Wine Country Burgers

I love wine country. I got my first experience last Spring with a weeklong trip to California. I started in San Fransisco and worked my way through a nice chunk of Sonoma County. Everywhere from the Russian River Valley to Sonoma proper to Healdsburg. The wine was clearly a huge highlight, and the food was incredible as well. There seem to be some quintessential food and beverages that represent wine country. Clearly, wine is one of them, and of course, Cabernet Sauvignon reigns supreme in California. Figs and goat cheese also seem to have found a firm place in wine country cuisine. So, I did what any respectable food blogger would do, I put all the flavors in a burger. Oh, yeah, this Wine Country Burger is out of this world good. A ground beef patty topped with an onion-fig-wine-bacon jam, spring mix, and goat cheese. Hell yes. You might think from that description that this is a super-indulgent meal, but really the flavors blend so well together you don’t need much from each ingredient for the flavor to shine. You might always think of burgers as being summer food, but this wine burger stands up to the blustery months of fall and winter.

Being that Cabernet Sauvignon is essential to wine country, I decided that I would pair with other wine country flavors. It also classically pairs with red meat. I specifically used Chop Shop Cabernet from Winc. In November, I decided that I would try out Winc. Disclaimer: I purchased Winc with my own money. This is not a sponsored post, but that is an affiliate link. If you use my link, you can save $20 off your first shipment, and I earn a small commission that helps keep this blog going. Winc is a subscription-based wine delivery service. Every month, you have the option to have bottles of wine delivered straight to your door, which has been super convenient. The quality has been great as well. There was only one in my first shipment thus far that was not my taste. However, you can provide Winc with feedback to help them suggest wines within your wheelhouse for future deliveries. This Chop Shop bottle is very fruit forward and only moderately tannic, making it perfect to use in the jam but also to pair for drinking alongside.
You can’t go wrong with these pairings. I promise wine country didn’t steer me wrong with this burger.

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Wine Country Burgers

• Author: Melissa
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 slices of bacon
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 tbsp. fig jam
• 1/3 cup of bold red wine such as Winc’s Chop Shop Cabernet Sauvignon
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 lb. of lean ground beef
• 1 tbsp. light olive oil or canola
• 4 hamburger buns, toasted
• 4 large handfuls of mixed greens
• 2 oz. of goat cheese, crumbled

Instructions

1. Heat pan over medium-high heat. Add bacon and cook until crispy. Drain on paper towels and drain out excess fat from pan. Crumble bacon and set aside.
2. Add onion and season with salt/pepper to pan. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add fig jam. Lower heat to low-medium and cook for additional 5 minutes. Add wine and Worcestershire sauce to deglaze. Cook for about 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Add crumbled bacon to onion mixture.
3. Form meat into 4 equal patties. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Sear ground beef, cooking for about 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook for an additional 5 or so minutes or until desired doneness (150-155 degrees F for medium-well). 
4. Place burgers on buns and top with jam, cheese, and mixed greens. Serve immediately.