Cellar Notes
By Condé Cox
AS YOU FIRE UP THE GRILL to give those fresh summer oysters, sausages, chicken breasts, salmon steaks, and shrimp a good flaming, don’t forget to tap into our bounty of Northwest white wines. These four full-bodied selections, each featuring plenty of flavors overlaid with spiciness and richly textured scents, will be a lively addition to the enticing smells and timeless tastes of your backyard barbecue.
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DeLille Cellars 2007/2008 Columbia Valley ‘Chaleur Estate’ Blanc $34 This wine beautifully blends the fig and honey flavors of the sémillon grape with the tart, grassy flavors of sauvignon blanc. The impact on the palate is rich, unctuous, persistent, and complex—buy an entire case, and it will grow in complexity and subtlety as it Yages. Pair with grilled fish or chicken. |
Francis Tannahill 2007 Columbia Valley ‘Dragonfly’ Gewürztraminer $25 A ginger-and-clove spiciness combines with citrus flavors for a rich, floral scent in this lively wine. The grapes are trucked in from the 48-year-old Dragonfly Vineyard, which sits on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge, to be expertly fermented in Newberg. Pair with grilled chicken breast. |
Brick House 2007 Ribbon Ridge Chardonnay (biodynamic certified) $24 If you have a weakness for white Burgundy, you’ll love this bottle. Indistinguishable from wines made in the French village of Chassagne-Montrachet, the historical home of chardonnay, this wine exhibits the well-integrated oak scent of Allier forest barrels. Pair with a meaty, textured fish like cod. |
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De Ponte Cellars 2009 Dundee Hills ‘DFB Estate’ Melon $24 When it comes to freshly shucked, baked, or even barbecued oysters, you can find no better match than this. Known as muscadet in France, this heady but light-bodied wine is seductive, as if a pleasant, mild whiff of sea air wafts from every glass. |
Published: July 2010
Hood River winery Cerulean makes great summer whites – Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, and Gevurztraminer – $25/bottle – bright, delicious, and great with BBQ and summer foods!