the watercolors on both white and dark chocolates infused with walnuts and cranberries. The chocolates were staged on narrow sheets of glass and placed on top of black tablecloths. The chocolates appeared as if they were mini canvases featuring the work of the artists.

Then came finding the right wines. When pairing wines with chocolate, a good bet is to match lighter, more elegant flavored chocolates with lighter-bodied wines; likewise, the stronger the chocolate, the more full-bodied the wine should be. A bittersweet chocolate tends to pair well with an intense, California Zinfandel. and for this reason the Gallery selected Joel Gott.

The 2011 Joel Gott Zinfandel has aromas of raspberries, blackberries and blueberry jam. Dense and rich on the front of the palate with bright acidity on the mid-palate, and a long finish. For the Apricot Curry Cheese Spread a Glen Ellen Reserve Concannon Chardonnay wine was selected as the ideal mate with its rich, cream flavors of pear, butterscotch and overall clean finish. This wine is also of considerable value so when entertaining the masses a smart beverage choice for a budget.

The art of pairing Kadoya Gallery with great wines and victuals, all while showcasing great art, elevates Pueblo, Colo’s art scene to a whole new level.

Visit Kadoya Gallery at http://www.kadoyagallery.com/. Email the Gallery at [email protected]

One Winning Wine Tasting

Actually, there are a number of places and ways to sample favorite wines.

At al Lado, Latin Wine Flights just launched and includes three, 3 oz pours for $14. Choose red or white and choose your country: Argentina, Spain or Chile. The server will bring a card with a map of the country and set down the 3 oz pours with one glass. A very cool way to combine education and experience and really see what al Lado is all about.

al Lado is celebrating Rose’ month all through May and has created a special Rose’ Wine Locker. For $100, the wine-loving mom can enjoy her three personal bottles at al Lado for up to three months. The May lockers include these bottles:

Alma Negra ‘Brut Rose’ Mendoza Argentina – 100 percent Malbec

Muga, Rioja, Spain 2012

Chateau Pradeaux, Bandol, France 2012

Wine lockers can be purchased online at http://richardsandoval.com/allado/store.php by stopping in or calling al Lado at 303.572.3000.

And Sundays are always 50% off bottles of wine at al Lado.

Weird Wine Trivia

• Archeological evidence suggest that the earliest evidence of wine fermentation was in Georgia and Iran, though certain investigations believed that the Chinese were fermenting rice wine in 7000BC, proving once again that those clever Chinese are always one step ahead.

• Also, wine is one of the few beverages that can be sold by the box or bag. Really? Drinking out of a bag?