Wining & Dining in South Jersey

To paraphrase Donovan: “I’m just mad about Zaffron…” For this edition of Wining and Dining in South Jersey, my wife and I decided to go Mediterranean. We chose Zaffron, located in Haddonfield. It has been a wonderful addition to the Haddonfield community for over five years (one rich in eclectic culinary experiences). I confess that I began pondering the wines to bring with us the moment we decided on Zaffron. Having been there before, I was already thinking about their warm octopus salad. My mind went to Albarino as a great accompaniment to this dish. I was pretty certain that one of us would choose a lamb dish and I was visually going through some reds in the cellar. I thought, a hearty Cab Franc, perhaps…

In keeping with the main theme of this blog, I obviously picked two New Jersey wines (pictured below): Turdo Vineyards & Winery’s DiLuca Albarino and Working Dog Winery’s 2016 Cabernet Franc

The Albarino was paired with pita bread and the Octopus Salad (pictured below). The Albarino was a bit more full-bodied than I recalled. The citrusy aroma, stone fruit flavor profile and clean finish reinforced my choice to accompany the Warm Octopus Salad. It consisted of sauteed octopus, green pepper, cherry tomatoes, capers and Sicilian olives over a bed of baby greens with a parsley lemon olive oil.

I still wasn’t sure what we would select for our entrees, but I selected a second appetizer, Mediterranean Meatballs

 

The meatballs were a mixture of ground beef and rice seasoned with fresh parsley, garlic and chopped onions served over sautéed tomatoes, with a side of tzatziki.

For my entree, I chose the White Wine Lamb Ragu: shredded lamb, wild mushrooms, tomato, red onions, fresh garlic and rosemary in a white wine sauce over homemade pasta (shown below). Delicious!

My wife chose the Shish (Lamb) Kabob.

It was grilled perfectly and served with basmati rice and grilled vegetables (and of course, the ubiquitous tzatziki). The lamb could be easily cut with a fork and melted in your mouth. The Cab Franc was an excellent pairing. This signature wine from Working Dog Winery has a spicy cherry flavor with enough heft to hold up to both of our hearty entrees. Their 2016 Cab Franc is one of the best I’ve had in awhile.

I neglected to mention earlier that though Zaffron is a BYO restaurant, they also offer wines from White Horse Winery, as part of the state’s promotion of New Jersey wines at select restaurants around the state. While I was very happy with the wines I brought, you certainly should consider the nice selection of the fine White Horse Winery offerings. My cellar has a significant representation from White Horse. You should check them out!

Once home, my wife and I pondered an after dinner drink. I wanted to keep the same geographical theme and came up with a glass of Rakki. Rakki is a Greek-based, anise-flavored liqueur. In keeping with my New Jersey theme, the Rakii comes from a great New Jersey distillery-Lazy Eye Distillery in Richland, NJ. What a super way to end a delicious and fun evening-Fire & Ice! “Call me mellow yellow…”

Cheers!

Don’t forget to pick up your ebook copy of New Jersey Uncorked: A Snob-Free Taste of NJ Wine. Use the code FEB20 now to get it for $10.99. Only available at the Apple iBook app.

Coming Attractions

• Another episode of Wining & Dining in South Jersey
• NJ Uncorked & Unplugged (wine and music)
• VaLa Vineyards

Tried a New Jersey wine lately? Visited a NJ winery recently? Please share your experience here. Like what you read and see here? You can subscribe below and get your weekly pour of NJ wine right in your inbox. No spills, no mess.