WINE CHAT: Wines Fit for the Fourth

Enjoying a grilled feast with friends and family is right up there with fireworks as a Fourth of July tradition.  Sure, some people will choose lemonade or beer to accompany their Fourth cookout.  But if like me you think nothing enhances a meal like the right glass of wine, you’ll want to know what bottle to choose before the firework display.

 Prairie Silva, Wine Scout for Wine Tasting of Sonoma County, advises, "The key to wine pairing is in the sauce.  Make flavor bridge:  find similarities in the wine and the food to make agreeable pairings." 

Foods that come off the grill are not known for subtlety.  Spicy sauces and smoky flavors need to be considered in picking a wine fit for the Fourth.  Burgers, ribs slathered in barbeque sauce, thick bone-in pork chops and other such meaty treats call for bold, fruit forward reds.  Think modestly priced, New World bottles from say California, Australia, or maybe South Africa; save that Bordeaux premiere cru for another occasion. 

Given that I like sauces with some kick, grilling is a great excuse to serve zinfandel, one of my favorite wines.  Zin is known for big fruit and has a bit of spice, making it a well-suited for grilling.  Plus, as an American grape, serving zin for the Fourth is patriotic too!

My zinfandel recommendations have to start with Ravenswood, because a visit to their Napa winery some years ago helped pique my interest in wine.  For the Fourth, I like the Ravenswood 2003 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel, which has bold blackberry flavor with some complexity.  At $17, it is half the price of Ravenswood’s single vine offerings from Napa and Sonoma.  Value seekers should know that zinfandel thrives in Lodi, located in California’s San Joaquin County.   From nearby Amador County ($15), the 2005 Easton Zinfandel is one to try for grilling.  This wine has a rich bouquet and after breathing for about 15 minutes opens up with a nice berry taste. 

I’ll round out my zin suggestions by heading to the Sonoma Coast.  At $12 a bottle, the Four Vines 2004 Old Vine Cuvee has become my go to zin lately.  This has big fruit flavors with a smooth finish and stands up to a wide range of grilled fare.

Similar to zinfandel with a big fruit taste, shiraz is well-suited for grilling too.  Often found in blends from Rhone region where it is known as Syrah, Shiraz stars on its own in places like Australia, South Africa and California.

The other night we had the Fire Station Red 2004 Shiraz ($15), a blend of California grapes that is a good match for a spicy barbecue sauce, with tastes of blackberry jam taste and hints of spice.  Several Australian Shirazes come in at under $20 and warrant a place on your shopping list for the Fourth.    The 2005 Layer Cake Shiraz tops my list of Australian grilling choices. The Winner’s Tank 2005 Shiraz Langhorne got a 91 from Parker and passed muster with me too.  The Burley Fox 2005 Shiraz and the Woop Woop Shiraz make good bargain choices at around $12.

Here in New England, summer and grilling season are just getting started.  So pop open a bottle of wine for the Fourth, and let us know if you find something good.  And I'll be sure to share any new finds of mine here on Gather

David Crowley, Gather Food Correspondent 

David enjoys sharing good food and wine with family and friends.  David writes about his wine explorations and discoveries in his column,"Wine Chat", is a twice-monthly feature of Gather Essentials:  Food.  He also blogs about food and wine at Cooking Chat.  By day, David is the President and Founder of Social Capital Inc.