Having Copper River Salmon

[Bi!!]

I picked up some Copper River Salmon for dinner and I'm mulling over
the pairing possibilities. Sparkling Rose comes to mind as does
Oregon Pinot Noir.

[Joseph Coulter]

Always a little tough, Copper River Salmon is good (we had our first of
the year last week) but pairings can be tricky. My wife insists on white
so I tend to go with Pinot Gris or unoaked Chards though a lighter
styled PN always intrigues me.

--
Joseph Coulter
lastnam...@gmail.com

[st.helier]

"Joseph Coulter" wrote .......

>> I picked up some Copper River Salmon for dinner and I'm mulling over the
>> pairing possibilities. Sparkling Rose comes to mind as does Oregon Pinot
>> Noir.
>
> Always a little tough, Copper River Salmon is good (we had our first of
> the year last week) but pairings can be tricky. My wife insists on white
> so I tend to go with Pinot Gris or unoaked Chards though a lighter styled
> PN always intrigues me.

Just last night, we enjoyed salmon (pan fried sans oil for crispy skin).

While I prefer wild salmon caught in the South Island in February
(introduced to New Zealand in 1901 Quinnat salmon (chinook / king salmon)
and are now found in most larger rivers of the east coast of the South
Island), this was sea farmed King Salmon from Marlborough.

While the other diners were hesitant at first, I insisted on a light Pinot
Noir - the match was perfect.

I'd opt for the red.

st.helier

[Mark Lipton]

How are you preparing it, Bill? Are you grilling/smoking it? If so, a
higher acidity Pinot would work fine, as would a good rosé (Ian Hoare
and I had a fantastic rosé/grilled salmon pairing in New Zealand last
year). If you're baking, broiling or poaching it, I'd opt for a richer
white wine: Chardonnay (not Chablis, though), Chenin Blanc, Riesling or
a bigger Grüner Veltliner (Pinot Gris would work, too, though I am not a
big fan of the grape).

Mark Lipton

[Bi!!]

I simply grilled the Salmon. Copper River Salmon has a ton of natural
fat so I opened a bottle of 2007 Ramey Hyde Chardonnay and a bottle of
2009 Dom. Serene Yamhill Oregon Pinot Noir. I prefered the
Chardonnay although both worked well. The natural acidity and deep
citrus flavors of the Ramey was a better match for me. Thanks for the
suggestions. The Salmon was delicious.

[Mark Lipton]

On 6/5/13 12:01 PM, Bi!! wrote:

> I simply grilled the Salmon. Copper River Salmon has a ton of natural
> fat so I opened a bottle of 2007 Ramey Hyde Chardonnay and a bottle of
> 2009 Dom. Serene Yamhill Oregon Pinot Noir. I prefered the
> Chardonnay although both worked well. The natural acidity and deep
> citrus flavors of the Ramey was a better match for me. Thanks for the
> suggestions. The Salmon was delicious.
>

As I've stated here in the past, I'm not particularly a fan of Pinot
Noir and salmon, so I'm with you on the Chardonnay. Does the Ramey
Chardonnay show much oak? I haven't had many California Chardonnays in
recent years.

Mark Lipton

--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.cwdjr.net

[Bi!!]

Very little new oak just subtle hints Mark. I have been a fan of
David Ramey's wines for a long time and I think he might be making
some of the best Chardonnay in California today. He spent a fair
amount of time training in Burgundy and his wines are reflective of
that.

[Mark Lipton]

Bi!! wrote:

> Very little new oak just subtle hints Mark. I have been a fan of
> David Ramey's wines for a long time and I think he might be making
> some of the best Chardonnay in California today. He spent a fair
> amount of time training in Burgundy and his wines are reflective of
> that.

Thanks, Bill. Speaking of salmon and white wine, I did a gentle smoke
of a wild-caught sockeye fillet tonight and opened a bottle of the 2011
Navarro Pinot Blanc with it, a fantastic combination as it happened.

Mark Lipton

[Bi!!]

Funny I just recieved a "care" package from my SIL who is an attorney
in Santa Rosa working for a firm that represents winey clients in Napa/
Sonoma that had a bottle of the 2012 Navarro Pinot Blanc. Wasn't sure
what to expect as I haven't had a bottle of Navarro.

[Mark Lipton]

On 6/6/13 10:56 AM, Bi!! wrote:

>
> Funny I just recieved a "care" package from my SIL who is an attorney
> in Santa Rosa working for a firm that represents winey clients in Napa/
> Sonoma that had a bottle of the 2012 Navarro Pinot Blanc. Wasn't sure
> what to expect as I haven't had a bottle of Navarro.
>

Lucky you! Yes, it was the '12. I think that Navarro is doing great
things with white wines up in the Anderson Valley, but I'll be
interested to hear what you think.

