John suggested Peay Vineyards “La Bruma” Syrah, Sonoma Coast.  The wine is deep purple and offers dark berries and fig on the nose.  The wine is medium-bodied, and tightly wound at first so it would benefit from decanting.  Bacon fat, berry and graphite are ushered in by supple tannins.

John has worked side-by-side with James Beard Award-winning chef Nancy Oakes for 14 years.  ”At Boulevard I take a global view of wine, offering a little bit of everything.  Our wines by the glass are chosen to fit snugly with food, and our bottle list is readable, not daunting,” said John.

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I was especially impressed with the 2007 Plummer Vineyard Petite Sirah.  One word best describes it:  Viscosity.  This wine is pitch black; seemingly impenetrable.  I anticipated major intensity from this wine, but was pleasantly surprised by suppleness and elegance.  Weighty but not meaty, the wine offered ample flavors of wild blueberry and currant.  Plummer Vineyard is owned by Bianchi Winery’s neighboor.  Bianchi’s winemaker, Tom Lane, buys fruit for his “Signature Selection” wines from them and other reputable growers.  All of the fruit that goes into the winery’s “Heritage Selection” wines is grown on their property in Paso Robles.  Depending onthe vintage, the wine will always be close to 100% Petite Sirah will spend between 19-30 months in oak.

Despite it being the start of the busiest time of year in wine country, Tom Lane spent half an hour with me on the phone enlightening me about the people and process behind the wines.  Bianchi grows Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah on 28 acres surrounding the winery.  They buy fruit from growers they have strong relationships with to craft white and additional  red wines from varietals such as Refosco and Sangiovese.  Asked to briefly summarize his winemaking philosophy, Tom said he endeavors to “accentuate the grape first, then layer in other qualities.”  This statement rang true in the wines I sampled.  Tom aims to yeild 3.5-4 tons of fruit per acre, thinning heavily before veraison (the onset of ripening).  This, combined with the use of soil moisture monitors and vertical shoot positioning trellis systems to increase air flow around the fruit, ensure each berry gets the royal treatment.

So, quick, let’s drink them up while the sun still shines. And I can’t think of a more summer-like white than Pinot Grigio. Long thought to be an insipid Italian excuse for white wine, the new styles are attracting more attention with their focus on bright fruit, tingly acidity, and citrus accents.

Pairing Pinot Grigio with summer fare – especially the grilled delights that we cling to as the summer sun sets – is quite easy given the wine’s versatility. The wine easily goes with pork, fowl, and seafood, fresh vegetables and steamed shellfish, and a long list of other food that is best served in the heat of the backyard barbecue.

In the past, I’ve paired it with a range of warm weather dishes, like tomato mozzarella salad, vinegar-based salad dressings, white pizza, salad with apples and nuts, sweet and spicy couscous, lemon-dill seafood salad, and assorted grilled seafood.

The key to appreciating Pinot Grigio is not to mistake it for a serious wine. It’s pleasant and fruity, it’s usually off-dry although some incarnations are finished “soft,” which is to say a tiny bit sweet, and it is laced with just enough acidity to give it structure and backbone – at least the new releases are.

So here are some to consider:

Castello di Gabbiano 2008 Pinot Grigio (Venezia, $10). Easy and light. Very refreshing; blended with a bit of garganega and chardonnay. Great match for summer food.

Villa Russiz 2007 Pinot Grigio (Collio, $34). Green apple, citrusy accent, zippy acidity, broad flavors, very refreshing, elegant beyond other PGs.

Vino dei Fratelli 2009 Pinot Grigio (Venezia, $11). Light, fresh, and appealing. Refreshing citrusy palate with lemon zest accents.

Fox Run Owner, Scott Osborn, pours his wines at Wegmens in Gainesville, Virginia.

Indeed, Fox Run has much to offer. Overlooking beautiful Seneca Lake, Fox Run produces wines from about a dozen different grapes. Riesling and Cabernet Franc—which do exceptionally well in the region—are major players. But the winery also grows heavy-hitters like Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir, as well as unique wines from lesser-known grapes like Gamay (the grape of Beaujolais), Gewurztraminer, and Lemberger. From central Europe, Lemberger is known as Blaufrankish in Austria and Kékfrankos in Hungary.

A personal favorite from Fox Run is their Cabernet Franc, which is surprisingly delicate and fruity, without the green “stalky” and tannic characteristics of some Cabernet Franc wines. Fox Run’s version is more subtle with raspberry notes and a food-friendly, crisp profile.

A number of Fox Run wines are available at area Wegmens supermarkets, where Fox Run’s unoaked Chardonnay is bargain-priced for under $10. It’s a perfect summer-sipping wine to enjoy with grilled chicken.  But before dinner, you might enjoy the off-dry (lightly sweet) Arctic Fox white blend. It comes in a beautiful blue bottle, which makes an impressive presentation among friends.

If you want to try a bit of New York history, try the Fox Trot Red, which is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and American Concord grapes. This is a sweet red wine that Fox Run owner Scott Osborn recommends mixing with club soda to make a summer cocktail.

