If the weather holds, we’ve got one more month of barbecue season in
the coastal East Bay. Throughout most of the country, beer goes with
barbecue, but given the chill of our summer evenings, wine can be a
smarter choice for people who want to sit outside and not grow cold
because of what they’re drinking.
Last weekend, Judy and I entertained our gracious neighbors Wendy
and Fredi and their two Swiss house guests, Monika and Rolf. Fredi, a
world-class Swiss bargain shopper, procured us five budget-priced
bottles that he pronounced well-suited to a backyard barbecue. It was
an instructive lesson in drinking wines with food.
Yet our opener was not a wine and didn’t go well with food. Verdi
Raspberry Sparkletini ($4.99), a low-alcohol, wine-like malt
beverage that calls itself “Italian Spumante,” is made to be sipped on
a hot afternoon. But like the wine coolers it is reminiscent of, it’s
an acquired taste. Wendy compared it to Jolly Rancher candy but liked
it. Fredi called it too sweet “but not unpleasant.” Basil described it
as künstlich (artificial) and reminiscent of
chaugummi (bubble gum).
We broke into the real wines well before I started grilling the
chicken thighs. The 2007 Borsao ($6.99), a blend of Garnacha and
Tempranillo we have enjoyed previously, struck most of us as a bit
bold. Monika poured hers out, Rolf pronounced his leicht bitter
(slightly bitter), and Undeveloped Palate was prompted to observe that
she doesn’t even like wine. The equally assertive Feudo Arancio 2006
Nero D’Avolo ($7.99) from Sicily won a couple more friends. Fredi
pronounced it bold and tannic, and Judy said she was unmoved but would
drink it. But Monika called it ä pfützä
(swill).
Then I served dinner and an interesting thing happened. Wendy
upgraded the Borsao from “nothing special” to “very special with
barbecued chicken,” and Judy changed her vote from “tart and sour” to
“delicious with food.” In fact, once dinner was served, we all loved
everything. Monika said da isch schpitze (this wine is top!)
about the Charamba 2006 Douro ($5.99) from Portugal, and Rolf
called it allerwelt’s wii (wine for everything). Wendy said it
flies away with food, and even Undeveloped Palate called it “lite.” I
liked it too but found it astringent the next day on an empty
stomach.
Everyone’s favorite was the Rosenblum Vintner’s Cuvée XXXI
($8.99). Wendy said she could drink it every night, Rolf called it
fruchtig (fruity), and Monika said it was sehr guet (very
good).
As a final test of the importance of food to these wines, we offered
the Token Canine a whiff of the leavings from our spit jar. She turned
up her nose and looked at us quizzically. But then again, she didn’t
get any chicken.
