We’re Saying Goodbye To Winter With Hearty Austrian Fare This Weekend

After a winter of anticlimactic weather, the season had a sendoff this week with snow throughout the Garden State. This weekend, we’ll bid goodbye to winter ourselves by creating a few hearty, savory Austrian dishes – that are, of course, warm – and pairing them with our wines.

Those dishes include tränen christi, which are small bread rolls made from these same dough as soft pretzels; and bratwürstl, which is the Austrian name for a dish consisting of bacon, bratwurst, sauerkraut and white wine.

Tränen christi, a little-known bread, means “tears of Christ” and it’s often served during Lent, just as we will do Saturday. These narrow rolls are baked with a dusting of dried herbs and salt, similar to a bread stick.

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Bratwürstl is the Austrian and Bavarian name of a dish comprised of sauerkraut, onions and various cuts of meat, usually pork; as well as seasonings like caraway, bay leaf and paprika with some variations.

Unlike most meals, bratwürstl, which is slow-cooked, actually gets better each time it’s reheated. Legend says that there was a pot of bratwürstl cooked continuously for nearly 500 years, with new ingredients added every few days, until cooking finally culminated during World War II.

We’ll pair these dishes with crisp, dry whites such as Riesling, Pinot Gris or Grüner Veltliner, and they also go well with zippy, light- or medium-bodied reds. However, another star of our wine portfolio this Saturday will be our Blaufrankisch Reserve – our last 2021 wine – as this weekend will be the final weekend when we will offer subscriptions to the 18-month-barrel-aged wine that will be released on the weekend of March 25.

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At that time, our subscribers will finally taste the fruits of our Blaufrankisch Reserve labors, concluding in flavors of deep, dark berry, a balanced acidity and supple tannins. Once it’s released, we’ll pair it with the Viennese classic sacher tort. For those looking for something savory, it also pairs well with roasted or grilled protein of any kind.

Visit Mount Salem Vineyards at 54 Mt Salem Rd, Pittstown or contact us at 908-735-9359 or info@mountsalemvineyards.com to learn more about our food and wine offerings, as well as to subscribe to our 2021 Blaufrankisch Reserve.