I have visited Gruet winery in Albuquerque, New Mexico on several occasions, and it has always been a delight. Recently I was able to interview the Gruet winemaker, Carrie Gurule, via Zoom. She also shipped me a variety of Gruet sparkling wines to try, and we had a wonderful conversation about which of the wines paired best with New Mexico green chile cuisine.
“I have all of my mother’s handwritten recipes for New Mexican dishes,” Gruet Head Winemaker Carrie Gurule told me in a recent Zoom interview. “And they pair beautifully with many of our Gruet sparkling wines.”
Carrie Gurule should know because she is a native New Mexican, born in Los Alamos, where her father worked for the Department of Energy. After graduating from the University of New Mexico, she worked in several technology positions before becoming entranced with the wine industry.
Now with more than 15 years of wine industry experience, including wine studies in France, Italy and New Zealand, she proudly serves as head winemaker at Gruet, where she started working in 2016. She is also the Secretary of the New Mexico Wine commission, Viva Vino.
About Gruet Winery in New Mexico, USA
As one of New Mexico’s most famous and largest wineries, Gruet, specializes in sparkling wine. With tasting rooms in both Albuquerque and Santa Fe, Gruet sparkling wine has been a natural choice of many NM food lovers since it was established in 1984.
Many people don’t know that the state of New Mexico is one of the oldest wine regions in the U.S.,with winemaking established there by Franciscan priests in 1629, more than 100 years earlier that wine grapes were brought to California in 1769. So Gruet is carrying on the winemaking traditions of the State.
“We produce many different styles of sparkling wine at Gruet, using the traditional Champagne method, where the second fermentation takes place in the bottle,” explained Carrie.
These wines include their well-known non-vintage Gruet Brut and Rosé, which can be found nationwide in many grocery stores and wine shops, to more special NV cuvees, such as Gruet Sauvage, Sauvage Rosé, Blanc de Blanc Blanc de Noirs, Extra Dry and Demi Sec.
They also produce three special vintage-dated wines: Gruet Blanc de Blancs, Grand Rosé and Gilbert Gruet Grande Reserve. Wine prices range from $15 to $50 for a 750ml bottle, with the more specialty sparklers only available online or at their tasting room locations.
To prepare for this article, I was able to analyze many of these sparkling wines, and have personally visited the Gruet winery in Albuquerque on several occasions.
Why Gruet Sparkling Wine Works With New Mexico Green Chile Dishes
If you’ve had the chance to taste green chili from New Mexico, then you may understand why it creates such avid devotees among chili enthusiasts. Bursting with tangy, earthy, fresh flavors with a hint of heat and packed with natural nutrients such as vitamin C, A, and minerals, they are a cornerstone of New Mexican (NM) cuisine, and distinctly different from other green chiles.
So if you’ve been lucky enough to enjoy traditional NM recipes such as green chili chicken enchiladas, carne adovada, chili rellenos, andgreen chili stew, then you know how delicious and addictive these chiles can be.
Sparkling wine pairs especially well with spicy foods due to several reasons. Probably, the most important is the ‘scrubbing bubble’ effect of the effervescence in sparkling wines, which cleanses the palate between bites of spicy food, like NM green chile. This way the spicy heat doesn’t built up on your palate.
The lower alcohol content in sparkling wines also works well with spicy foods because alcohol level equals heat, so higher alcohol wines emphasize the heat in spicy food, creating a collision in your mouth. Therefore, lower alcohol wines are preferable with spicy foods.
“We just had all of our sparkling wines analyzed for alcohol and calorie level,” reported Carrie, “and we were very pleased to discover that our line of Sauvage sparkling wines are only 80 to 100 calories per 5-ounce glass, and 12.5% alcohol.”
The fresh acidity and chilled temperature of sparkling wines also works well with spicy foods, because the acid is like a squirt of lemon on food that wakes up the palate, and the chilled temperature cools the mouth between bites of chile.
Finally the fruit-forward flavors of Gruet wines create a harmonious marriage with the spicy foods. For those who like slightly sweet bubbles, Gruet also offers Extra Dry and Demi-Sec versions, which also work well with spicy foods.
