Warm weather ideal for white wine and cocktails
So far this summer, I have drank a disproportionate amount of red wine over white as the weather has not exactly demanded cool, refreshing wines. But the recent temperature spike has reversed that strategy somewhat, so I'm back to sipping crisp whites, dry rose and sparkling wine, hopefully for another month or so.
I rarely stray from wine, but I thought I would throw in a couple of cocktails that are ideally suited to warm weather entertaining in addition to this week's wine recommendations.
Earlier this summer, I mentioned the release of the excellent Hangar One vodkas from California, a line of exceptional spirits that have become as sought-after as many premium wines.
Hangar 1 has just released its Fraser River Raspberry ($53), a small-production vodka that is available for a short time each summer. It offers pure raspberry essence and would go well with soda and ice in a tall cocktail glass, a delicious summer tipple if ever there was one.
This past weekend, I was mixing up the Hangar 1 Kaffir Lime with tonic water to make one of the most refreshing -- and simple -- cocktails I have ever tasted. The only problem with Kaffir and tonic is that they go down a little too easily, as the alcohol is completely masked by the intensity of the fruit and tonic. Consider this fair warning.
Just in time for the dog days of summer, New Zealand's Dog Point Vineyard has just released its 2007 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc ($30), a great example of the classic Marlborough style. Dog Point's chief winemaker is Ivan Sutherland, formerly of Cloudy Bay, and while you can see some similarities between the two, I find Dog Point to be a little less tart and herbaceous than Cloudy Bay.
Dog Point is a nicely balanced Sauvignon Blanc, with expressive lemon-lime fruits and minerals; it would go well with an array of foods, but it would really shine with a green salad embellished with warmed goat cheese.
Vineland Estate Winery is one of Ontario's best producers and its 2005 Brut ($29) is a delicious sparkling wine made from equal parts Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier.
It is produced in a tank (known as the Charmat method), which helps keep the price down as it is much more cost-effective than fermenting in the bottle, as they do in Champagne.
The wine has a lively mousse with bright citrus notes, the perfect foil to oysters, grilled shrimp or spicy calamari.
Last week, I prepared Indian food for a group of friends and we drank sparkling wine throughout the meal. The wines worked brilliantly with the heat and wine-challenging curry flavours, proving that sparkling wines have a life well beyond their typical aperitif role.
Cheers!
Geoff Last is a longtime Calgary
wine merchant and writer and is a regular contributor to Orange Life and City Palate magazines. He instructs on food and wine at the Cookbook Company Cooks.
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Best Cellars
Wine: Zinck Cremant d'Alsace Brut Rose
Country: France, from Alsace
Suggested retail price: $27, GST included
Availability: Select wine and liquor stores
Tasting notes: Many regions in France produce wine in the style of Champagne and they are generally denoted by the term Cremant followed by the region in which they are produced.
Paul Zinck is an Alsace producer with a well-deserved reputation for making wines that offer excellent value and this delicious sparkler is no exception. It is produced entirely from Pinot Noir and offers notes of wild strawberries and raspberries wrapped up in a vibrant mousse, a killer deal for fizz of this calibre. It would go well with salmon, tuna sashimi and chicken and seafood curries.