Recovery

After an abbreviated weekend a respite was needed and found in a 750 ml bottle and hunk of tri-tip steak.

The tri-tip, a traditional lower sirloin cut rarely found outside California, was procured on Saturday night, but as I mentioned before was unable to cook due to an urge to "chill the fuck out" (ahem, pardon my Frawnch). While many are unaware of the cut, Californians treat it much like a t-bone or market steak and local grocers typically grill the tri-tip to order on the weekends. Historically the tri-tip was given to Spanish farmhands as it was deemed too tough to eat.

"Oh contraire mon frair!" (my nod to actual French). This cut is beautiful and perfect for a party of four although my housemate and myself did a number on the cut by ourselves. I gave the cut a bit of a dry rub with kosher sal, fresh ground pepper and a pinch of cayenne but others suggest mixing in some garlic and celery salt along with paprika and any other dry spices that might tickle your fancy.

Thirty minutes or so on the grill on medium heat, flipping every five minutes or so and the cut was ready to be devoured, juicy, pink and dripping. An important part to cooking the tri-tip was carmelizing the fat that coats the outside of the cut with a strong flame. A burnt, sugary exterior juxtaposed with a tender inside is what creates a text book tri-tip.

Scouring the isles of my local package store I stumbled across a pair of Syrah's from Charles Smith, on a vineyard designate from his first tier label K Vinters and a second on his larger scale production label Charles Smith Wines. After reading a brief article in Vineyard and Winery Managment about the x-rocker gone rogue winemaker I thought I might walk the plank and give it a go. Quite possibly my favorite part of a wine purchase, a semi-educated guess and gamble about a new wine. In other words an attempt to navigate unchartered waters based on someone else's footnotes. I bundled the 2007 Boom Boom Syrah Washington State along with my other bottle babies and headed for the register.

The result: I was floored! FLOOOOOORED! At $13.50 this is hands down the best value wine I have drank all summer. Dark cherry topped with dark, vibrant fruit in the nose later giving off mocha, smoke and cedar followed with more concentrated, yet balanced dark fruit in the pallette and a long smooth lingering finish. At least a minute on the finish! Did I mention this thing rolls in under $20!?! And alcohol...this sucker clocks in at 13.5 % giving me a great indication of how this wine can be so balanced.

Still ridding the high. This wine is almost unreal; I'm left searching for the card up the sleave. Where is the catch? It could possibly that wine is made with a great attitude focused on quality fruit, solid winemaking and little to no promotional overhead. The labels catchy, but yet straighforward and black and white. You get what you pay for a cellar wine and not a sales gimmick.

Killler!!! Go pick up a bottle right now!

Or check out:

http://www.kvintners.com/winery.php