• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Living The Gourmet logo

  • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Featured
    • Writings
  • Recipes
  • Wines
  • Interviews
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

Mediterranean Falafel & Summer Wine Selections

Jul 11, 2018 · 6 Comments

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

This post is in sponsorship with the Royal Wine Corp. All opinions expressed are my own. The follow message is intended for those 21+. Please enjoy responsibly.

Recently for a summer appetizer party, I served Mediterranean Falafel alongside some delicious wine pairings. It’s a perfect spread to keep things easy and fresh this season!

This past April, I was contacted by the representatives of Barons Edmund de Rothschild and Teal Lake wineries, asking if I would be interested in sampling a bottle from the winery for the summer. Naturally, I agreed, and shortly thereafter I received both of today’s wines – a 2014 Haut-Médoc from Barons Edmund de Rothschild, and a 2017 Sauvignon Blanc from Teal Lake.

However, as fate would have it – ‘fate’ in this case being my overcrowded cellar – both bottles would ‘disappear’ from view until about a week ago. It was something of a ‘gourmet accident,’ however since now I am ‘actually’ getting to sample the wines within the frame of long balmy days as opposed to simply inferring how they would pair with the season.

That said, with a nice ninety-degree day here in my corner of New York, along with a few key pairings, let’s see whether or not these wines actually make for pleasant summer drinking.

All things red being first, we start with the Haut-Médoc. For the uninitiated, Haut-Médoc is an AOC within the Bordeaux wine region, not to be confused with the larger and more widely known Médoc AOC, with around half of its cultivation being devoted to cabernet sauvignon, with the next largest cultivation being Merlot. A number of other varietals are permitted within the region, such as Malbec and Cabernet Franc, but a ‘classic’ Haut-Médoc wine is generally a cabernet-merlot blend.

Today’s merlot-dominated blend greets with dark berry aromatics veiled over smokery essences, which intensify deeper into the glass until mellowing into fresh tobacco towards the bottom of the glass. On sampling, the wine features velvety tannins carrying assorted ripe black fruit flavors, especially sliced blackberry. In the background, the smoky notes from the aromatics are vague but ever-present.

On paring, think roast duck, grilled vegetables, and barbequed meats. If you’re looking to pair this seasonally, this is best served with the main course off the barbeque. On a side note, this wine would likely benefit powerfully from a year or two of cellaring.

Next up, the Teal Lake. The wine greets with a by-the-book sauvignon blanc hue and coloration, with a very subtle aromatic profile of fresh summer flowers and cut grass, with vague hints of sliced tropic fruit in the background. On the palate, the wine features a tropic fruit profile carried on a pronounced acidity, which creates a very refreshing mouthfeel.

For paring, think fresh fruit platters, light, crisp seasonal salads, or light white bodied fish either braised or grilled in herbs and olive oil. In other words, this wine will pair excellently with all of the quintessential summer favorites that aren’t heavily barbequed or blackened.

Recently, I hosted a small but elegant summer appetizer party where I chose to keep the meal light by serving only horderves. The star of the show was my Mediterranean Falafel served alongside a refreshing tzatziki sauce.

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon

Mediterranean Falafel & Summer Wine Selections


  • Author: Living the Gourmet
  • Total Time: 20 minutes
Print Recipe
Pin Recipe

Ingredients

Scale
  • 29 oz. can of chick peas – drained and pat dry
  • 4 – 6 cloves of garlic
  • ¼ cup of fresh Italian parsley – stems removed
  • 6 – 8 fresh basil leaves
  • 2 tsp. capers
  • 4 tbs. – Fresh Romano cheese grated
  • 6 tbs. of flour
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. black pepper
  • ½ tsp. red pepper flakes
  • Canola oil – for frying

Instructions

  1. Combine all of the above ingredients in a food processor and process to a creamy paste.
  2. Form into desired size balls.
  3. Heat a large cast-iron frying pan with ½ to ¾ inch canola oil.
  4. Carefully place the falafel balls into the oil and fry until a beautiful golden color forms on all sides.
  5. Place on a plate prepared with paper towels.
  6. Serve with a tzatziki sauce or sour cream.
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 4-6

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @LivingtheGourmet on Instagram and hashtag it #LTGfood

Recipe Card powered byTasty Recipes

With all of that being said, I was very pleased with both wines, and can easily recommend either of them to my readers looking for pleasant summer drinking to pair with their favorite seasonal recipes.

Enjoy with Love!

More from my site

  • Fried Zucchini Blossoms and Lasorda WinesFried Zucchini Blossoms and Lasorda Wines
  • Grilled Shrimp Kabobs with Fresh Tzatziki SauceGrilled Shrimp Kabobs with Fresh Tzatziki Sauce
  • Mediterranean Caponata featuring Macari VineyardsMediterranean Caponata featuring Macari Vineyards
  • Summer’s Wine SelectionSummer’s Wine Selection
  • Spring Celebrations with Yarden WinerySpring Celebrations with Yarden Winery
  • Crab Cakes, Crostini, and Torresella ProseccoCrab Cakes, Crostini, and Torresella Prosecco
1

Wine Reviews appetizer, falafel, royal wine corp, side dish, wine, wine pairing, wine review

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. [email protected]'s Recipes says

    12/07/2018 at 4:09 am

    Falafel is definitely on the top of my favoruites. And mediterranean flavour is the best!

    Reply
  2. Christine says

    13/07/2018 at 3:03 pm

    Love these suggestions! And that mediterranean falafel looks AMAZING. My husband would absolutely love it!

    Reply
  3. David and Laurie Myers says

    13/07/2018 at 4:16 pm

    Catherine, Your falafel balls with tzatziki sauce are right up my alley! Like falafel served like this and love tzatziki especially if its “garlicky” enough. Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

    Reply
  4. DAVID J MYERS says

    13/07/2018 at 4:20 pm

    Catherine, Love falafel served like this with tzatziki. Also…the more garlic the better! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

    Reply
  5. Alexis says

    13/07/2018 at 4:27 pm

    Ooh, the wine sounds amazing. The pairing with felafel looks perfect. I’ll definitely be trying both. Thank you.

    Reply
  6. Claudia says

    13/07/2018 at 7:48 pm

    Now this is unique to me and I have never tried it. Guess its about time and it sure looks great paring with this fine wine selection!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Welcome to LTG

The heart of our home lies within the kitchen. For us, it is so much more than a place where meals are created; it is where memories are made over meals that are meant to be shared. It was from this belief that Living the Gourmet was born. Read More...

Looking for Something?

Subscribe to the LTG Newsletter

Find Your Influence

Copyright © 2022 · Cravings Pro

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

Living The Gourmet
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.