Pair quality steak with quality wine

I admit it: My favorite meal is a medium-rare steak with a good red wine.

I prefer it over the fancy sauces and other fine cuisine I can cook or buy at a restaurant.

If I could afford it, I would enjoy this steak and wine combination often.

If you cannot afford steak frequently, you want that meal to be memorable. That means picking the proper red wine.

I gave that challenge to the wine-tasting group. What wine available on the shelves today would they pick to accompany a medium-rare sirloin steak?

Here are their answers and how they compared with and without the food:

- 2001 Franciscan Oakville Estate Cabernet Sauvignon at $25.99. The aroma reminded us of sandalwood, cedar, black cherries and cassis, with a promise of plenty of alcohol. The texture was rich with pepper and a creamy fruit character. It was well balanced. With the food, the wine tasted more fruity, producing a sweet sensation. Without the food, this was our second favorite wine.

- 2001 Garretson Aisling Syrah at $34.99. All but one of the tasters brought a cabernet sauvignon to go with the steak. This syrah was the lone exception. Smells of bacon, smoke and stewed fruit emerged from the aroma. In the mouth, it had plenty of tannins, those chemicals in grapes that give red wine structure and, when young, can make your mouth pucker. On the palate, we discovered intense fruit, particularly cooked cherries, along with high alcohol. The steak made the wine taste hotter (from the alcohol), but it also brought out the stemmy cherry tastes even more.

- 1999 Smith Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon at $38.99. The aroma offered black currants, green peppers and black olives. (Green pepper flavors in wine are turn-offs to some people, but other tasters treasure it when done properly, as in this wine.) In the mouth, it had a great smooth and silky texture with flavors of black cherries and green peppers. The steak brought out cedar flavors. The wine was thicker in the mouth and very flavorful. The wine's structure and tannins stood up well to the steak. This was the tasters' favorite, with or without the food.

- 2000 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Reserve at $29.99. The bottle brought to our tasting was corked. I got another bottle and tasted it later with a steak. The aromas showed black fruit and chocolate. The texture was smooth and easy to drink for a reserve cabernet this young. With the food, the steak tended to dominate the wine.

- 2000 Buehler Estate Cabernet Sauvignon at $29.99. This wine had an unusual aroma of oranges, blackberries and fennel. The texture was creamy, the softest of the five and with the smallest amount of tannins. The flavors were fruity on the palate. The steak improved the wine, making for a harmonious pairing. The food brought out the cherry flavors in the wine. The Buehler was our second favorite wine with the steak.

Questions can be sent to Frank Sutherland, editor, The Tennessean, 1100 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203 or e-mailed to editor