Wine Pairings & Arugula Pizza

Thank you to the representatives of Bodegas Beronia for sponsoring this post.

Last month, Living the Gourmet was contacted by representatives of Bodegas Beronia, asking if we would sample their wine and relay our thoughts. A prominent Spanish wine, whose vintages regularly place within the top ten age-worthy Riojas in the Rioja Alta region, I was already familiar with their bottles, and happily agreed to see what they had to offer us.

About a week later, a bottle of Reserva 2008 D.O. Ca Rioja arrived on our doorstep. With a nose dominated by mature fruit over a spicy base, alongside subtle combinations of chocolate and cinnamon, this wine is instantly modern while retaining all of the qualities that introduce it as a quintessential Rioja. As such, I must agree with the winemakers that this is a perfect bottle for game or red meat.

That same day we also received a bottle of Avignonesi Desiderio, a Tuscan Italian wine from the Paggino vineyard of the La Selva Estate. Rife with forest fruits such as blueberry and raspberry, the Desiderio is described as ‘full of character’ by its winemakers. Soft but full-bodied, the wine features rich acidity, and an intense, deep red color.

The Desiderio, like the Beronia Reserva, I knew would pair excellently with red meat, or pasta and marinara. However, as I thought about how to serve the wines, I decided that I wanted to serve them together despite their subtle but very noticeable differences. That meant I would need to create a dish that both the Desiderio and the Reserve paired equally well with, and that enhanced certain key qualities of both wines without clashing in any way with either of them. One very versatile dish instantly came to mind. Pizza.

From scratch, I prepared two pizza doughs, and then topped them with arugula, fresh tomatoes and capers. The arugula would lend bitter rustic notes into the mix, providing the pizzas with a sturdy quality that would play to the full-bodied texture of the Desid erio, while the capers and tomatoes would highlight the mature fruit flavors of the Reserva.

In the end, the pairing was more than a success, it was simply exquisite, and I was intensely pleased by both wines, and would readily recommend them to my readers.

Wine Pairings & Arugula Pizza

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• Author: Living the Gourmet
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 40 minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Category: Pizza

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 Seasoned Pizza Dough {the recipe for this dough makes two 10″ pies}

For the Topping:

• 3 – 4 fresh tomatoes – diced
• 3 cloves of garlic – crushed and chopped
• 1/2 cup of freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
• 1 tbs. capers – chopped
• 2 handfuls of fresh arugula – approximately 2 cups
• 1/4 – 1/2 red onion – sliced thin
• 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella – grated
• 3 tbs. olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat Oven 400 degrees F.
2. Combine the tomato, garlic, Parmesan cheese, capers, arugula, red onion and olive oil in a bowl and toss.
3. Top each pizza evenly with the tomato mixture and finally with the grated mozzarella.
4. Bake 15 – 20 minutes or until the pizza reaches a golden color.

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Enjoy with Love,
Catherine
xo

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