Carrie shared three native New Mexican green chile recipes, hand-written by her mother, and provided suggestions on the best Gruet pairings:
1) Green Chile Stew with Gruet NV Brut – Made with either pork and beef and simmered for many hours on the stove or in a crock pot, this traditional NM recipes calls for a quart of roasted and diced green chile, as well as garlic. It pairs beautifully with the fruity golden apple, pear and lemon citrus notes of Gruet NV Brut, with the scrubbing bubbles cleansing the palate between savory bites. Many people in New Mexico swear that green chili stew can stop a cold in its tracks, due to the warming heat and high Vitamin C content.
2) Hatch Chile Relleno with Gruet NV Sauvage – A wonderful vegetarian dish that includes a long roasted green chile, slit on the side and stuffed with cheddar jack cheese. It is then dipped in whipped egg and flour batter and then lightly sauteed in olive oil until golden brown. Given that the cheese, eggs and flour can tame the heat of the chile, it is possible to pair with the bone dry and very refreshing Gruet NV Sauvage. The sleek green apple, lime and minerally notes in the wine create a titillating dance on the palate between bites of the cheesy, earthy chile relleno.
3) Carne Adovada with Gruet NV Brut Rosé – a New Mexico favorite, this savory and spicy dish is made with red chile sauce (sourced from green chiles that are dried and turn red over time) and cubed pork, garlic, oregano and salt. Baked in the oven until fork tender, it is often served with rice, beans, tacos, and sopapillas dripping in honey (another NM favorite). Carrie recommends the Gruet NV Brut Rosé, because its ripe fruity flavors of red cherry, raspberry and refreshing hint of tangerine citrus can stand up to the bolder flavors of red chile sauce.
It should be noted that all of the Gruet wines can also pair well with other spicy cuisines, such as Indian, Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean dishes. In addition, they work beautifully with classic dishes such as oysters, quiches, grilled seafood, and sushi.
Unique Grape Sourcing Strategy for Gruet Sparkling Wines
One interesting fact about Gruet winery is that their grape sourcing strategy makes them a true ‘American appellation’ winery. This is because they source grapes not only in New Mexico, but from California, Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
“We started purchasing wine grapes outside of New Mexico several years ago, because it allows us to improve the complexity of the wines, maintain the quality and consistency from vintage to vintage and to scale the brand,” explained Carrie.
Indeed, Gruet sparkling wines are now sold in all 50 states. Over the years, the Gruet team has developed very solid relationships with its grape growers in different states. They also still purchase grapes from vineyards across New Mexico.
“Our founder, Gilbert Gruet, was originally from Champagne, France, and so he wanted to source grapes the same way they do in Champagne, which is to purchase grapes from local growers,” stated Carrie.Placeholder Advertisement
Carrie explained that the winemaking team works very closely with their vineyard sourcing team, headed up by Sara Cabott, who is based in Oregon. Sara also purchases grapes for Precept Wines, which is the parent company of Gruet, and owns several other wineries, including Brown Family, Waterbrook, Canoe Ridge and others.
I asked which Gruet wines used 100% New Mexico grapes, and Carrie explained that the majority of the vintage wines and Brut NV always have some NM grapes in the blend.
“We prioritize sourcing locally first and foremost, and want to expand this practice further in years to come,” added Carrie. “However, the NM Artist series and Pinot Meunier are composed entirely from NM grapes.”
In terms of winemaking, even though the grapes may be grown in different U.S. states, all of the wines are crafted at the Gruet winery in Albuquerque, NM.
Highlights of Tasting Gruet Specialty Sparkling Wines
In my analysis of nine different Gruet wines, I thought they were all very well made, and have featured the Gruet Brut NV in other articles. However, there were a few new ones that stood out. These included the Gruet Blanc de Blanc, Sauvage, and the Gruet Blanc de Blanc Vintage 2019.
The latter has a complex nose of wet stone and citrus, with a palate of pear, toasty oak, hazelnut and biscuit. Streamlined and sophisticated, it has a very long bone dry finish, and is made with New Mexico grapes.
Another intriguing wine is the 2021 New Mexico Blanc de Blancs Artist Series, which features paintings by different NM artists on the label. This wine has a beautiful nose of golden apple and pear with a distinctive NM terroir note, reminiscent of sagebrush and wet stone. Complex and discussion-worthy.
Finally, the Gruet Sweet Jolie is also very appealing with fresh honeysuckle, ripe peach and pear flowers, and a joyful spurt of sweet apple jam on the finish.
NOTE: A version of this article was originally published in Forbes.com. Republished here with permission.