[Bi!!]

I'm drinking it this weekend with fresh pea and shrimp risotto. I
will report back.

[DaleW]

On Tuesday, June 4, 2013 11:24:00 PM UTC-4, Mark Lipton wrote:
> Bi!! wrote:
>
> > I picked up some Copper River Salmon for dinner and I'm mulling over
> > the pairing possibilities. Sparkling Rose comes to mind as does
> > Oregon Pinot Noir.
>
>
>

> How are you preparing it, Bill? Are you grilling/smoking it? If so, a > higher acidity Pinot would work fine, as would a good ros� (Ian Hoare
> and I had a fantastic ros�/grilled salmon pairing in New Zealand last

> year). If you're baking, broiling or poaching it, I'd opt for a richer
white wine

That's usually my plan- if grilled I drink Pinot Noir or Gamay (or rose if hot out). But if no Maillard reaction (warm poached salmon) then big white for me. But best solution is of course Bi!!'s- one of each!

[lleichtman]

We always go with one of each. All Oregon Pinots are different as well depending on the district. I think Domaine Serene is Dundee Hills which is a much denser Pinot. I like Amity AVA with Salmon.

[Bi!!]

On Jun 6, 2:04 pm, lleichtman <larryleicht...@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Thursday, June 6, 2013 11:06:34 AM UTC-6, DaleW wrote:
> > On Tuesday, June 4, 2013 11:24:00 PM UTC-4, Mark Lipton wrote:
>
> > > Bi!! wrote:
>
> > > > I picked up some Copper River Salmon for dinner and I'm mulling over
>
> > > > the pairing possibilities.  Sparkling Rose comes to mind as does
>
> > > > Oregon Pinot Noir.
>

> > > How are you preparing it, Bill?  Are you grilling/smoking it?  If so, a > higher acidity Pinot would work fine, as would a good ros (Ian Hoare
>
> > > and I had a fantastic ros /grilled salmon pairing in New Zealand last

>
> > > year).  If you're baking, broiling or poaching it, I'd opt for a richer
>
> >  white wine
>
> > That's usually my plan- if grilled I drink Pinot Noir or Gamay (or rose if hot out). But if no Maillard reaction (warm poached salmon) then big white for me. But best solution is of course Bi!!'s- one of each!
>
> We always go with one of each. All Oregon Pinots are different as well depending on the district. I think Domaine Serene is Dundee Hills which is a much denser Pinot. I like Amity AVA with Salmon.

It's funny how our senses get de-sensitized. I've been drinking a lot
of Central Coast and Sonoma Pinots recently (Roar, Failla, LWC,
Talbott) so the Serene seemed lean, mineral driven and slightly more
acidic and certainly "lighter" than the California version. I
actually chose the Domaine Serene because I felt that the higher
acidity would cut through the fatty aspect of the fish. To me, Cooper
River salmon is extremely fatty and rich and I thought California PN
would be too fruity and soft.

[lleichtman]

Well, we went with Bethel Heights Chardonnay and Cristom 2007 Pinot Noir. The chardonnay is crisp with apples and good acidity. The Pinot was just a marvelous example of Oregon Pinot Noir with slight sour cherries and cranberries with lots of acidity that cut through the fat. Maybe it's just hard to go wrong with Copper River Salmon. Grilled one whole fish for 6 people.

[Bi!!]

I really love Copper River Salmon. I no longer buy farm raised salmon
for a number of reasons.

[Mark Lipton]

On 6/10/13 3:06 PM, Bi!! wrote:

> I really love Copper River Salmon. I no longer buy farm raised salmon
> for a number of reasons.

I'm with you, Bill. I no longer buy Atlantic salmon because it's mostly
all farmed. There's nothing particularly unique about Copper River
salmon, however, beyond a really strong marketing campaign. It's a good
example of sockeye, but to my tastes King (Chinook) salmon, which has a
slightly earlier run in Alaska, is a superior fish (not that I'll turn
up my nose at Sockeye, mind you). Coho, which has the latest run, can
also be quite fine. To me, the major criterion is that it has to be
wild-caught, Pacific salmon. Wild-caught Scottish and Norwegian salmon
is available some places, too, but the price puts me off.

[Bi!!]

I've fished Alaska many times and have caught virtually every species
of salmon, trout and char. King is probably my favorite for grilling
etc. and typically sockeye is considered inferior but I will say,
marketing aside, the Copper River fish sockeye seem to have a bit more
fat and a smoother flavor than much of the sockeye that I've caught
elsewhere. I had it again last night with a bottle of 2010 LWC Santa
Lucia Pinot Noir and it was very tasty.