We are heading into the fall, which hopefully means cooler, less humid weather.
To hedge my bets, here are recommendations for wines suited to those conditions:
» 2014 Scherrer Dry Rose (about $22 a bottle): My wife, Cheryle, and I are huge fans of Scherrer wines, mainly because it’s harder than most people think to find a winery that produces one grape-variety-driven wine well.
Gifted winemaker Fred Scherrer can accomplish this with six or seven. While we adore his pinots, zinfandels, cabernets and chardonnays, the focus here is on his pink wine.
The 2014 is a ying-yang coupling of the syrah and grenache grape varieties. Scherrer’s almost artistic skill creates a seamless synergy that accentuates the perfume, deliciousness and roundness of grenache and the structure of syrah. This rose is refreshing and interesting, and an added plus is its versatility at the lunch and dinner tables.
This wine follows a long string of standout pinks by Scherrer worth checking out.
» 2012 Chateau Fontanes “Les Traverses de Fontanes” (about $18): You will be surprised to know that this tasty, rustic French “country” wine is 100 percent cabernet sauvignon from 40-year-old vines farmed biodynamically. This is quite amazing when you consider the price.
But if you’re expecting a ripe, opulent, fruit-driven Californian cabernet, you will be missing the point. This offering embodies the wild countryside where it is grown — think sun-baked rocks, wild shrubs and herbs. It’s a wine that’s almost crafted for pairing with hearty foods such as roast chicken, meatloaf, pizza and vegetable or light meat pastas.
It’s a wine for the family dinner table, not the wine cellar.
» 2012 Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona Toscana Rosso (about $16): At Vino (targeted to reopen later this month at a new location in Waterfront Plaza), we always try to have at least one wine like this one to offer by the glass. Why? Because it’s delicious, food friendly and gulpable. I think that’s the sweet spot of the sangiovese grape variety.
The 2012 is pretty to look at, with a wonderful perfume of sour cherries, cedar, forest floor and roasted chestnuts. It is light in weight and mouthfeel, and therefore highly food friendly, especially for Mediterranean fare.
I imagine this is what the family serves regularly at their dinner table.
» 2012 Daou Cabernet Sauvignon “Paso Robles” (about $22): Paso Robles, Calif., is a hotbed for interesting red wines. While there’s been hoopla over the region’s Rhone-like wines, there’s also a growing fascination for their cabernet sauvignon-based reds as well.
Please understand that the cabernets of this appellation are distinct in style and profile from the darker wines of Napa Valley. These feature more red fruits and, at their best, a minerality and lack of heaviness many people attribute to the limestone, marine-siliceous clay soils of the region.
The Daou estate is at one of the highest-altitude spots, and the two Daou brothers have invested all their passion, time and money into fulfilling the potential of their estate and region. This 2012 has lots of layers of flavor; it’s an interesting wine with wonderful texture and compelling balance. While this may not quite be a Grand Cru wine, it certainly overdelivers for the dollar.
Chuck Furuya is a master sommelier and a partner in the DK Restaurants group. Follow his blog at chuckfuruya.com.