Thinking Ahead

This isn't the best picture I've ever taken, but it tasted pretty great; Christine was out shopping for Milo's birthday party and I figured she'd come home tired, stressed, and hungry. One of the keys to my marriage is anticipating such contingencies and dispatching them with appropriate culinary remedies. Thus lamb chops (shoulder, which I prefer to loin for both price and character) along with mash, a ragout of zucchini, leek, artichoke, carrot, celery, fennel, and herbs- every one home grown- and little croquettes of leftover black rice, Japanese yam, and lemon zest. All three of us ate like wolves. Two of us had a Château Roquefort Corail rosé to begin, and finished with our last 2002 Novy syrah; it's well-made and deep, but not really the kind of wine we like any more (though we still love Siduri pinot.) With more age, it might mellow, but right now it has an intense, almost Australian richness that tends to pummel the food- even food as powerful as this.