Last night, Matt and I attended Feast Magazine and St. Louis Originals’ Happy Hour Wine Tasting with STLwinegirl. These tastings are organized every month and are free! All you have to do is RSVP because spots are limited.

Last night we ventured over to Monarch Restaurant in Maplewood for the tasting and food pairing event. I love wine. I love food. I love free. The perfect combination of things.

Angela Ortmann, the STLwinegirl, taught us all about the wines we would be tasting, all international, where they came from, the types of grapes, etc. I am by no means an expert, but she is really informative and teaches in a way that everyone can learn from the event. I feel like I walked away with some great wine knowledge.

We had four courses and pairings. First up, 2008 Pieropan Soave Classico from Italy paired with Shrimp and Grits.

The wine, when paired with the dish, became less acidic and more fruity. It was a completely different experience with the wine on it’s own versus with the dish. Wow (I know, not rocket science, but I was impressed with how well they complemented each other).

Next up, 2005 Verget Pouilly-Fuisse from France with Sweet Potato Tater Tots. This type of wine is made with chardonnay grapes. Learned something here. Not are chardonnays are called “chardonnay.”

It didn’t have the oaky or buttery flavor you find with most California chardonnays, but boy oh boy, when it was paired with this little sweet potato gem, it had a full on buttery flavor. Amazing.

I was very impressed with these first two pairings. It really made me think twice about how we drink wine and what kind of wine we purchase and what I serve it with. I see some attempts at wine pairing in my future.

Third was 2005 Castilla Panaretta Chianti Classico from Italy paired with Toasted Ravioloi.

No, that is not zoomed in, it really is the largest toasted rav you have ever seen. I’m not a huge toasted rav fan, not being an STL native has a lot to do with that, but these were pretty good (and large). The wine helped cut through the spiciness of the ravioli and its sauce. Another perfect pair!

Last up was Tres Picos (not sure the year as it was changed from the original line up) paired with Sloppy Joes on Cheddar Chive Biscuits.

Um, forget the wine. These sandwiches were DELICIOUS. The best dish we had all night. So good!

Matt and I had so much fun at this event and cannot wait to go again! We were also very impressed with the food from Monarch. It definitely made it on our list of places we need to go eat.