"Back To ____" Mac & Cheese Recipe w/ Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
Sonoma Coast Chardonnay Always Pairs With Good Ol' Mac & Cheese
Whether it’s back to school, back to work, or just regular back to reality now that we’re winding down from summer, we’re welcoming the time (and cooler weather) to enjoy getting “back to” the kitchen.
Our favorite dinners are easy ones…the kind that are easy to make, unfussy, and of course easy to sip a glass of wine while you’re making it!
Enjoy one of the greatest comfort foods to welcome you in to the Fall season and enjoy an extra glass or two…it’s time to Get Back To It!
Here’s our favorite recipe to a creamy, delicious serving of Mac & Cheese paired with our crisp and refreshing Sonoma Coast Chardonnay.
- One package of your favorite tube-shaped pasta
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 4 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 2 cups Gruyere cheese shredded
- 1 1/2 cups panko crumbs
- 4 tbsp butter (melted)
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 tbsp chopped chives
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a large baking dish, or two setting sized cast iron serving dishes.
Combine all cheese - except parmesan- in a large bowl and set aside.
In a pot of salted water, cook pasta just before done and drain. Add 1 tbsp butter to pasta and toss to coat.
Melt the rest of the butter butter in a saucepan and whisk flour over medium heat until bubbly and started to turn golden.
Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy cream until smooth and free of clumps. Continue whisking for 2-3 minutes. Season mixture with salt and pepper and red pepper flakes.
Add two cups of shredded cheese mixture and whisk until smooth. Continue adding cheese gradually until the sauce thickens.
Stir cooled pasta into cheese mixture to combine.
Pour half of the pasta and sauce into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining 2 cups of shredded cheese and then the remaining mac and cheese.
In a small bowl, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, melted butter and paprika. Sprinkle over the top and bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Top with chopped chives and serve with a cool glass of 2014 Sangiocomo Sonoma Coast Chardonnay.
A Very Sea Bird Summer Beach Guide
You can’t make great wine without a little ocean influence. It’s a motto we live by, and it shows in every bottle of Sea Bird Wines. This summer, make the most of your beach time with these top tips for enjoying Sea Bird wines at the beach!
Grab A GoVino
Single use plastic cups are out, reusable wine glasses are IN! These reusable wine glasses are perfect (and lightweight) and make the perfect companion to your beach cooler. Pour it up and kick it back to relax- minus the trash.
Beach, Please.
You can catch us at these Sonoma Coast beaches on the West Coast with our toes in the sand and some wine in our hands. The Sonoma Coast AVA itself encompasses about 2,000 acres of vineyards and includes the lands that we source the fruit from for our Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The region itself is best known for these Burgundian varietals thanks to the cool morning coast fog that covers that vines over the growing season.
Watch Us Sip On Chardonnay(nay)
Our Sangiacomo Robert’s Road Chardonnay is the perfect beach beverage. With notes of tropical fruit and a bright and lively acidity grab a bottle (or two) to throw in your cooler. Even better if you can pair it with some fresh oysters off at Bodega Bay, or pack up a picnic with some of these easy beach-inspired pairings:
Lemon Herb Asparagus Potato Salad
Pressed Italian Picnic Sandwiches
Creamy Avocado Dip + chips!
Mango Basil Summer Spring Rolls
Don’t Forget Sea-Safe Sunscreen
If you’re heading to the ocean, make sure you’re not bringing anything unwanted into the water. Ocean research has shown that common sunscreen ingredients such as oxybenzone and octinoxate are the main culprits in reef damage, along with cosmetic preservatives like methyl paraben and butyl paraben. Keep your skin safe along with the ocean reef by choosing a reef-friendly sunscreen.
Cheers to sun, sand, and the perfect summer day from us at Sea Bird Wines!
Need to stock up? Here’s our top pics for Summer Sipping:
What To Drink Now: A Vintage Report Update
Our winemaker, Patrick Durbin, fondly notes, “I love watching my wines grow up.” And for good reason. At Sea Bird Wines, we believe in relaxed wines to enjoy with friends and loved ones. That kind of wines that are as interesting as they are easy-drinking. Vintage after vintage report, we stay dedicated to taking Great Vines To Great Times with ever bottle. To make choosing your next bottle even easier, here’s a peek into our cellar with a vintage report update to see if you should hold or drink your favorite Sea Bird Wines bottles with our easy guide.
2013
This was an ideal growing season all across California. Ideal growing conditions offered moderate temperatures all throughout the growing season without rain or extreme temperatures.
What you need to know: Napa
• Dry conditions and a long sunny summer resulted in Cabernet Sauvignon that steals that show over all varietals.
• Patient growers were able to moderate soaring sugar levels to cultivate a Cabernet Sauvignon with balance, bright fruit and robust tannins that lend to long aging potential for years to come. Or, if you’re a tannin fiend, a tight, grippy wine ready to impress with structure.
Hold it: 2013 Broken Rock Cabernet Sauvignon – Napa Valley
Located on the east side of Napa near Soda Canyon and Atlas Peak, this vineyard produces bright fruit with a balanced acidity thanks to the volcanic mountainside soils. The structure of this Bordeaux inspired blend representative of the best of Napa Valley results in black cherry and cola notes, nuanced vanilla and a touch of white pepper that will continue to evolve in your cellar. These last five years have just started to soften the edges of the fine tannin structure, but can easily go about 3-5 more for a luxurious expression of this iconic vintage to come.
