Wines For Beating The Heat

It’s getting brutal out there, and while I am all for chilling down (slightly) red wines, white wines seem the best choice this summer, not least for the kind of food that doesn’t require standing over a barbecue grill. Here are some to enjoy.

LA GRANDE DAME ROSÉ 2012 ($320). The release of this splendid vintage has been long awaited from the marque that created the first blended rose Champagne back in 1818. Ninety percent of its Pinot Noir comes from the House’s Grands Crus as well as a red wine from ‘Clos Colin’ in Bouzy, a Grand Cru terroir. Ten percent Chardonnay comes from Avize and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. This is a wine to serve for a special occasion to special friends who can appreciate its finesse. It’s also key to enjoying with caviar and smoked salmon.

CLIFF LEDE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2022 ($30). Grapes from Napa Valley’s prestigious Stags Leap District, Calistoga and Carneros, as well as a old vines from Rutherford planted to a heritage Musqué clone, give this Sauvignon Blanc a great deal more complexity than is usual in the varietal. In 2022 extreme heat caused progressive harvesting through September to preserve fresh acidity and aromatics. The addition of 22% Sémillon gives added flavor and the alcohol is a robust 13.6%.

YALUMBA “Y” VIOGNIER 2022 ($12). Viognier is a tricky varietal because it can have aromatics that are too pronounced, but Yalumba’s “Y” series from South Australia, made by winemaker Heather Fraser from a vintage with cool nights that allowed multiple flavors to emerge in balance, gives the wines fresh, clean flavors with lovely floral notes that is Viognier’s appeal. The wild fermentation and aging on the lees provide more nuance than usual, so this is a good wine at a good price for dishes like Asian chicken salad and grilled shrimp.

BECKSTOFFER SAUVIGNON BLANC 2022 ($42). Sauvignon Blancs should always be drunk in their current vintage, for age bestows little improvement to the essential flavors of the grape. This comes from winemaker Andy Beckstoffer, best known for his big Cabernet Sauvignons, so this white wine from his Melrose Vineyard in Rutherford is a pleasant surprise (if a little pricey), with a good deal of minerality and just a touch of sweetness and apple flavors to make it a true summer cooler, and a very good cheese wine.

MOUNT VEEDER WINERY CHARDONNAY 2021 ($50). A year’s passage has indeed brought this Los Carneros Chardonnay to full fruition. It enjoys cooling fog from San Pablo Bay and the loam-rich soil is ideal for Chardonnay that does not require the problematic use of too much oak to achieve what the winery calls its “mountain style,” with a fine dose of acidity so often lacking in Napa Chardonnays. Still, this is a whopping 14.5% alcohol, so it’s a white wine that goes best with spicier dishes and butter sauces. Excellent with broiled or roasted lobster.

PETALUMA WHITE LABEL CHARDONNAY 2022 ($28). Petaluma sells a much more expensive Chardonnay, but this one is well-priced and very California in its style, with a lot of body, a discernible note of oak and caramel. The grapes are from Adelaide Hills and Coonawarra, pressed and put into stainless steel tanks, cold settled, then racked to stainless steel tanks or older oak barriques for fermentation with a percentage of solids to add texture and weight, matured on the lees for about six months before blending by winemaker Ben Thoman and then, after filtration, bottling at 13.5 percent alcohol. It’s a great choice for all shellfish, chowders and blue cheeses.

EMRICH-SCHÖNLEBER RIESLING MINERAL TROCKEN 2021 ($34). German wines deserve more respect, not least Rieslings from the Nahe Valley, where soil and climate conditions make for an ideal of what the varietal can be. They are also very nicely priced. The vineyards of 20 hectares were planted 60 years ago, and the family makes only single estate Rieslings from Frühlingsplätzchen, Halenberg and Niederberg, now listed as a “Erste Lage” or “First Growth.” The Trocken wines are dry, with sour apple acids and wonderful aromas and with foods like sausages, pork and trout they are excellent match-ups.