Hello,
Last night we had friends over, and finished a fairly plesant meal with a
frozen fennel mousse, the which I found in a French cook book. The procedure
is fairly convoluted and invvolves cooking fennels in a sugar syrup, then,
making an infusion of star anise, using that for making ANOTHER sugar syrup
which is heated to 118 centigrade, at which it starts to caramellise
slightly, then, pouring the hot syrup into egg yolk, whipping energetically.
The fennels are puréed, and it is all mixed with whipped cream and a glass
of pastis, and frozen. In Swedish, it would be called a parfait - it is
similar, when served, to an Italian semifreddo. In all, it has a clear
taste of fennel and anise, but also a bit of fudge. It is served with a
raspberry sauce.

I served this with Mas Amiel, a Maury, red and fortified to 16.5 % alc, but
the dessert and the wine only barely tolerated each other. Fennel, with its
notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner. Does anybody have a
suggestion?

Cheers

Nils

--
Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se

Nils Gustaf Lindgren wrote:
> Hello,
> Last night we had friends over, and finished a fairly plesant meal with a
> frozen fennel mousse, the which I found in a French cook book. The procedure
> is fairly convoluted and invvolves cooking fennels in a sugar syrup, then,
> making an infusion of star anise, using that for making ANOTHER sugar syrup
> which is heated to 118 centigrade, at which it starts to caramellise
> slightly, then, pouring the hot syrup into egg yolk, whipping energetically.
> The fennels are puréed, and it is all mixed with whipped cream and a glass
> of pastis, and frozen. In Swedish, it would be called a parfait - it is
> similar, when served, to an Italian semifreddo. In all, it has a clear
> taste of fennel and anise, but also a bit of fudge. It is served with a
> raspberry sauce.
>
> I served this with Mas Amiel, a Maury, red and fortified to 16.5 % alc, but
> the dessert and the wine only barely tolerated each other. Fennel, with its
> notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner. Does anybody have a
> suggestion?

Coffee?? That's actually a half-serious suggestion, Nils, as I see it as
a very difficult pairing with wine. The licorice flavor of fennel is
quite powerful (not ton mention the star anise), so only fairly
non-aromatic wines would do, and they'd have to have high acidity and
residual sugar IMO. How about a sweet Chenin from the Loire or a sweet
Pinot Gris from Alsace, the more powerful the better. Perhaps a use for
those Z-H wines you've been waiting for the proper moment to serve? ;-)

Mark Lipton
--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

"Nils Gustaf Lindgren" > skrev i melding
...
> ... Fennel, with its notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner.
> Does anybody have a suggestion?
>
Ouzo? Yes, think about it!?

:-) Anders

--
Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se
"Mark Lipton" > skrev i meddelandet
...
> Nils Gustaf Lindgren wrote:

> How about a sweet Chenin from the Loire or a sweet
> Pinot Gris from Alsace, the more powerful the better.

Yes, you may have a very good point. Particularly the CB. Friday, we had a
Loire tasting at the Tastevins - one Pouilly-Fumée, two Chenin Blanc from
Savenniere (one a Nicolas Joli, Le Vieux Clos, at SEK 215 it was simply too
good to be true), and I noticed, which I haven't previously, a liquorice
note in the aftertaste of both CB - could be worth exploring. Hmmmm ....


> Perhaps a use for
> those Z-H wines you've been waiting for the proper moment to serve? ;-)
In my dreams do I have Z-H in my cellar. In my bloody dreams, Mark. In
contradistinction to some regulars here, whose opinions I value and respect,
I am a great fan of Zind Humbrecht. Too bad I cannot afford them ... <deep
sigh>

Cheers and thanks

Nils

"Anders Tørneskog" > skrev i meddelandet
...
>
> "Nils Gustaf Lindgren" > skrev i melding
> ...
>> ... Fennel, with its notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner.
>> Does anybody have a suggestion?
>>
> Ouzo? Yes, think about it!?

Sorry, no - I do not drink strong alcohol, except with herring.
And I very rarely eat herring.