And of course, MacNeil is right that Fox Run Rieslings are a must-try, and they too are available at Wegmens. If you are skeptical of this variety because you don’t like sweet wine, try Fox Run’s dry Riesling. It is a crisp and refreshing wine that is wonderful chilled on a hot summer day. But when you order out some spicy Asian food, pair it with Fox Run’s off-dry Riesling.

Finger Lakes Rieslings are exceptional because the grape excels in the region’s cool climate, which is much like Germany’s. New York’s Rieslings are made dry, off-dry, and lusciously sweet. The sweet wines are sometimes made from grapes frozen on the vine—known as ice wine—producing very fresh and fruity wines. Others are made from grapes that dehydrate on the vine, the result of a type of “noble” rot.  This is the same practice used to make some of the most expensive wines in Sauternes—a sub-region in Bordeaux, France.  These wines are lusciously sweet and complex with dried fruit, citrus, and apricot flavors packaged in a syrupy texture.

As Fox Run’s selections attest, the state is growing a diverse mix of grapes, which is a relatively new development in the Finger Lakes region.  For much of  its wine-making history, the region focused on growing grapes native to America because the varieties from Europe—from the species Vitis vinifera—did not do well in the area’s cold climate. Fortunately, that changed in the 1950s when an immigrant and botanist from the Ukraine—Dr. Konstantin Frank—began researching ways to make European grapes work in the area’s climate by attaching them to cold-hardy American rootstock. He also understood that the lakes created moderate mesoclimates suitable for many grapes.

Dr. Frank succeeded; he eventually opened his own winery in the state and encouraged others to follow suit. It took several decades for the state’s industry to take off. In 1976, the state government helped by passing the Farm Winery Act, which allows wineries to sell their wines to retailers and restaurants directly, rather than going through a distributor as other states mandate. According to the Oxford Companion to Wine, the state’s wine industry took off after that law passed, adding 190 new wineries by 2005. Fox Run was one of those wineries, opening its doors in 1993.

After engaging me with a few questions about which styles of wine I preferred, and offering a few optional suggestions, Gino settled on what he described as “one of the best values in Pinot Noir” he has seen in awhile, a wine from Fiddlehead Cellars.  ”Fiddlestix is nestled between Sanford and Sea Smoke (vineyards), and is cultivated by stewards who stress biodynamic practices.”  The wine is named after the mile marker (728) on Santa Rosa Road in Santa Rita Hills, and offers elegant layers of cherry and white pepper on the palate.

At Delicias, Gino endeavors to let taste be the guide to his guests’ wine choices.  To that end, he priced all of his by the glass offerings the same, and includes such quality producers as Flowers Winery.  In addition to an extensive list of bottles, he has implemented a creative wine flight program that allows guests to compare old world versus new word wines, challenge themselves by evaluating his selections blind, and custom flights built to one’s specific tastes.

If you have the pleasure of dining at Delicias, don’t be surprised if Gino announces to the entire dining room his need for assistance evaluating a new bottle, and pouring a taste for you and everyone else in the room.  Your honest feedback will be welcome!

Sommelier Gino Campbell in the Cellar of Delicias.

Photo Credit: Ranch & Coast

Bottled by the name of the grape – Aglianico – and sometimes as Aglianico del Vulture or Taurasi, this is one of Italy’s best unknown wines. The aromas are exotic and primal, the flavors are rich and earthy, and the textures are dense and smooth. The wine hails primarily from Basilicata and Campania, though small vineyards may exist elsewhere.

Cinghiale is an unforgettable experience. Wild boars, in singles or herds, terrorize the farmers and grape growers in Tuscany, rooting through the crops and tearing at the vines. So, not surprisingly, wild boar hunts are eagerly awaited to eliminate the threat and – not incidentally – reward the hunters with this prized meat.

The beast is served much like pork would be but rendered into sausage it is a hearty pleasure that can’t be matched. Select parts of the boar are added to a mixture of herbs and spices to yield a smokey, tangy, earthy taste that is a carnivore’s dream.

Together, the wine and sausage are a perfect pair. It is one of those memorable experiences where the match raises the experience for both food and wine.

But finding either is part of the charm. Aglianico is little known, but D.C. stores with deep inventories of Italian wines would carry it, such as MacArthur, Calvert Woodley, and the Wine Specialist. Some recently tasted favorites include:

Bisceglia 2007 Terra di Vulcano Aglianico del Vulture (Basilicata, $15)

Feudi di San Gregorio 2007 Rubrato Aglianico (Campania, $19).

Mastroberardino 2007 Aglianico (Campania, $22).

Terra dei Re 2005 Nocte Aglianico del Vulture (Basilicata $65). Score: 90

As for cinghiale, you’ll have to smuggle it back from Tuscany or find a supplier of American-made cinghiale on the internet. Alternative sausage preparations that work well with Aglianico – though clearly not cinghiale – include saucisson sec, Calabrese salame, and Framani Toscano, all available from Dean & DeLuca in Georgetown.

Image credit: Stijn’s photostream on flickr.

