by
Shannon Porter, Personal Wine Consultant with The Traveling Vineyard
It’s hard to believe the summer is already winding down. Maybe
you’ve been invited to attend a BBQ or are planning a Labor Day
party. Beer has been the typical drink of choice at BBQ’s, but
did you know wine is also a great compliment to grilled foods? Wine
actually works like a spice, helping to enhance the flavors of grilled
food.
Match the correct wines with barbecued foods and you will be in for
a taste treat! A great wine with ribs and thick steaks is Red Zinfandel.
This wine has heft to it and flavors of wood and spice along with a
wonderful richness and texture. The spice of the Red Zin will pick up
the sweet, spicy and salty flavors in a BBQ sauce and compliment it
perfectly. Try a Red Zin from the Russian River Valley of California.
Or try an Australian Shiraz. It too, has a spiciness which will compliment
your grilled meats and sauces.
Simply grilling burgers? Then serve a California Merlot or a light,
fruity Beaujolais. Whitehall Lane, a smaller winery in Napa, makes a
wonderfully smooth Merlot. If you want to impress your friends with
something a little out of the ordinary, try a Rioja from Spain. It is
a medium-weight red wine that is both spicy and fruity. Made from the
Tempranillo grape, this classic, bold, wine has a bright, fresh flavor
that goes extremely well with steak and other hearty meats.
If you're grilling up fresh seafood and serving salads, try a Chablis.
Chablis is simply Chardonnay that is made in the Chablis region of France,
so don’t let the name scare you. French Chardonnays tend to be
crisper and fruitier than California Chardonnays and don’t have
the oakiness or butteriness that the California Chards usually have.
If you typically don’t like California Chardonnay, try the French
style. You may be pleasantly surprised and it is the perfect accompaniment
to oysters, seafood, and light poultry.
For dessert, try grilling up fresh fruit kabobs made out of strawberries,
watermelon, peaches, you name it. After they’re grilled, put the
fruit in a bowl with chopped fresh mint and serve with a chilled dessert
wine. Or top the fruit with a sweet wine such as a German Riesling.
Refreshing!
If some of your guests aren’t really wine drinkers, serve Sangria.
This fresh, fruity punch is made by mixing red wine, brandy, fruits
like lemon and oranges, ice, and cinnamon together and letting it sit
overnight. Or, for quick and easy Sangria, just mix red wine and Fresca
together and add some lemon, orange and lime slices. Hint: Use a lower
end wine, not that high end one you are saving!
Finally, a word about drinking wine in the sun. Keep both white and
red wines cool. (That’s COOL, not cold.) If they heat up above
68°F, the alcohol begins to evaporate and the wine will lose its
structure and taste. Serve red wines at around 61-64°F. If it's
hot out, you might want to stick the bottle in the fridge for a FEW
minutes or stick it in an ice bucket filled with water and ice cubes
for ten minutes or so. Good white wines shouldn't be served too cold,
either. Serve it at 48-58°F. If a white wine has been chilling in
your refrigerator for any longer than 30 minutes, it needs to be taken
out and allowed to “warm up” a little before it is served.
For a limited time, Woodbridge Winery is offering an exclusively-designed
BBQ wine wheel, a handy guide to wine and BBQ pairing with grilling
tips for every occasion. Go to http://www.woodbridgewines.com/getWheel.asp
to get yours! Enjoy!
Zinfully
yours, Shannon
Shannon
Porter is an Independent Wine Consultant with The Traveling Vineyard
and has conducted over 200 wine tastings. Started in 2002 as a division
of Geerlings and Wade - the largest direct to consumer wine distributor
in the U.S. - The Traveling Vineyard is based on a simple premise: the
best way to buy wine is to taste it first. Modeled after tasting rooms
found at fine wineries the world over, The Traveling Vineyard allows
you to sample and learn about wine in the comfort of your own home.
To learn more about booking a free in-home wine tasting event or for
information on how to become an independent wine consultant; visit:
www.freewinetasting.net.
