Charcuterie Plate (c)2011 LaDomestique.com

What’s inspiring me right now? Le Tour de France. That’s right, La Domestique loves cycling and the drama of stage races that force riders to climb mountains like the Pyrenees. I met and fell in love with the husband on my bike. For me, cycling is about freedom, speed, the places it has taken me and the people I’ve met. I watch the Tour de France for the racing, but I also use the route to discover food, wine, and the beautiful countryside. It’s more than the world’s most challenging bike race, it’s a captivating story. In honor of Le Tour, I’m telling a story with the charcuterie plate. It’s not just cheese and cured salumi, people. We’re feasting on the livelihood of artisans from all over the world- real people putting their hearts into the food we eat and the wine we drink.

Gathering Ingredients, an Adventure

The story begins with sweet cherry season in Colorado. Today I’m putting cherries on the charcuterie plate for what the french call l’apéritif, and we Americans know as happy hour. The sweet, tart, deeply flavored fruit gets along great with gamey, spicy cured meats. This week I picked up a couple different varieties of cherries from First Fruits at the Boulder Farmers Market: sweet black Tartarian and the more tart Brooks cherry.

Then I headed over to Alfalfa’s market for some cured salumi. After much tasting and deliberation, I chose to pair the cherries with a Chinese style salumi made by the passionate Il Mondo Vecchio in Denver, Colorado. Their Lop Chong is a dry cured pork sausage made with soy and ginger. It’s sweet upon first bite but over time a spicy heat begins to build on your taste buds. I thought the Asian style sausage would be fun to pair with sweet, juicy cherries. Choosing a cheese was the tough part. Looking for something smoky I came across Haystack Mountain Applewood Smoked Chèvre made in Colorado. The creamy, acidic cheese pairs well with the spicy Asian sausage. I also picked up a blue cheese from France, Fourme D’ Ambert. According to Cheese, A Connoisseur’s Guide to the World’s Best, this cow’s milk farmstead cheese is made in the Auvergne region or south-central France. Fourme D’ Ambert is moist and creamy, pungent and buttery- delicious with sweet cherries. The word “Fourme” refers to the cylinder shape of the cheese mold.

My last stop was for wine at my local shop, Superior Liquor. Stage 7 of the Tour de France takes riders from Le Mans to Châteauxroux through one of my favorite wine regions: the Loire Valley. This region is known for its whites: the crisp, dry Sauvignon Blanc of Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé; long aging Chenin Blanc from dry to sweet; and easy drinking Muscadet from the seaside. However, the Loire is also home to the good value red wines of Touraine made with Cabernet Franc grapes. I sought a red wine to pair with the cherries and charcuterie. Mataej helped me pick Domaine Joel Delaunay L’Antique des Cabotières (2006) from Touraine. It’s a deep, dark red made with 65% Cabernet Franc and 35% Malbec grapes. To me, L’Antique des Cabotières tastes of dark cherries with a hint of game. I pick up a slight and pleasant bitterness or vegetal quality that I attribute to cab franc. The oak is well balanced and with soft tanins on the finish. Even though the use of Malbec is a bit unusual for the Loire, I think L’Antique des Cabotières exhibits everything I love about reds from this region: easy drinking but interesting, good fruit, well balanced and food-friendly. I will happily drink it with the Asian salumi and ripe Colorado cherries. Thanks for your help, Matej!

l’apéritif

Domaine Joel Delaunay L’Antique des Cabotière 2006 Touraine

Sweet Red Tartarian & Brooks Cherries {Colorado}

Lop Chong Asian Salumi from Il Mondo Vecchio {Colorado}

Haystack Mountain Applewood Smoked Chèvre {Colorado}

Fourme D’ Ambert Cow’s Milk Blue Cheese {France}

 Every cheese and charcuterie plate tells a story. I’ll be enjoying this one while rooting for teams Garmin-Cervélo, BMC, and RadioShack in Stage 7 of the Tour de France today. I can’t wait to see the towns and beautiful scenery as well as fierce competition on the roads. Thank you Le Tour! Thank you for the inspiration in sport and in life!