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"It’s great when the accidental becomes indistinguishable from the intentional"
This quote is from John Currin, the preeminent figurative painter of our time on the subject of color tone in painting, but the same might be said for the sometimes serendipitous way that good pairings of food and drink are discovered. The other night while banging around downtown San Luis Obispo I discovered just such a pairing. The night began with cocktails and an appetizer at Blue, and the plan was a movie after, but the next showing was more than an hour off so the plan changed to a nightcap at Black Sheep. I have recently reembraced Cognac as a late night potation and I ordered a Hennessey. The waitress asked if she could get me anything else and I thought of the ribs which are served on a bed of French fries. I thought with longing. Ever one to succumb to random desires I ordered them. I had that moment of indecision when I thought, "I’d better change my drink order to red wine or beer to match the ribs", but the moment passed and the Cognac and the ribs arrived. What a lovely surprise to discover that this is a perfect marriage of flavor. The sweet fruity smokiness of the ribs is echoed in the flavor of the Cognac. The greasiness cut by the Cognac’s heat. It was sublime, and all the more so by it’s improbability.