Today, I paired my third dish from Sous Chef by Cardinal™ with a red and a white wine. The dish was the Marsala Braised Chicken with seasoned long grained rice. The white wine was the Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Chardonnay 2024, and the red wine was the Dobbin Estate Cabernet Blend 2020 (85% Cabernet Franc and 15% Merlot) from the Niagara region of Ontario. I thought the fruit flavours in both wines would make a complementary pairing with this dish.
As a reminder, the Interlude series of wines, according to Township 7 there was “…a devastating cold snap in mid-January 2024. The result was catastrophic vine death and severe crop loss in the Okanagan…Given the crop loss in the South Okanagan, we sourced premium fruit from trusted growers in Washington State and California to meet production needs. This ensured our business’s sustainability, kept our valued team employed, and allowed us to continue investing in our BC vineyards…”
Here are the wine tasting notes and the food and wine pairing notes. Enjoy.
My Wine and Food Pairing Notes
Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Chardonnay 2024 (BC $27.97)
According to the winery, “This single-vineyard Chardonnay hails from the renowned Russian River Valley in Sonoma, CA. Planted with ‘Wente’ Clone 4 and Dijon Clone 96 vines, the vineyard’s sandy loam soils, rich in shale and volcanic ash, provide excellent drainage and heat retention. Crafted <MyWinePal: in BC> to highlight its bright, fresh fruit character, the wine was predominantly fermented in stainless steel, with the addition of two neutral French oak barriques to enhance texture, complexity, and depth.”
Appearance: This wine has a clear, bright, medium-plus intensity lemon colour in the glass.
Nose: Medium-plus intensity aromas of lees, lemon, peach, pear, some tropical fruit ad a touch of vanilla and oak. No change to the aromas after decanting.
Palate: Dry, medium-plus body with a round, smooth, thicker mouthfeel. Medium-plus to pronounced flavours of peach, pineapple, pear, a citrus tang, and a touch of oak. You also get a hint of oranges with swirling. Peppery on the mid-palate to the finish. Medium-plus acidity. With decanting, the wine now is medium bodied, with a lighter, leaner mouth feel. The fruit flavours are the same, but more tart.
Finish: Medium-plus to long length, finishing with tropical fruit flavours and some pepperiness. Tart acidity and thick mouth feel till the end. A lighter mouthfeel and tarter fruit finish after decanting.
I prefer the undecanted wine as it is fuller bodied and the fruit flavours are less tart.
Rating: 
no decanting. Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Chardonnay 2024 opens with a clear, bright lemon hue and aromas of lees, lemon, pear, peach, tropical fruit, and a touch of vanilla and oak. The palate is dry, medium-plus bodied, and round, with ripe peach, pineapple, and citrus tang supported by vibrant acidity and pepperiness toward the finish. After decanting, the wine becomes leaner and more tart, while maintaining its fruit core and a medium-plus to long finish.
Dobbin Estate Cabernet Blend 2020 (ON $80)
According to the winery, “This is a blend of 85% Cabernet Franc from the Twenty Mile Bench and 15% Merlot from Four Mile Creek, all sourced fruit. The fruit was hand-picked over two days, wild fermented and aged in neutral French oak for 20 months.” A portion of the grapes are organically grown. The winery noted that 2020 may be the vintage of the century for the Niagara region!
Appearance: A medium-plus intensity, dull garnet colour. About 80% opaque.
Nose: Medium-plus to pronounced aromas of cedar, plums, black fruits, juicy berries, and sweet spices. Very aromatic and inviting aromas. No change to the aromas after decanting.
Palate: This wine is dry, with medium body, plush smoothness, soft and round, but not mouth filling. The wine starts off feeling lighter but with some swirling moves into medium body range. Ripe black fruits, plums and cedar on the palate along with a light touch of oak and sweet spice. A hint of candied cherry flavour with swirling. Lighter, dusty tannins to start that get stronger toward the finish. Medium acidity. Possibly a touch lighter on the palate. Same fruit flavours, but now a touch of bitterness.
Finish: A medium-plus to long length finishing with black fruit, some tart berries and light pepperiness. Stronger, but not overpowering, tannins on the finish. Same flavours and strong tannins on the finish after decanting. Just add some bitterness to the finish.
Rating: – Dobbin Estate Cabernet Blend 2020 opens with medium-plus intensity, inviting aromas of cedar, plums, juicy berries, and sweet spice, carrying through without change after decanting. On the palate, it’s dry, smooth, and softly textured with ripe black fruits, cedar, and a hint of candied cherry, supported by medium acidity and dusty tannins that firm up toward the finish. A medium-plus to long finish follows, showcasing black fruit and tart berries with a touch of bitterness after decanting. A well-structured , quality Niagara red blend.
Marsala Braised Chicken by Sous Chef
This dish had white meat in larger chunks, which I liked. The chicken was tender and not too salty. The sauce was buttery, giving it a nice roundness and fattiness. There was oregano in the sauce, which was a nice touch. Parsley is the typical herb for this dish. Shiitake mushrooms were listed as an ingredient, and it shows on the box, but I did not find any mushroom pieces in my dish. If you purchase this dish, please let me know if you had any slices of shiitake mushrooms in it.
The Pairings
The dish’s flavours were not very strong, which limited the effectiveness of these two wine pairings, which had stronger flavours. That being said, both were complementary pairings.
In the Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Chardonnay 2024 the pineapple flavour from the wine stood out and the pepperiness at the end, while the chicken provided texture in the pairing. The round/ fattiness in the sauce did tone down the acidity in the wine, which I liked.
The Dobbin Estate Cabernet Blend 2020 flavours were closer in strength to the flavours in the dish. I could taste the fruity berries from the wine and again, I picked up the texture from the chicken. The sauce also toned down the pepperiness from the wine.
Lighter bodied white wines that you may want to try with this dish could be a BC Pinot Gris, a dry Riesling or Gewürztraminer. Lighter bodied red wines you may want to try are an entry level Valpolicella wine or a Gamay Noir.
Where Can I Buy These Wines and the Marsala Braised Chicken?
Both wines can be purchased at their winery’s website:
The Township 7 Interlude Chardonnay is also available at some Everything Wine stores.
The Marsala Braised Chicken is available through Sobeys, Walmart, and Costco stores.
