Summer Barbecue Wine Options

Summer is in full swing! It's time to barbecue as much as possible, to have your friends over at every opportunity, and to enjoy the sun whenever you can. To that end, I've lined up a slew of affordable reds and whites for you to pair with barbecued foods and backyard shindigs.

Keep in mind that these are all bigger, more full-bodied red wines Anytime you have big flavors from meat, you need to get big wines to stand up to what you're grilling. The addition of sauces, marinades, and rubs also adds intensity, further pushing palates away from pinot-land.

The white wines, on the other hand, are crisp, dry, and full of refreshing acidity. On a hot day the last thing most of us want is a big, heavy, oaky chardonnay weighing down our taste buds. To that end, I assembled a panel of well known producers' white wines to taste and talk about.

Here then are two lists, of whites and reds, for your consideration as you barbecue this summer:

White:

2010 Parducci Small Lot Blend Sauvignon Blanc: Despite the $11 suggested retail price, this is single vineyard sauvignon blanc, from Hildreth Farm in Mendocino County. Crisp notes of green apple, grass, and zesty citrus mix with summer melon to create a balanced, food-friendly wine. Very drinkable and at a great price. Pair this with ceviche, fish tacos, chicken salad, or solo on a hot day.

2010 Parducci Small Lot Blend Pinot Gris: I think it's telling that I tasted this and thought it might be a steel-tank-fermented, un-wooded, cheap chardonnay. 6% Muscat Canelli was added to the gris, creating an intersting, barely-off-dry citrus and melon set of flavors. If sauvignon blanc or 100% pinot gris is too dry for your friends, I bet they'd love this. Very pretty aromatics, so don't over chill it. $11 srp.

2011 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley: Loads of tropical fruit beats down a touch of green grass that dares show itself. I like that though. Crisp acidity frames the melange of passion fruit, kiwi, and lime flavors. There is a subtle but welcome minerality at play, enhancing the texture. Pair this gem with grilled-shrimp quesadillas and fresh guacamole. $15 srp.







Red:

2009 Parducci Small Lot Blend Merlot: The bouquet is all red cherry and licorice, with a bit of a medicinal quality. On the palate it's spicy, cherry, and vanilla oak. This brings the easy-drinking flavors you expect from an inexpensive merlot. Give this one to your "I don't like red wine" crowd. SRP: $11. 13.5% abv.

2010 Hey Mambo "Sultry Red" Red Wine: An explosion of red fruit; think cherries and raspberries mixed together. It's sweet and easy-drinking, with ample ripe fruit flavors and a tease of vanilla-oak lurking in the background. The finish is just dry enough to stand up to bigger foods. Another "I don't like red wine" crowd pleaser. SRP: $10. 13.5% abv.

2010 Graffigna Centenario Malbec Reserve: This bouquet is all dark aromas, think baking chocolate, spices, and leather. Some black cherry and blueberry peek out too. More full-bodied than the previous two wines, the Graffigna has ample tannin to stand up to steak. Flavors of black fruit, herb, and bittersweet chocolate create a nice texture on the palate. Worth opening a few hours before your party. SRP: $15. 14% abv.

2008 Ash Hollow Headless Red: This one is intriguing, it smells a little reductive but revels aromas of maple and bacon, black fruit, and wood. 58% merlot, 26% cabernet sauvignon, 13% syrah, 3% malbec. There maybe some volatile acidity here too, but it's not a big deal. More maple flavor comes through on the palate, along with spices and black cherry. This one is smooth and easy to sip, while retaining enough tannin and acid to stand firm against a steak or summer sausage. 30 months spent in oak. 14.1% abv.

2009 Parducci Small Lot Blend Cabernet Sauvignon: When I first opened this bottle, I was walloped over the head with a bag of oak. The wine has settled down a lot, with the oak partially retreating and letting some warm red fruits, earthy funk, and green herb come out. Firm tannin restrain that red fruit on the palate, creating a simple yet effectively structured wine to pair with steak or ribs. It's more complex than expected, especially at the $11 price point. 14.0% abv.

2011 Big House Red: The fact that this wine has over 15 different grape varieties should tell you something. My sample showed up in a 3L cask or bag-in-box, in an effort to prove that quality isn't lost. 3L is about four bottles, making this a $5.50 per-bottle red wine. The nose is an explosion of fruity aromas, think raspberry jam, strawberries, blackberries. It's no different on the palate, with jammy fruit leading the way, thankfully reined in by a bit of acidity. It'll go great during the summer when you're headed to a bbq party, and fits the very definition of "crowd pleaser". 13.0% abv.

