I’ve never been one to abide by conventional wine dictums – those inelastic rules created more than a century ago by a bevy of rich old men smoking pipes in their exclusive ‘members only’ clubs as if these principles were etched in stone by Bacchus and presented to them. The first commandment was probably: “Thou shalt only consume meat with red wine and fish with white.” I’ve happily broken that particular wine “commandment” on many occasions. But until this time, I don’t think I’ve ever recommended a wine pairing with a food so regularly consumed in our state.
Here in West Virginia, a good argument could be made that the state food is that multi-faceted tube steak more commonly known as the hotdog. I’ve heard it said that a West Virginia seven course gourmet meal is a six pack of beer and a hotdog. But I’m sure there are any number of wine lovers out there who would be chagrined at the thought of paring that humble sausage with wine. Not me. We’ve already got just about every category of animal, vegetable, mineral, floral and avian species awarded a designation as the “state” (you fill in the blank). And I would guess there is no more food annually ingested per capita in the mountain state than the humble, but ubiquitous, hot dog.
Give
These
wines
a
try
with
your
next
WV
Hotdog
And
the
hotdog
enjoys
national
and
even
international
popularity
in
its
various
iterations.
For
example,
in
the
U.S.,
the
folks
in
Chicago
top
the
dog
with
mounds
of
things
such
as
giardiniera
featuring
whole
florets
of
cauliflower,
red
bell
peppers,
carrot
slices
and
celery
all
finely
chopped
into
a
coarse
relish
for
easy
spreading.
In
New
York
City,
the
Coney
Island
hot
dog
is
simply
topped
with
sauerkraut
and
spicy
mustard.
In West Virginia, the main types of dogs generally fall into two categories: the northern ones which are topped with spicy chili, yellow mustard, onions and sometimes doused with chili flakes; and the southern hotdog where it is mounded with chili, coleslaw (sometimes yellow), onions and mustard. Coming from Clarksburg, I’m pretty much dedicated to the northern-style dog. While arguments about the best hot dog between both groups can get heated sometimes, the disputes are usually moderated by ample cooling beverages – mostly beer. Well today, I’m going to give you some vinous options to pair with the above-mentioned West Virginia hotdogs.
For
the
dogs
prepared
from
my
neck
of
the
woods
in
the
north,
I
recommend
medium
bodied
red
wines
like
zinfandel
and
sangiovese
and
fuller
flavored
whites
like
pinot
gris.
Try
Easton
Zinfandel
from
Amador
County
in
California,
Renieri
Rosso
Di
Montalcino
from
Tuscany
and
the
Elk
Cove
Willamette
Valley
Oregon
Pinot
Gris.
With
southern
West
Virginia
hotdogs,
go
with
a
full-
bodied
and
dry
rose’
such
as
the
Bernard
Griffith
Rose
of
Sangiovese
from
Washington
State,
the
medium
bodied
and
fruit
forward
cabernet
franc,
Messanges
Rouge
Chinon,
from
the
Loire
Valley
of
France
or
the
Murphy-Goode
Red
Blend
from
California.
So, in these (hot)dog days of summer, forget about those conventional wine tropes and wash down the West Virginia state food with a truly counterintuitive beverage – wine!
John Brown is also a novelist. His latest book – Augie’s Wine –is now available to order online or at his website wordsbyjohnbrown.com. His first two books– Augie’s War and Augie’s World – are also available online and at bookstores around the state. The novels are also available as audiobooks. You can find out more about his novels, and review all his archived Vines & Vittles columns at wordsbyjohnbrown.com