What you need to know: Sonoma
• The growing season was off to an early start in Sonoma with abundant sunshine and moderate temperatures similar to neighboring Napa.
• Quality AND quality abound! Pinot Noir in particular grew large crops offering a volume of premium wine.
Drink it: 2013 Sonoma Stage Pinot Noir - Sonoma
The Sonoma Stage vineyard is nestled between the Petaluma Gap and Los Carneros as the south end of the Sonoma Coast AVA. Cool morning fog and warm winds cultivate a Pinot Noir with classic red fruits, dark cherries and touches of cocoa and leather for a balanced Pinot ready to drink now. Enjoy a glass now as the delicious tertiary flavors have developed beautifully.
2014
Drought in the winemaking world is a delicate balance. However, it struck the perfect cord in 2014 offering lower yields, but higher quality. Sprinkling with a few well-timed rains over the growing season offered a sunny summer and a ripe fall.
What you need to know: Napa
• The perfect blend of 2012 and 2013 was the best way to describe 2014.
• Bright red fruits, balanced acidity and lower yields delivered a dreamlike vintage, especially for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon.
• An early harvest still delivered deep color, intense aromatics and lively acidity across the board.
Hold It: 2014 Poseidon Cabernet Sauvignon – Napa Valley
This was the perfect vintage to showcase our show-stopping Poseidon Cabernet Sauvignon. Aptly named after the kind of the sea, it is comprised of the “king of grapes,” Cabernet Sauvignon from a premiere Napa Valley vineyard. The G3 vineyard is home to some of the most prestigious fruit in the Valley in the Rutherford AVA. Polished tannin, wild berries, and a hint of Rutherford Dust this wine can easily rest its trident for years to come in your cellar.
What you need to know: Sonoma
• Early season come in slow and steady with
• The drought season was still going strong. For now, it allowed for high quality and reduced yield…perfect for premium vineyards.
• The warm weather paired with little rains resulted in higher alcohol wines that overall had a welcoming ripe aroma and flavors, and softer acidity…perfect for wines that are drinking well sooner than later!
Drink it: 2014 Sangiacomo Robert’s Road Pinot Noir - Sonoma
This family-owned vineyard is the ideal Sonoma Pinot Noir site. Long slow growing seasons thanks to the coastal Sonoma influence offer fog until mid-day and warm sunshine for even ripening. The bright red fruits of this vineyard shine in this Pinot Noir with a bottle ready to pop now!
Enjoy summertime drinking with our current release wines, all available to purchase online. And stay tuned in the Fall for our upcoming vintage report update and releases coming soon!
Spotlight Wine: 2015 Sangiacomo Robert’s Road Chardonnay
As one of the most widely planted grapes in the state of California, Chardonnay is one of the most popular wines enjoyed by Americans, according to the Wine Institute. So it was a natural fit when we began sourcing fruit for Sea Bird Wines that we would include this noble grape as part of our family.
Sourced from the Sonoma Coast, our Sangiacomo Robert’s Road vineyard develops into every Chardonnay-lover’s dream. The cool coastal zone of this region maintains a developed acidity and structure that plays gracefully with a kiss of new French oak that we age it in year after year. No other white gape matches Chardonnay’s total acreage in Sonoma County, and with every sip, we understand why this is the ideal region for this wine.
The Sangiacomo Vineyards were first planted to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in 1999 when the Sangiacomo Family acquired the property. At the time, it was unclear as to whether the region would be suitable for grape-growing, as the cool coastal climate was thought to prevent even ripening. Now, the Sonoma Coast region is renowned for producing some of the highest quality Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in the US. The perfect counterpart to our Chardonnay is our Sangicomo Robert’s Road Pinot Noir.
Our 2015 Sangiacomo Robert’s Road Chardonnay highlights the best of the vintage. The 2015 growing season in Sonoma brought about a warm, dry spring and an early harvest, according to to the Wine Spectator Vintage Report. The yield was lower than past years, though the quality maintained an elegant and refined style.
You don't have to just take our word for it, however. The 2015 Sangiacomo Robert's Road Chardonnay has won Double Gold medals at the SF Chronicle International Wine Competition, and well as Double Gold & Best of Class in the International Women’s Wine Competition.
With 14 months in new and used French oak barrels, the Robert’s Road Chardonnay is exceptionally balanced with fruit and acidity. Pears, tropical fruits and nectarines are balanced by a dollop of vanilla and honey on the finish for a bright, playful Chardonnay true to the region.
Sea Bird Wines was founded on the belief that coastal influence makes truly great wine. The Sangicomo Vineyards in the Sonoma Coast region exemplifies this belief year over year as we craft true-to-region Chardonnay with bright fruit, lively acidity, and the kind of bottle you can’t wait to enjoy while lounging around with friends on a warm Spring day.
A Recipe For #GreatVinesToGreatTimes
As warmer weather approaches it’s the perfect opportunity to enjoy a fresh meal. This easy crab cake recipe from Pinch and Swirl focuses on a recipe with more crab meat instead of a bread-crumb overload. The fresh seafood influence will parry and play beautifully with the fruit and acidity of our 2015 Sangiacomo Robert’s Road Chardonnay for a light, weeknight meal to enjoy out on the patio with the promise of Spring nipping at our heels!
Ready to sip on some of the most quaffable Chardonnay of the season? Head over to the Sea Bird Wines Shop to snag the last bottles, and if you're lucky, even a magnum. We'll meet you on the patio for a glass, or two.