RAPHAEL’s 2019 CABERNET FRANC AND STEAK DINNER

 There is nothing better than a home-cooked steak paired with a glass of good red wine (Figure 1).  To start, the Steak was a USDA Prime NY strip from Stew Leonards.  The meat was trimmed perfectly, then dry rubbed with Montréal steak seasoning and sealed in a vacuum bag. Next, the Steak, cooked in a water bath set to 120 F for 60 minutes (Sous Vide by Joule).  After the sous vide, the Steak was seared in a raging hot cast iron skillet for 90 seconds on each side, and then the sous vide bag juices were added along with a pat of Irish butter to coat the Steak all over.  The pan-searing resulted in a nicely charred, rare steak that was flavorful, tender, and moist throughout. The wine paired with the Steak is a Raphael 2019 Cabernet Franc (Figure 2). This wine presented soft ruby color and bright red at the fringes.  The nose is full of red fruit such as raspberries, licorice sticks, with just a hint of oak.  The mouth was medium with bright acid that balanced the fat of the prime Steak perfectly. The palette reflects a strong note of red fruit and just a slight hint of cloves.  The was a great matchup and, when accompanied with a small side salad, made for a great simple meal.  

1 - SIMPLE STEAK AND WINE DINNER

2 - RAPHAEL 2019 CABERNET FRANC