A Would-Be Sommelier in Afghanistan: 09/21/12

Friday, September 21, 2012

MRE Closeout—Two Dozen is the End of the Road

There are only 24 different MRE menus in 2012, twice as many as a decade ago when I was still a young and idealistic officer. So, yesterday’s entry was our last regular MRE and wine pairing post. There will be one more notice on this blog after I’ve returned home in short order, but that’s not the end. Stay tuned for our next blog on pairing food with savory cocktails. To keep up to date on this and other forthcoming items:

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John

Background

Meals Ready-to-Eat (MREs) are a ubiquitous part of military life, particularly during training. Containing on average a mere 1,250 calories each, these packages of delight are used by the US armed forces at home and abroad, and have been distributed to civilians as part of disaster relief efforts. Likewise, the civilian populace sometimes purchases them for use in outdoor recreation or emergencies for the same reason they are so popular with the military—the MREs have a shelf life measured in years without the need for refrigeration. Just add potable water and voilà—a meal fit for deposed royalty!

Even though the consumption of alcohol during training for and deployment to Afghanistan is prohibited, I could only imagine the vinous bounty that might be available to others in faraway places as they consume their hearty MREs. In order to help them make the most of their dining experience, my blog will offer helpful suggestions for wine pairing with these packaged morsels. Each meal has both a complementary pairing designed to harmonize the overlapping flavor profiles of the food and wine, as well as a contrasting pairing where dissimilar characteristics of each are brought together to make the whole greater than the sum of the parts. Since there are many out there who predominantly prefer either white or red wines with their meals, I have attempted to suggest one of each in most cases. Each pairing will propose a general type of wine from a particular region, and then offer a specific producer and wine for the detail-oriented amongst us. I have avoided including specific vintage years in order to give the recommendations in this blog the same shelf-life as the MREs themselves—years upon years.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this blog are those neither of the Department of Defense nor the Department of the Navy. This blog does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation to consume alcohol where it is prohibited by military regulation or federal and local laws. No actual alcohol was consumed in the production of this blog, and no innocent wine bottles were opened or damaged. The contents of this blog remain the intellectual property of the author, copyright 2012, but any portion may be freely reproduced in unedited form with proper attribution.

About the Author

When not dreaming about returning home to his beautiful wife, loving pets, and well-stocked cellar, the author focuses on his day job. He is a Cardiothoracic Anesthesologist with the US Navy, and deployed with a Forward Surgical Team. His home duty station is the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. He has been serving on active duty for over 16 years, ever since completing undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Miami in sunny southern Florida.