Belated Shrimp Update

Monday Stefania put up a note on Facebook that I was returning from Ranch 99 with head on shrimp. It took a few days but I have an update on the evening menu.

Stef prepared the shrimp. She prepared them New Orleans style. I'll leave it for her to comment on the recipe and technique.


I decided to make some red beans and rice to stick with the theme. It was kind of ironic as Stef had been doing laundry all day. Red beans and rice is traditionally served on Monday's in New Orleans. It was the day everyone did laundry and the dish was an easy all day recipe that could be prepared with little fuss while laundry was done.

I had to cheat a little and use precooked beans, but it still came out well. I got the task of picking out the wine. Not an easy task for these two dishes. Both are very spicy and full flavored. A rich Chardonnay tends to get overwhelmed by the spice, and I'd rather save most of our Rieslings for Hot Pot. Stef wanted a red anyway so I searched through the cellar. I thought a Pinot Noir would be too light bodied, and a Cab would be too dry, so I settled on Syrah and was after something fruity but not jammy with a good nose and refreshing acidity.

I poked around for a little while pulling out bottles: Lagier Meredith, Copain, a Cotie Rotie, then went 'duh'. There was a case of our 2006 Eaglepoint Ranch Syrah sitting on the floor waiting to go into our 'reserve'.


As I came back from taking the picture of the wine on the bar and the irony of the evening I snapped this picture:

This is a piece of art we purchased in Alexandria Virginia. It's woven metal, made from small strands of wire. I liked this right away and thought it would go well with our collection of metal sculptures and art. The artist was in the gallery that day and we chatted with her about the piece. Guess what? It's titled "Hits of the French Quarter". She was inspired by a trip to New Orleans to use the colors of Mardi Gras and the shapes of the iron work on balconies in the French Quarter.

We thought that was a pretty neat happenstance. As she set up shipping she asked what we did. "Grapegrower and Winemaker", and her reply was, "Me too". Her and her husband grow grapes for several wineries in Northern Virginia. Another irony.

The shrimp turned out great, the red beans and rice were spicy and good, and the wine went well. A nice evening at home.