2009 Ravenswood Sonoma County Old Vine Zinfandel: Joel Peterson consistently produces great wines at reasonable prices. This zinfandel, coming in around $15 a bottle, has all the hallmarks of old vines from warm climates. Aromas of wood smoke, tar, plum, and spices rush out of the glass. I like the complexity, especially at this price point. Lots of dark, intense red fruit to pair with ribs too, along with a wonderful peppery flavor that contrasts with some dark, dusty soil. A tight, clean package of deliciousness. 14.5% abv.




2009 Ravenswood Vintners Blend Petite Sirah: Imagine a bowl full of blueberries and blackberries sitting in a field of dark, earthy soil. Now imagine someone burning oak just a few hundred yards away. That's the nose of this petite sirah. It tastes spicy and rich, with lots of black fruit, dark chocolate, and firm tannin to restrain those two primary flavors. Practically begs for a thick steak, and is a really good deal at $7.99. 13.5% abv.







To test the wines out in more real-life conditions, I had them all open for a barbecue that several of our friends attended. Each wine was tasted along with the food, which included ribs and hot dogs, among other things. My personal favorites were the Ravenswood wines, and the Graffigna Malbec. The group did enjoy the Big House Red and Hey Mambo for what they were, big, fruity, easy-drinking reds.

Each of these wines is worth a pop 'n pour when you are grilling and want something to please a wide range of palates. Perhaps the best part is the pricing, all can be found for between $10 and $15, save for the Big House, but you get a lot of wine in that octagon!

These wines were media samples.

Beau Carufel

Big House Cardinal Zin, Beastly Old Vine Edition

With summer continuing, I remain on the lookout for wines to barbecue with. In my mind, a barbecue wine is cheap, easy to drink, and perfect for sharing with friends. It can also serve as a "3rd bottle" for those nights when you're entertaining and the good times last into the evening. Notice how I didn't mention barebecued food pairings, that's because I tend to think of barbecue wines or outdoor wines as ones you don't have to worry about pairing with any particular food. Over the course of this wonderful summer I have had the chance to sample and review multiple wines I'd put in the barbecue wine category, a few of which are listed right here:
1. 2009 M. Chapoutier Cotes du Rhone "Belleruche"
2. 2009 Santa Carolina Reserva Carmenere
3. 2010 Stepping Stone Corallina Rosé
4. 2010 Muralhas de Moncao Rosé
5. 2009 Bodega Tamari Torrontes

In May I even did a "barbecue wine showdown" pitting the 2009 The Usual Suspects cabernet and the 2009 Pueblo del Sol tannat.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I opened another Big House Wines selection, the 2009 Cardinal Zin Beastly Old Vine. At a suggested retail of around $10 and an actual retail price closer to $7, this meets at least one of the criteria for barbecue wines. Tasting and evaluating it will determine if it's another winner for the summer, and perhaps one to stock up on as we head towards Labor Day.

The 2009 Cardinal Zin is actually a blend, like most Big House red wines. This year, winemaker Georgetta Dane blended 80% zinfandel, 10% mourvedre, 8% carignane, and 2% petite sirah. The zinfandel comes from old vines, something like 40+ years old.

(img src: http://www.bighousewines.com)

Nice packaging! I like the "Cardinal" on there, he looks so thirsty! But so are we, so that means it's time to talk about this Cardinal Zin.

It pours a fairly nondescript purple/red, so basically it looks like red wine. There's no electric violet hue like in some 2009 Beaujolais, nor an entrancing rusty burgundy that I experience in grenache sometimes. Just red wine. With that said, remember this is a potential barbecue wine, so my expectations are simple.

How does it smell? Zinny with a touch of the earthy mourvedre, if you ask me. "Zinny" is candied raisin, plum, black pepper, and a bit of sweet cherry. Some vanilla oak makes an appearance, a bit too heavy for my taste though. The ripe plum and cherry create a good richness and depth, so in a way the 2009 Cardinal Zin coats your palate. I wasn't really happy about the candied raisin, but then again that is a flavor I have found in other old vine zinfandels. For a $10 (or $7) zinfandel-blend, the nose offers good complexity and enough intensity to still be discernible by a slightly dulled olfactory sense. The kind that you get after spending a day grilling and drinking those other two bottles of wine with your friends.

