On the fifth day of Croatian Vino, I was in for a surprise. I was at another Christmas party, this one happened to be all comprised of Americans. Among this crew were a few of the A-Teamers, if you remember Kim and Christine. Among this group of 15 we definitely had a mixed crowd of drinkers, not all wine aficionados by any means, but they were all game.
Korta Katarina Plavac Mali
After a fabulous meal of Caesar salad prepared by yours truly and Christine’s amazing lasagna, we cracked open the wine that I brought, which of course I previously cleared with the hostess. It was the Korta Katarina Plavac Mali 2007, from the Peljesac peninsula on Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast. Widely regarded as one of Croatia’s finer, more prestigious wines, we were about to get some feedback.
The bottle went around the table after dinner. Some wine-murmurs started bubbling to the surface. I myself noticed something wasn’t right- the wine clashed with the meal we had just eaten. The wine itself was sound, the problem was that the strong flavors from dinner were still prevalent on our palates. We had Caesar salad, which was fabulous but wicked garlicky, and lasagna, which was all meat, cheese and more garlic. I knew it when I tasted it, these were not the flavors I wanted dancing on my palate as we embarked on this style of wine.
As the bottle went around and the comments started flowing, some others found this to be the case as well. This wine, which I have presented in the past to remarkable reviews, was getting mixed reviews here. All of the pretty fruit and floral aromas that make Plavac Mali such a special wine were being sabotaged here, victims to our strongly-flavored dinner. Also, because I brought only one bottle, there wasn’t a chance for people to try it over the course of several sips, thus cleansing their palates with the wine and transitioning to these new flavors. Comments ranged from “it’s good red wine” and “smooth, with hardly any bite” to “it tastes like seafood, maybe walleye.” Huh?!? Can’t say I agree with that one.
The case in point is that there really is some magic to pairing food and wine. And those who didn’t like this wine at this tasting would likely swoon over it in another setting, with another meal or maybe just on its own.
When I’ve tasted this wine on its own, I found this wine to have all the seduction you’d expect from a big, lush Plavac, with really pretty floral notes backed by amarena cherry, blackberry and blueberry notes. I find some Plavac Malis to be totally in your face, but Korta Katarina’s got it all under control, and the wine is smooth with broad, velvety tannins. For me, it’s a bigger wine than I usually drink, but fans of this super-lush style of wine will be very pleasantly rewarded with a bottle of this wine.
Full disclosure: I ripped off this picture from someone else’s blog, called “Wine Words and Videotape.” Sounds a little naughty, right?
Hilarious sidenote: Later on we had fun with a gift exchange of all types of gifts, and “Tastes like Walleye” opened a very special imported cheetah-print Snuggie. For those who don’t know, this is an all-inclusive blanket/sleeping bag/fashion item for those who take maxing and relaxing on their Lazy Boy to a hole. nother. level. (HNL). It was stolen by another friend who is shown here modeling it and kindly stole it for good, as his wife is about to have surgery. I’m sure she’s grateful.
Christmas loot galore!
BRAVA WINE COMPANY 
Interesting and so true April! Wine and food matching can work for or against you and the wine can’t it? We tend to choose our wine, and then match the food to it these days! (PS Katarina with 2 “A”s, well 3 if you count the last one…!).