Wine & Recipe Review: Coup de sang by Maison Ventenac *

There once was Ventenac… where the story of a Normand man who meets with a woman from Languedoc, and together they decide to change their lives.

In a little village Audois where the vineyards dance across the hillside, with the rhythm of the Autumn wind, and a sense that they are throwing themselves through the valley of the Pyrenees. Maison Ventenac sits in the Cabardès teritory/appellation and leans against the Montagne Noir. It has winds crossing from the ocean and the Mediterranean, which creates a unique climate and in turn a unique wine.

So here I present to you “Coup de sang!” by Ventenac a cross wine Cabernet Sauvignon – Cabernet Franc, and with it a really easy and unique vegan recipe of Butternut Squash Spaghetti, alternatively here is another butternut squash lasagna vegan.

What we thought of the wine and how to make our Vegan pasta dish. 

Firstly this wine is red and like with many Cabernet Sauvignon is quite light, and easy to drink. It does have a sharpness to it, however, the sharpness was mellowed when accompanied by the pasta dish. I would say the flavour reminded me of freshly picked stone fruit, slightly sour, but still had a nice flavour and was enjoyed by the whole table of adults!

It went really well with the Butter Squash Spaghetti, see below for the recipe…

Butternut Squash Spaghetti Recipe

This dish is a nice one to half prepare ahead of time and works really well with red wines. The butternut squash is used as the sauce and it’s thick and delicious, so makes a hearty dish – as we aren’t vegan we topped it with cheddar, but you could easily top this with some cashew nut parmesan or an equivalent vegan cheese.

Ingredients (serves 4-5 people)

*Note you will need a blender or hand blender to make this sauce.

– 1 medium-sized butternut squash cubed (no need to peel unless you prefer)
– 1 tsp of dried garlic
– 1 tbsp of mixed herbs
– 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
– 1 tin of water (use the empty tin from the tomatoes to measure out the water)
– 3 garlic cloves
– 1 teaspoon of marmite
– salt and pepper to taste
– 1 tbsp of oil
– a handful of fresh parsley finely chopped
– 400g of spaghetti or linguini

Method

Start by cutting up the squash, then spread it across a tray and put one tablespoon of oil and the dried garlic and herbs, plus a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Then cook this in the oven at 180C for 40 minutes. (You could do this the day before if you like and then use it when you are ready to make your sauce.)

Then pull the squash out of the oven and let it cool. Once it’s cooled down, add it to a tabletop blender, and put in the chopped tomatoes, garlic, and water, then blend until smooth. It should be slightly thicker than soup but still not as thick as say, a hummus dip – add more water if required.

Once the sauce is mixed add it to a shallow frying pan turn on medium heat and add the marmite – this is the equivalent of adding a stock cube – so if you prefer you could also add one vegetable stock cube instead, but the marmite adds depth of flavour (more like a meat stock cube). Then heat until bubbling.

While the sauce is heating cook your pasta in accordance with the instructions on the packet.

When the pasta is cooked, use tongs to lift out the spaghetti and pop it into the saucepan, don’t worry about a little pasta water going in, this won’t affect the sauce in any way, you may want to add a little of this water if you feel it’s still too thick. Then give it a good stir so that all the pasta is incorporated into the sauce, and then sprinkle with chopped parsley and top with your choice of cheese.

This is a super easy dish and any leftovers can be eaten cold the next day. It’s super tasty and really healthy too.

Where can you buy a similar red wine like Ventenac? 

You can get a selection of wines at Winebuyers.

How much is “Coup de sang!”? 

It costs £17

About Maison Ventenac 

Maison Ventenac has been a winery for a great number of years and is currently owned by Stephanie & Olivier Rame who are the third generation of their family to do so. They have adapted their techniques to be as natural as possible, allowing the area in which they are situated to flavour their fabulous wines.

Being in a limestone area and close to the ocean and Mediterranean breeze, all of which affect the flavours of the grapes used in the wines made here, and in turn give them a distinctive flavour much like “Coup de sang!” in this review.

About Winebuyers 

Winebuyers is an online wine club, allowing its members to have exclusive access to some of the world’s finest wines, from the comfort of their own homes.

You can browse over 50,000 different wines and spirits ranging from over 40 countries. You get to have a direct selection from specialist merchants, to boutique sellers.