Onward to how the wine tastes. What pleased me the most was the black pepper, prickling the edges of my tongue after a few seconds and restraining the sweet fruit flavors. Yes, I know there's carignane in there, along with mourvedre. I really can't tell though, unless the carignane was letting in the red licorice and candied cherry flavors, and the mourvedre gave the wine it's tannin and earthy flavors right on the fininsh. As for the petite sirah, maybe it was added for color or just to fill out the tanks, I have no clue because I don't think I tasted it at all. Then again my palate might not be sensitive or trained enough.

So, does the 2009 Big House Cardinal Zin Beastly Old Vines make the cut as a barbecue wine? Yes, it does. I gave it a B- and for $7, a BUY recommendation. This isn't something to break out for special occasions or a wine to age in your cellar. It's a good choice for a mid-week pasta dish with red sauce, a weekend barbecue back-up bottle, or that third bottle to open after a fun day with your friends.

This wine was a media sample for review purposes.

Beau Carufel

Barbecue Wine Showdown: Tannat vs. Cabernet Sauvignon

This is a head to head showdown of $10 red wines! One, hailing from Juanico Estate's Pueblo del Sol in Uruguay and the other from the great state of confusion California. Raise your hand if you have ever had a wine from Uruguay before? I see five people raising their hands. Yikes! Now raise your hand if you've ever had the varietal tannat before, regardless of where the wine was from. And that makes 12 people in total, so we've established (entirely unscientifically) that most wine drinkers have never had wine from Uruguay and/or the varietal tannat.

I was recently sent this sample of 2009 Pueblo del Sol tannat from the fine people at TasteVino Selections, who reached out and asked if I was interested. Being the wine geek that I am, of course I said yes, send it over! After resting in my wine fridge for about a month, I was all ready to give it a sniff, swirl, and sip. First though, let's get some background on this relatively obscure grape.

The "national grape" of Uruguay, tannat was brought there in 1870, where it thrived but mostly in the domestic market. There are about 20,000 acres under vine within Uruguay, featuring 270 wineries. This example is from a winery founded in 1830, Juanico Estate. Since 1979, the Deicas family has owned and operated the estate, and is a pioneer in sustainable viticultural practices there.

With that brief bit of info behind us, let's now explore the wine. Pueblo del Sol's tannat is a nice dark red/purple that lightens out towards the edges of the glass. It gave the impression of a dense, flavorful glass of wine, yet is only at 12.5% alcohol. I was interested to learn that this tannat is unoaked, but I couldn't find out if the winemaker used steel tanks or cement casks.

My first whiffs brought back memories of 2009 Beaujolais, with the linear streak of gravel racing up out of my glass. There's more though, some nice plum, blackberry, and desert scrub. The aromas blend together nicely, but you must let this wine open up for a while, something I've noticed in all the tannat's I've ever had.

Tasting the wine immediately brought a smile to my face because this is a wine geek's wine. Very nice structurally, with big, beefy tannins providing a framework for ripe sweet black cherry. More of that minerality comes through along with a dollop of acidity to counter the sweet black fruits. The finish is a bit abrupt, leading me to believe the Pueblo del Sol is going to be better when accompanied by food that is richly flavored and maybe even on the earthy side.

In my opinion, this is a rockin' $10 bottle of wine, one well worthy to add to your summer collection. My only knock would be the abrupt finish, which left me a bit sad and wishing for more. Still, this is a B and a BUY recommendation, especially at that price. You can buy directly from the TasteVino website or from K&L Wine Merchants up in the Bay Area.

From Uruguay, I moved back to California and the grape which catapulted this state to it's (rightful) place among the world's elite wine regions. You may recall I reviewed the 2009 Big House Unchained chardonnay, now I am sampling out the 2009 The Usual Suspect cabernet sauvignon. This cabernet comes in at $10 suggested retail, and 13.5% alcohol. The tech sheet says 30,000 cases were produced in 750ml and 3L formats combined. Since the bottle says "California", the grapes are from all over the state, not any specific appellation.

As an aside, I am positively thrilled to be tasting two lower-alcohol red wines today, and indeed most of the low-alcohol wines I've tasted over the past few months could easily hold their own against wines with higher alcohol content.

