Pair It Up! Wine & Rabbit

Like many food lovers, I am addicted to cookbooks. I can’t walk by the Cooking section at a bookstore without stopping to peruse. Which most certainly leads to a purchase. Despite the wide selection, there is one that I always go back to when I want to spend a few hours in the kitchen: Bones by Jennifer McLagan.

The book is all about cooking with the bones, may it be fish or meat. (Sorry vegetarian, this book might not be your favourite.) As a result, the recipes are extremely flavourful and it sometimes forces you to venture into cooking parts and types of the meat that you would not necessarily think of. I remember making dinner for 12 people one year on the 31st of December.  I spent an entire night making oxtail consommé. A long process that led to a concentrated delicious nectar.

Even though I have cooked numerous recipes in her book and never been disappointed, one of my all time favourites is the ‘Flemish-Style Rabbit’.  Rabbit was cooked regularly at my house when I grew up, especially for special occasions. But the recipes were more French influenced, often cooked with white wine. Here, the rabbit is cooked with prunes, bacon, beer and brandy. Naturally, it gives a sweeter taste to the rabbit.  I like to serve it with roasted parsnip.

When it comes to the wine selection, a fruit driven red will be your best friend. Grenache and Syrah work well, but my favourite pairing is Pinot Noir. Here are some of my favourites that you can buy on this site. Santé!

 

2012 Pinot Noir            2013 McLean Creek Road Pinot Noir            2010 Essence Pinot Noir          2012 Pinot Noir

Michelle Bouffard is a wine educator and journalist who splits her time between Montréal & Vancouver. She is the president of the BC Chapter of the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers. She Tweets @michellebwine and Instagrams @michellebouffard.