Good shot, though - keep 'em coming

Cheers

Nils

--
Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se

On Sep 23, 6:17 am, "Nils Gustaf Lindgren"
> wrote:
> Hello,
> Last night we had friends over, and finished a fairly plesant meal with a
> frozen fennel mousse, the which I found in a French cook book. The procedure
> is fairly convoluted and invvolves cooking fennels in a sugar syrup, then,
> making an infusion of star anise, using that for making ANOTHER sugar syrup
> which is heated to 118 centigrade, at which it starts to caramellise
> slightly, then, pouring the hot syrup into egg yolk, whipping energetically.
> The fennels are puréed, and it is all mixed with whipped cream and a glass
> of pastis, and frozen. In Swedish, it would be called a parfait - it is
> similar, when served, to an Italian semifreddo. In all, it has a clear
> taste of fennel and anise, but also a bit of fudge. It is served with a
> raspberry sauce.
>
> I served this with Mas Amiel, a Maury, red and fortified to 16.5 % alc, but
> the dessert and the wine only barely tolerated each other. Fennel, with its
> notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner. Does anybody have a
> suggestion?

Not having tasted your fennel mousse, it is a bit difficult for me to
guess what I would consider a good match, which might or might not be
what you consider a good match. If I had time to experiment with
matches, here are some wines I might try. Vintage or a good reserve
Madeira. These come from bone dry to extremely sweet, so you likely
could find the sweetness level you want. A good Maderia, even a very
sweet one, has plenty of acidity. It also has a very intense taste and
bouquet that should hold up to a fairly intense anise-like taste. A
sweet wine from the muscat family also might work, although some of
these do not have nearly as much acidity as Madeira. Southern Italy is
full of such Muscat wines. Also Moscal de Setubal from Portugal might
be interesting to try. Ones with stated age such as 25 years old or
vintage examples have much more character than the basic versions that
often can be rather bland.Fonseca seem to be the Brand most often
found in the US.

"Nils Gustaf Lindgren" > skrev i melding
...
>
> Sorry, no - I do not drink strong alcohol, except with herring.
> And I very rarely eat herring.
>
But ouzo is not drunk like aquavit..., you mix it with water, you know.
Rather refreshing, actually, when in Greece :-)
On second thoughts, I doubt the feasibility too, but one might give it a
shot... :-)

Hmmm... tasting in mind... Verdicchio? You spezialize in Italians and (F-),
don't you?

:-) Anders

"Anders Tørneskog" > skrev i meddelandet
...
>
> "Nils Gustaf Lindgren" > skrev i melding
> ...
>>
>> Sorry, no - I do not drink strong alcohol, except with herring.
>> And I very rarely eat herring.
>>
> But ouzo is not drunk like aquavit..., you mix it with water, you know.
> Rather refreshing, actually, when in Greece :-)
> On second thoughts, I doubt the feasibility too, but one might give it a
> shot... :-)
>
> Hmmm... tasting in mind... Verdicchio? You spezialize in Italians and
> (F-), don't you?


Well, yes, I tend towards Francophilia. Italy, yes, I think ... I like. Not
really a specialist, and Verdicchio, no, not really. Some are pleasant
enough but so often there is something I like better when I want a light dry
white. Haven't visited those parts of Italy and cannot see it happen in the
foreseeable future, so, can't help you, sorry, no ...

Cheers

Nils

--
Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se

.... et la recette, Nils ; nous l'aimerons. ; -)

DMM

"Nils Gustaf Lindgren" > wrote in message
...
> Hello,
> Last night we had friends over, and finished a fairly plesant meal with a
> frozen fennel mousse, the which I found in a French cook book. The
> procedure is fairly convoluted and invvolves cooking fennels in a sugar
> syrup, then, making an infusion of star anise, using that for making
> ANOTHER sugar syrup which is heated to 118 centigrade, at which it starts
> to caramellise slightly, then, pouring the hot syrup into egg yolk,
> whipping energetically. The fennels are puréed, and it is all mixed with
> whipped cream and a glass of pastis, and frozen. In Swedish, it would be
> called a parfait - it is similar, when served, to an Italian semifreddo.
> In all, it has a clear taste of fennel and anise, but also a bit of
> fudge. It is served with a raspberry sauce.
>
> I served this with Mas Amiel, a Maury, red and fortified to 16.5 % alc,
> but the dessert and the wine only barely tolerated each other. Fennel,
> with its notes of liquorice, is not an ideal wine partner. Does anybody
> have a suggestion?
>
> Cheers
>
> Nils
>
> --
> Respond to nils dot lindgren at drchips dot se
>