Back on topic, there is 10% grenache in here and the winemaker, Georgetta Dane, states that she went for a big, bombastically fruity style. She calls the heavily oaked iterations of cabernet "stodgy"..I tend to agree. The 2009 The Usual Suspect smacks you in the face with a ladle of ripe, jammy red fruit. It's like sniffing a freshly made mixed-berry preserve. Beyond that, the barest hints of green herb and bell pepper peek around the monolithic fruit aromas. Somewhere, a faint aroma of black pepper cries out to be noticed but it's like searching for a tic tac in a glacier.

That massive fruit, while very fresh, carries through to the palate as well. There are just enough tannins though to restrain things before they get crazy. Like that older guy in your fraternity who'd hide the whippets before the freshman got into them at the annual pledge party. Or something...

Anyways! So with the tannins restraining the fruit, I can enjoy this wine for what it is, a summertime barbecue red to whip out when your buddies come over to grill. They'll enjoy it, their girlfriends and wives will too. The Usual Suspect is far from suspect, as far as cabernet sauvignon is concerned. A B- and a BUY recommendation from me. At a suggested retail of $10 and an actual retail closer to $7, it's a nice wine to have on hand as we get into warmer weather.

The head to head battle was close, in the end I might take the Pueblo del Sol over The Usual Suspect simply because it's a more geek-oriented wine. I think they're both well made, good tasting wines. However, if I knew my friends were coming over, I'd also buy a couple of bottles of The Usual Suspect so that they'd have something else to choose from.

These wines were sent as media samples for review.

Beau Carufel

Big House Unchained "Naked" Chardonnay

Big House Wines was spun off from Randall Grahm's Bonny Doon Vineyard back in 2006 after it started to get really, really big. Mr. Grahm decided to refocus on smaller production, boutique wines and let Big House Wines and Pacific Rim become separate entities. Big House was bought by The Wine Group, makers of such gems as Corbett Canyon and Franzia. Meanwhile, Pacific Rim operates as something of an independent subsidy of Bonny Doon Vineyard. Since then, Big House has become known for Big House White and Big House Red, usually wines that are cheap ($7) and made from many different varietals blended together.

While certainly not bad wines, there's also nothing particularly remarkable about the usual vintage of Big House White and Big House Red. I lump them into the category of "barbecue wines", or wines you'll buy multiple bottles of for your backyard barbecues because you don't want friends drinking your good stuff. Traditionally, Big House Wines avoided using more well known varietals like chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon. This was because Randall Grahm went a different route and if you've tasted any of the Bonny Doon wines, you'll realize his route is one of excellence and awesomeness.

That changed though, at least with the 2009 vintage. Winemaker Georgetta Dane decided to create a chardonnay and a cabernet sauvignon. I'll talk about the chardonnay here and the cabernet in a blog post to follow.

The 2009 Big House Unchained Chardonnay is 100% chardonnay from vineyards all over California. It's harvested and then ferments in stainless steel, seeing no oak at all. The wine doesn't undergo malolactic fermentation either, so I don't expect to find any buttery or overly creamy elements. That's confirmed when I smell notes of apple and pear, lemon peel, and a touch of sweet cream.

Tasting at room temperature, to get a sense of how acidic the wine is, was a good idea (for once). The acidity is quite good, framing up really pleasant notes of pear and red apple along with just a touch of something like pineapple. I'm really appreciating the fact that no oak was used, as well as no malolactic fermentation. This is my style of chardonnay, more fruit driven than oak-influenced.

While the alcohol is 13.0%, I didn't detect much heat at all. Maybe a bit on the finish, where I've always been more sensitive to alcohol spikes, but still a good wine. Unfortunately I wish the finish had been longer, the Unchained chardonnay seemed to end rather abruptly in a bit of a disjointed mass of ripe pineapple and acid. Other than that though, I was happy with the aromatics and initial mouthfeel.

I can happily give this wine a B-/B and a BUY recommendation. For $10, it's a really good way to get a crisp sipping white at a wallet-friendly price. On a hot day this would pair superbly well with a Cesar salad or shrimp cocktail. Since Big House made about 30,000 cases, you can easily find this at your local grocery store or liquor store like Total Wine or Beverages and More.

This was a media sample for review purposes sent by Folsom and Associates.


Beau Carufel