Pomegranate Fennel Whipped Gorgonzola & Mencía
A dip inspired by a wine. And that wine is called Mencía.
Airy whipped gorgonzola topped with pomegranate arils, fennel sprigs, roasted pecans, and crispy mortadella. A dip literally made to pair with a chilled bottle of Mencía, some crusty bread, and straight-up joy.
The name I chose for this dip really doesn’t do it justice, but I always struggle with naming my whipped cheese dips. They aren’t just one thing. They’re a combination of ingredients, put together in a way that highlights their individual flavours and textures, that all come together to create something freaking awesome and always unique. But I can’t list every ingredient in the name. So, Pomegranate Fennel Whipped Gorgonzola it is.
This dip was fully inspired by the wine pairing: Mencía! It’s one of those wines that’s on the lighter side (so lovely chilled) but with such layered flavours that it needs a snack to match. On first sip, I tasted pomegranate and fennel. And Gorgonzola is amazing with both. Soooo boom. dip.
My Pick: El Castro de Valtuille Mencía, Raúl Pérez
I don’t know what drew me to this bottle. The label is not by any means exciting, and the word Mencía is SO TINY on the label you can barely see it. But I picked it up, saw what it was, and immediately bought it since I somehow haven’t featured this beauty ONCE yet!!!
I will confess that my personal wine preference is going to come out HARD right now, but I am truly in love with reds that have a very clear balance of black and red fruit, spice, and earth (e.g., herbs, flowers, dirt, leaves). The ones that constantly blow me away: Cabernet Franc, Northern Rhône Syrah or GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedres), and Cru Beaujolais. And Mencía fits right in with all of these.
What is Mencía?
Mencía is most commonly from Bierzo in Northwestern Spain. They’re typically medium-bodied with bright acidity, super super smooooth tannins, tart red fruit flavours (think pomegranate, tart cherry, cranberry) with some darker berries layered in there, lovely herbal, floral, and spice notes (like fennel, violet, and pepper), and a touch of that wonderful graphite/stony minerality.
The one I picked up is what they call “entry-level” Mencía (aka Joven), and STILL I was blown away. With a bit of a chill on it, it’s so incredibly crushable and awesome with food and I looooove. And it’s always affordable!! Here’s the link! → El Castro de Valtuille Mencía (CAD). And if you can’t find it, here’s a list of other Mencia on Wine.com (US)
Pomegranate Fennel Whipped Gorgonzola
Serves: 4-6
Time: 10-15 minutes
Full recipe + substitutions for most ingredients and a printable recipe card below! xx
