Product Review: Taylors Wines

One thing that most people don’t realise about me is that despite being a keen food blogger, I’m actually not much of a cook. But I am slowly expanding my repertoire this year and what better way to incentivise myself to cook things outside of my comfort zone than finding some nice wines and figuring out what recipes will match with them.

This time around, I had my eye on 3 particular wines from the family owned Taylors Wines vineyards in Clare Valley, South Australia which I wanted to try – a mix of white and reds ranging from the Gewurtztraminer to the Tempranillo and the Shiraz. The Taylors Wines website is great for foodies as they have a whole section dedicated to food/wine matching including a selection of recipes – very handy for me as I simply picked the type of red/white wine from the list and a whole list of recipes would pop up for me to choose from.

For the Gewurtztraminer, I tried their Asian Spare Ribs recipe which was easy to follow and was a hit with my family, thanks to the lemongrass used in the marinade which made the flavours slightly more exotic compared to our regular family recipe for Chinese spare ribs.

 

We jazzed the recipe up a little by cooking the ribs and Dutch carrots on the side sous vide using our induction cooker for a few hours to soften the meat and veg up. The award winning Taylors Estate Gewurtztraminer 2012 was a lovely match with the Asian Spare Ribs, as the wine was quite zesty with strong citrus notes and complemented the aromatic spare ribs.

Taylors Estate Gewurtztraminer 2012 ($18) and Asian Spare Ribs

We had the Taylors Estate Tempranillo 2014 next, which is a medium-bodied red with hints of cherries and a velvety mouthfeel, offset with a bit of spiciness common to this Spanish grape variety. The Tempranillo was paired with a simple, yet tasty Pasta al Amatriciana with bacon, which provided a hearty base for us to enjoy the Tempranillo with.

Taylors Estate Tempranillo 2014 and Pasta al Amatriciana

Last but not least, we moved onto the richest wine of the three, the Taylors Estate Shiraz 2014, which is a smooth red with ripe plum and blackcurrant notes that left a pleasant aftertaste. The rich flavours in the Shiraz went well with the delicious Beef Burgers we threw together for a quick meal using premium beef mince and a mix of onions and garlic for extra tasty hits of flavour.

Taylors Estate Shiraz 2014 ($18) and Beef Burgers

All in all, my 3 dish food and wine cooking adventure with Taylors Wines was a success in both me and my family’s books with easy, yet delicious recipes from Taylors Wines to complement their classy range of wines.

If you’re interested in trying the wines and recipes featured in this post for yourself, then you’re in luck! We’re giving away 2x packs of the 3 wines featured to two lucky readers. To enter:

  1. Follow us on Instagram (@excusemewaiter)
  2. Tag a friend on our Taylor’s Wine post (perhaps someone you’d share the wine with? :D)
  3. Comment what dish you’d pick to accompany any of the 3 wines

OR if you don’t have an Instagram account:

  1. Comment on this blog post what dish you’d pick to accompany any of the 3 wines

The best answers will win! You’ll have to be 18+ to enter the comp.

This competition is now closed. Congratulations to our winners Elaine and Kirsten!

Special thanks to Taylors Wines. Read more about the wines here: http://www.taylorswines.com.au/

5 Comments

  • Elaine Lin says:

    Ooh I’d choose the Gewurztraminer for sure…they’re special and hard to come by in Aus, and I’ve had some exceptional ones from SA. I’d probably cook something coconutty and spicy to go with it, like a soft shell crab green curry. Yum!

  • Kirsten says:

    I love a good Shiraz with a decadent dessert. I would go for (and be willing to try this at home) – a crumbly tart shell filled with dark chocolate mousse (with a hint of violet ) topped with slices of pears that have been poached in the shiraz. Violets are often complemented with blackcurrants in wine so i think this would be a dessert pairing made in heaven!

  • Mark says:

    I’d love to try the Tempranillo! I think it would go amazing with a seafood paella

  • Steph Newington says:

    A great wine can never pass down without some beautiful cheese and crackers! Camembert is my pick for the best cheese to go with a glass of wine!

  • Bec J says:

    Some crispy pork belly! Even better if you used the wine to cook it !

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