30 Days of Local Wine
30 Days of Local Wine

Our 30 Days of Local Wine campaign takes place throughout the entire month of December. Each day we’ll be featuring a different local wine from several of the Essex Pelee Island Coast wineries along with recipes for food, cocktails (yes, wine cocktails), desserts, party tips and more. Click here for the complete list of 30 wines.

Also, we want to see how you enjoy your local wine. We encourage you to use the #30DLW hashtag on Instagram to win prizes like a day for 2 on a tandem bicycle on our award winning Wine Trail Ride Cycling Tours. Click here for more details on the 30 Days of Local Wine Contest.

Cabernet Franc Reserve from Erie Shore Vineyard
Cabernet Franc Reserve from Erie Shore Vineyard

It’s already Day 3 of our 30 Days of Local Wine and we’re busting out another great red.

Similar to their 2008 Baco Noir Reserve to be featured on December 26, this Cabernet Reserve from Erie Shore Vineyard is a must try over the holidays. It’s a lovely rich, dry red wine with dark fruit, currant, berry and velvety tannins. Like the Baco Noir, this wine ages very well so make sure to put it aside for any special occasions you may have in the future.

The Cabernet Reserve pairs deliciously with with grilled or roasted red meats, game birds, chicken, turkey, vegetables, pizza and tomato based pasta’s and cheeses including hard and blue cheese.

I've been dreaming of you, Osso Bucco...
I’ve been dreaming of you, Osso Bucco…

When we handed a bottle to chef Pat Lizzi of Mezzo Restaurant & Lounge, he took one sip and knew immediately what he’d love to make: Osso Bucco.

Ingredients

  • 1 sprig fresh rosemary
  • 1 sprig fresh thyme
  • 1 dry bay leaf
  • 2 whole cloves
  • Cheesecloth
  • Kitchen twine, for bouquet garni and tying the veal shanks
  • 3 whole beef shanks (about 1 pound per shank), trimmed
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • All purpose flour, for dredging
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 small onion, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 small carrot, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 stalk celery, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 cup Erie Shore Cabernet Reserve
  • 3 cups chicken stock
  • 3 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
Red wine and meat, it can't be beat!
Red wine and meat, it can’t be beat!

Directions

  1. Place the rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and cloves into cheesecloth and secure with twine. This will be your bouquet garni.
  2. For the beef shanks, pat dry with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Beef shanks will brown better when they are dry. Secure the meat to the bone with the kitchen twine. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper. Dredge the shanks in flour, shaking off excess. 
  3. In a large Dutch oven pot, heat vegetable oil until smoking. Add tied beef shanks to the hot pan and brown all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove browned shanks and reserve.
  4. In the same pot, add the onion, carrot and celery. Season with salt at this point to help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Sauté until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Return browned shanks to the pan and add the red wine and reduce liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add the bouquet garni and 2 cups of the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pan and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Check every 15 minutes, turning shanks and adding more chicken stock as necessary. The level of cooking liquid should always be about 3/4 the way up the shank.
  5. Carefully remove the cooked shanks from the pot and place in decorative serving platter. Cut off the kitchen twine and discard.
  6. Remove and discard bouquet garni from the pot. 
  7. Pour all the juices and sauce from the pot over the shanks. Garnish with chopped parsley