For Valentine’s day this year, I went all out and brought home a nice Kobe steak to try out with a pair of Bandol wines made at the same estate… but 19 years apart. The idea is to see which of the mature or the young, tannic red worked best with wagyu steak.
The complex, mature aromas of the 1990 vintage paired beautifully with the pan-seared steak, bringing out its meaty flavors. The acidity, typically more present in older wines, cut through the fat nicely, and worked better overall than the young, fruity 2009 vintage. While the buttery texture of the meat rounded out the younger wine’s tannins, I think it’s more important with wagyu to put the meat on center stage, rather than catering to the wine.
The Bandol appellation in Provence is well-known for its rosé, but the Mourvèdre-based reds are very long lived and quite afforbdable.
This gorgeous marbled fat is characteristic of wagyu (literally, “japanese beef”) of which the most famous comes from the Kobe area.
