Hungry!

REDS for Woodburning and Grilling!

Well, even though the warm weather is again playing peek-a-boo, this week I promised you some of our new favorite reds for grill cuisine, and let's add woodburning ovens for some of you too! So what's the big mystery? Red wine with red meat. Yes, it can be that simple, but let's make it more complicated by considering a wine's affinity for wood smoke, spice rubs, marinades, bbq sauces, and various fatty meats.

For some of you "Cabernet only" folks there is no point in arm twisting. You know what you like and nothing else matters...except price and a good grilled NY or ribeye steak! Good Cabs are expensive! But the new 08 Broadside Cabernet Sauvignon from Margarita Vineyard in Paso Robles (yes, Ancient Peaks' home ranch vineyard!) is an outstanding value...easily the equal of a $50+ bottle from Napa Valley. The 08 is the 3rd rendition of Broadside; I liked the 06, but skipped the 07 vintage. Chris Brockway likes to let the natural expression of the vineyard and the varietal show through. He makes this Cabernet without commercial yeast, acid, or bacteria. The wine, 97% Cabernet Sauvignon & 3% Petit Verdot, has been aged 15 months in 100% French oak. 98% of the barrels have been used in previous vintages, so they are "neutral" or imparting minimal influence other than minute oxidation to round and soften the wine. Fresh, vibrant aromas of plum, cassis, and spice cachet, catch a boost of blackberries on the palate with the slight nuance of telltake minerality from the Margarita Vineyard that rests on an uplifted ocean bed of fossilized oyster shells. Balanced and harmonious, but with a firm underpinning of tannins on patrol just looking for a well marbled piece of salt and peppered charry beef! The alcohol is a tolerable 14.1%. We call it REAL wine.

08 BROADSIDE CABERNET SAUVIGNON,

MARGARITA VINEYARD, PASO ROBLES

$22.95 - NOW $19.50/OR 6+ $16.95

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BEST VALUE goes to a Spanish red from the Rioja region that delivers a boatload of youthful, juicy, bright berry-cherry fruit. From 40 year old vineyards entrenched in limestone at 1,800 feet, Solnia is a hand picked, sorted, tank fermented and aged, equal blend of Tempranillo and Graciano that really over performs. A newcomer to famed Spanish importer Jorge Ordonez's portfolio (Alto Moncayo, El Nido (Clio), Can Blau, et al.) if you liked the Borsao Oton Garnacha, or Volver's Paso a Paso, then you'll love this BIG "wash it down" GULPER that will find a friend with just about anything you throw down on the grill. NOT a light weight by any means, but ready to rumble, try the Solnia with grilled spicy sausage and peppers, lamb burgers, bbq sauced baby backs, marinaded chicken legs/thighs, or even your new signature wood- oven margherita pizza with proscuitto. Don't be hesitant to slightly chill when the weather gets hot!! This is the ultimate "milk & cookies" wine, inviting your challenge at the grill, and affordable for casual entertaining!

08 Bodegas y Vinedos Ilurce Solnia - Rioja, Spain

$11.95 - NOW $10.75 FOR 6+ BOTTLES

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Did I forget the ZIN? No, and as much as this varietal arguably once made Calfornia's most popular grill/bbq wines, encounters with many of today's Zins pose an over-the-top, ultra ripe, sweet jam bomb, high alcohol style only compatible with post kegger cigars at my old frat house! BUT, I did find a slightly modern take on Italian Primitivo from Puglia (heel of the boot), that reminds me of old school Zin, and will pair perfectly with richer cuts of meat like marinaded lamb, or spice rubbed/bbq slopped beef or pork ribs.

Tomaresco's 06 Torcicoda Primitivo from the Salento IGT in Puglia is old vine "Zin" as we once knew it; briary black berry and dark plum from front to back, with underlying floral spice, and a streak of earthy minerality lurking in the background for intrigue. The rich dark fruits are dry, full and fresh on the palate. A slight tartness runs with youthful tannins which make this wine an ideal combatant for fatty meats. Aged in used Hungarian and French oak for ten months, a slight rusticity in the Torcicoda has been preserved, and convinces you the wine is expressing its place.