Town + Country Cedar Homes and Wine?
If we grew grapes and made wine…
It is laborious, cold, wet, time-consuming, and meticulous. It involves teams of dedicated professionals and tons of moving parts. It’s not as easy as some would be led to believe. Now, this may sound like we are talking about building our over-the-top custom log or timber homes, but this time we are talking about wine making and specifically wine making in Michigan. Yes, we are not the only artisans in the neighborhood…and it is their time of the year to celebrate — HARVEST. And we love celebrating with them!
Harvest for Michigan wine grapes begins at the end of August in Southwest Michigan and may extend into November for late-ripening varieties in the northwest. And with five American Viticultural Areas (AVA) and more than 140 commercial wineries here, you can find everything from robust reds to wintery ice wines. We tend to gravitate toward those robust reds and believe the best way to celebrate this special time of year of theirs is with a grilled ribeye topped with a simple red wine sauce. Classic. Not overly fussy. Timeless. Again, like our White Cedar homes. ; )
Red Wine Sauce
We recommend using a Michigan red wine such as a Cabernet sauvignon or a Syrah that you personally enjoy for the sauce. This is important because reducing a crappy-tasting wine doesn’t make it taste any better, it just makes it more intensely crappy tasting…
For the Red Wine Reduction:
- 6 tbsp Butter, there about
- 2 Shallots, cut into fine dice
- 2 tbsp Tarragon, chopped
- ½ of a bottle Good Red Wine (Cabernet or Syrah are perfect for this recipe)
- 1 cup Beef Stock
In a saucepan, add a couple tablespoons of butter. When hot, add the shallots and reduce until light golden brown. Add the tarragon and wine and let it reduce until about ¼ of the wine remains. Add beef stock and let reduce for a minute. When ready to serve, turn off the heat, add the remaining butter, incorporate well until silky. Pour other half of bottle into two wine glasses, char-grill a nice 16oz bone-in ribeye, whip up a batch of quick-braised cabbage loaded mashed potatoes (recipe for a different day) or simple fried potatoes, add the wine sauce and…Cheers!
…and NO, we are not starting a winery…yet ; )
