The last of the summer wine.

Sometimes I'm contemplating lichen and inspiration seizes my otherwise dull and unremarkable brain matter.  Earlier this summer that inspiration came to me in the form of food, a specific meal, to be exact, and like all bits of genius it stuck around like an itch awaiting its scratch.  The summer winding down, this weekend saw that scratch. Prone to all things troglodyte, anti-social is its greatest perk. But sometimes you need help eating the food. 

What is the opposite of insult to injury?  Soon after my very rare bit of brilliance, this bottle of wine was given me by a very kind gentleman who said, "It's a good example of an affordable wine made well."

The wine. This is a 2012 Picpoul de Pinet, and I knew it would be the right wine with the meal.  I knew this because I know nothing about wine, have never heard of this.

The meal.   Lettuce wraps, but with many possible combinations.  Whole Foods cooked for me the fish -salmon, snapper, and shrimp.  Also: sausage, eggs, anchovies, prosciutto, mushrooms, pea sprouts, avocado, blue cheese, cucumber, radishes, and lime, hummus, and a mayo I make with dill, curry, and mustard. And lettuce. More or less.

From the top left:

Sausage, egg with anchovy and blue cheese.

Egg with anchovy on hummus.

Hummus, sauteed mushrooms, and shrimp wrapped in prosciutto.

Middle: pea/mint pesto, sauteed mushrooms, snapper.

Front left: pea shoots, hummus, prosciutto-wrapped shrimp, radish.

Lastly, pea shoots, hummus, salmon.

This is only a sampling of the many combinations. It was a great meal and that kind gentleman was right, the wine was PERFECT.  Good  acidity to cut through the salmon and sausage, nice brightness, it couldn't have been better. 

What a great way to finish summer and think dreamily about the hibernation to come.