Oyster-Friendly Wines

Every year we celebrate the arrival of autumn with an Oyster Festival highlighting the diversity and versatility of this noblest of shellfish. Oysters are part and parcel of our very identity at Legal Sea Foods. From September 19 through October 16 all of our restaurants will therefore be offering special menu preparations, as well as a full complement of raw chilled oysters, that are sure to tantalize the palate of bivalve lovers.

There’s a natural affinity between oysters and wine that we will take the opportunity to present during the various festival events. Sip, Slurp and Sup (September 27 at the Park Square Wine Cellar) is always among the most popular of these experiences. This year we are highlighting three different wines from three different countries that share many characteristics that make them especially well suited for compatability with oysters: they’re fresh and zesty, with crisp acids and low alcohol, and none are aged in oak barrels.

The first is a classic Oyster accompaniment: Muscadet from France’s Loire Valley. This year’s entrant is the estate bottled Claude Branger “Le Fils des Gras Moutons” 2009, a bracing wine with tart citrus and slightly salty flavors that swept our recent blind tastings. Bottled directly from the yeast lees, the wine’s intensity and assertiveness provide a wonderful match for the silky smooth but sharply saline flavors of Cotuit Bay oysters, as well as echoing the seawater essences of Connecticut Bluepoints. This concentrated Muscadet is also great with intensely flavored, meaty Malpeques.

Our choice to accompany dishes like the creamy oyster stew is another blind tasting winner, a wine of rounder texture and perhaps gentler acids: the 2010 Raats Family “Original” Dry Chenin Blanc, from Coastal South Africa. This under-appreciated grape is planted extensively throughout the country where it thrives in the cooler maritime influenced regions. The Raats is light bodied and pear-scented with a delicate herb character and bright minerality that cuts through the rich texture of Kumamoto oysters.
 
Manawa Sauvignon Blanc 2010 from Marlborough, New Zealand, is a very special wine that we created with a renowned (but anonymous) producer to satisfy our need for a bone dry, fresh and well-structured example of this category. It’s our number one selection for complementing a plate of fried oysters: drinking a glass of the Manawa would be equivalent to squeezing a lemon (or actually a grapefruit!) over the dish. It’s also wonderful with baked oysters.

One of the other styles of wine that goes remarkably well with oysters is sparkling wine, in particular Brut Champagne. At our Bivalves and Bubbles event on October 15 we will feature eight different Oyster varieties with some delicious Champagnes. This gala will take place on the Legal Harborside roof deck in the Seaport District on Boston Harbor. The Champagnes we have chosen are unique and thrilling artisan wines crafted with great care and aged to maturity before release. The “Excellence” Brut NV from Gosset, which has been continuously making Champagne longer than any other producer, is crafted on a boutique level and is composed of  45% Pinot Noir; 36% Chardonnay and 19% Pinot Meunier. It has a relatively full creamy mouthfeel, and is scented with cherries and earth. Bone dry, the flavors tend toward caramel, and sweet baking spices. The second Champagne we’re featuring is a spectacular vintage wine, the 2000 Brut from Laurent-Perrier. This is a 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir sourced exclusively from Grand Cru villages. Aged for over five years on the yeast, it has a classic bread dough aroma, with delicate touch of hazelnut and some lemon and apple. It’s very fresh on the palate, with a lingering sensation of roasted nuts. Both of these Champagne houses are family owned. Impeccably balanced, these Champagnes will provide a thrilling, palate-cleansing counterpoint to the oysters on display.

The truth is that it’s not necessary to attend one of these special events to experience the grandeur of a well chosen wine with a plate of oysters. Take advantage of the opportunities to sample this great match during the four week long Festival at any of our restaurants and let me know if you’ve enjoyed the matches.

Sante!
Sandy Block, Master of Wine