Oyster Alfredo & Chardonnay

WINE
Ridge Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay 2004 – California
This dark straw yellow wine opens with a nose of honeysuckle and baked apple. The wine is a big, creamy, rich, smooth California style. Tastes of burnt honey and oak, along with thick butterscotch. Interestingly, this tasted very little like the 2002 Santa Cruz Mountains Home Ranch Chardonnay we reviewed awhile back. This had none of the minerals and earth of the earlier vintage. As much as we love Ridge wines, because of the heavy style of this 2004, we’d give it a Maybe. About $35.

DINNER
Oyster Alfredo
We used tortellini, but any large, chunky pasta (rigatoni, thick fettucini) would do. (As one of our Italian food gurus said, “thick sauce, thick pasta; thin sauce, thin pasta.”)

• Sauté oysters in butter and thyme; remove from pan (save pan juices)
• Optionally, you can also sauté quartered mushrooms and thick-chopped onions, either with the oysters or separately
• Cut large oysters into about quarters; if small, use whole
• Mix a jar of commercial Alfredo sauce, some dry white wine, thyme, sage, the butter and liquid from the oyster pan, and a tiny splash of Tobasco or similar hot sauce
• Add the oysters to the sauce, and pour over pasta