Pour de force

FRENCH

IN THEORY: Our first stop is Tribeca's Vestry Wines (65 Vestry St at Washington St, 212-810-2899), where we'll pick beverages for the nearby French bistro La Sirene (558 Broome St between Sixth Ave and Varick St, 212-925-3061). "If you're going to a French place, you might as well bring French wine," says Lynch. "They're so protective of their patrimony." First he selects a muscadet. "It's underappreciated as a food wine," he explains, "but it's fresh, vibrant and has a little salinity that's evocative of the sea." Since bistros often serve shellfish, he reasons it's a solid bet. La Sirene is known for its cassoulet, so Lynch considers a red to match the southern French casserole's earthiness. "This is an if-it-grows-together-goes-together kind of thing, and cassoulet is a gut buster, so you need a wine with balls," he says. In the end he goes with a red from Provence, which he predicts will have some garrigue to it—a quality he defines as a wine's "smell of fragrant scrub, brush, sage and rosemary."

THE WINE: Claude Branger, Le Fils de Gras Moutons, Muscadet, 2007 ($15); Terrebrune, Terre d'Ombre Rouge, Provence, 2006 ($18)

IN ACTION: Lynch's shellfish prediction proves correct—we order mussels cooked with white wine and thyme. "It's perfect, man," he declares. "If you had a fruity wine with this, it would taste like a confection, whereas this is like a palate cleanser." Next we take forkfuls of the cassoulet. "All the flavors are fat, thick, rich, and the wine delivers waves of thickness and viscosity," assesses Lynch. In the end, he decides the red is "a little too flabby," and speculates that a wine with more acidity would provide some needed contrast.

LESSONS LEARNED: Where food is concerned, acid and mineral is more your friend than fruit; respect the French patrimony.

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