glass of wine with food
Back to school season is kind of overwhelming, right? The pressure to get on a school schedule, the pressure to do all the last things you can only do in good weather, from sealing the patio to grabbing those last beach days. When can a person just relax? Here’s my advice: Build in some time to enjoy these good days of big garden blooms and fat buzzy bumblebees, grab a friend, lift a glass. These are the good busy days.
Scaia, Rosato, 2018
Light as a whisper, clean as a sunbeam, this rosé from a region near Venice seems to be made of Venetian light—and very much wants to come with you on any journey involving seafood and something green from the garden.
Michel Picard, Le Petit Perroy Vouvray, 2017
What a pretty French sip: Ginger and white peach, a succulent fullness, a tangy finish. You won’t find a better brunch pair or wine for fruit and cheese on the deck. Charming!
Hello World, Cabernet Franc, 2018
Not just an adorable label, this Spanish-grown red is a super-concentrated, ultra inky joy: Plummy and peppery, spicy and intense. If ordinary red wine is coffee, this is espresso—great by a campfire, or with your good salami and cayenne almonds.
Bacaro, Nero d’Avola, 2017
The little island of Sicily, off the toe of Italy’s boot, is known for the biggest of big flavors in food: Caponata, pasta with sardines and anchovies, the least-wimpy of pizzas. The wine to drink with all of them? Native Sicilian Nero d’Avola, big and bold, full of blackberries and raspberry leaves, tart and alive.
D’Autrefois, Pays d’Oc Quincie, 2017
Old-school, old-world French Pinot Noir was prized for being delicate, gossamer, crystalline. This is that old-school Pinot, transparent and light, an ideal table wine for everything from scallops to steak.
Row 503, Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
When you want a lush and plush, velvety and sexy sort of cult Oregon Pinot Noir but don’t want to pay $100, try this! Delicious, rich raspberries with a through-line of whoomphing spice, it’s delightful.