Albariño, also known as Alvarinho in Portugal, produces a creamy, fruity wine that has the heft to go with modestly spiced dishes and the refinement to stand out in a complex meal of many flavors. The grape is thick-skinned and yields its juice reluctantly, making the wine a bit more precious than common retail prices – usually in the $ teens – would suggest.

Using rice as a base, paella blends a medley of flavors from meat and seafood, adds tomatoes, onions, garlic, and herbs, throws in a dose of saffron for good measure, and bears a wealth of delectable aromas to the table. In a good restaurant – or from a good cook’s kitchen – this recipe draws oohs and ahhs from those who didn’t think to order it from the menu.

Usually paella would seem like a red-wine dish, what with tomatoes, garlic, and onions in the mix. But the herbs call for something a bit more gentle, and the saffron is so delicate that white wine is the best answer.

Enter Spain’s finest white: Albariño. The wines of Bodegas Montecillo ($14), Don Olegario ($22), Fillaboa ($18), Martin Codax ($15), and Vionta ($18) are examples of Albariño recently tasted that would be welcome in this setting.

Another Spanish specialty that is a conundrum for wine pairing is gazpacho, that vibrant and aromatic cold bowl of puréed vegetables, garlic, wine vinegar, and other accents. Best in the summer – since only the freshest garden goods should be used – gazpacho packs a punch of flavor and challenges any wine to stand tall beside it.

Albariño fills the bill. With enough acidity and great balance, the wine can work magic with either paella or gazpacho, whatever satisfies your Spanish delight.

Image credit: mccun934′s photostream on flickr.

After more than two decades at the helm of F-C, Bursick moved on to another adventure at J Vineyards and Winery. Known primarily as the sparkling wine sister of the Jordan family’s other wine-making venture in Sonoma County, Jordan Vineyard and Winery, J has begun a shift in the production line to include more table wines, including a long list of single vineyard Pinot Noirs (from $35 to $50), a delicious Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley ($28), and a short but select list of Pinot Gris.

J now bottles three Pinot Gris, one from the general appellation of California ($15), one from Russian River Valley ($20), and finally a beautifully structured Pinot Gris from the Cooper Vineyard ($20), worth far more than the asking price.

I had the opportunity to taste these wines at Georgetown’s Sequoia Restaurant (3000 K Street, 202-944-4200) and decided to focus on matching Sequoia’s seafood menu to the Pinot Gris from J.

For openers, I paired the three wines with the Maine Mussels (Prince Edward Island). The mussels from PEI are perhaps the tastiest and most refined of this breed, but Sequoia raised the gustatory stakes by serving them in a coconut curry broth. In fact, the broth sent me back to the J Chardonnay because the dish needed a wine with more depth and texture than a Pinot Gris could offer.

Moving on to the Miso-seared Salmon fit the bill, though. Salmon, especially grilled salmon, is easily matched with Pinot Noir. But this dish, featuring both the miso seasoning and Asian vegetables and ginger, called for something with a bit more bite than the oaky, buttery Chardonnay.

Each of the Pinot Gris went well with the salmon, although I chose the Russian River Valley bottling as my favorite accompaniment to the dish. The California PG was good but didn’t have the length I wanted in pairing it with something as hot as miso. And the Cooper Vineyard PG – which was the best of the bunch – tended toward tropical notes of melon and honey which seemed at odds with the miso and ginger combination in the salmon.

So steer toward J for sparkling wines but don’t forget the other table wines that George Bursick is offering. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Among the favorite Mexican platters in restaurants today are fajitas and beef-filled quesadillas, each a sumptuous meal in themselves. One is served sizzling at the table and the other wafts through the dining room on a wave of red meat aromas and spice. I had the occasion to pair blacked steak quesadillas at Georgetown’s Daily Grill with the red wines of Rodney Strong recently, and proved that beer is not necessary when a robust and deeply textured wine is at hand.

The dish combines the mouth-watering steak-filled quesadilla with Cajun seasoning, and is served alongside pico de gallo and guacamole. The black beans and grilled jalapeño excite the dish even more, and cancel out any thought of serving a light and limpid white wine.

So head for red. I did that and found that the red wines of Rodney Strong were easily up to the task. The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon from Sonoma County ($17) hit the spot, relying on black cherry and blackberry flavors and a touch of cocoa to balance the variety of flavors on the dish.

Rodney Strong’s 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon from Alexander Valley ($25) is a bit more textured and stylish, with suggestions of plum and black fruit, and the fine tannins melded with the flavors of the dish.

There’s the 2007 Symmetry, based on Cabernet Sauvignon but blended with Malbec, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. It’s a bit pricey ($55) but Symmetry’s robust style and rich flavors handled the beef and spice of the Daily Grill’s quesadilla.

Then there’s the 2006 Rockaway Cabernet Sauvignon which, at $75, is one of Rodney Strong’s elite wines. But rich, bold flavors and subtle hints of earth and spice were exotic enough to make it worth every penny.

Cabernet sauvignon scores easily in a Mexican food face-off. The Daily Grill’s blackened beef quesadilla was a treat, and the Rodney Strong wines were an exhilarating experience.