Bridging the Gap Between Summer and Fall Wines

If San Pellegrino water (with a twist of lime) was wine, I would have been in deep rehab during the waning summer days of late August. Summer is the time when I’m more eager to slice open a perfect Long Island tomato, or husk a just-picked ear of Hudson Valley corn, than to reach for a corkscrew.But here’s an essential fact about wine: Like wardrobes, this liquid has its own seasons. It would be as out-of-kilter to pour a fleshy, alcoholic Chateauneuf-du-Pape or a wham-bang Australian Syrah in the summer as it would be to suit up in wool tweeds. Even a cerebral white wine, such as a minerally Corton-Charlemagne, is off-limits on my table so long as the crickets still chirp loudly in the evening.But it’s now time for what I call “segue” wines, which are the equivalent of cotton sweaters. They’re of a class whose duty it is to be not merely refreshing, like summer wines, or to carry weight and richness, like winter wines, but to be somewhere in between. They are the mid-weights that ease us into the season when the crickets become silent and the evenings turn crisp. That’s a good time to look beyond the usual suspects, such as cabernet and chardonnay, for offbeat wines of modest profile that deserve more attention than they normally get. Below, I’ve suggested eight such segue wines, divided between red and white, all available at local shops.With all due respect to the seasonality of wines, there is one example that effortlessly jumps all divides, and can perk up any hour of the day. It’s called Champagne.WHITESRobert Mondavi Fumé Blanc Reserve 2004 ($34.89 at Bedford Wine Merchants, bedfordwines.com) — The word “fumé” is a seasonal key, evoking the woodsmoke of vineyard fires made from post-vintage vine cuttings. Mondavi himself coined the term “fumé blanc” in the 1960s, and the winery he founded is still its master. It’s not a heavyweight, but barrel fermentation, rather than the usual stainless steel, makes this wine more textured than typical sauvignon blanc. You might even catch a whiff of that smokiness. Perfect with a flavorsome filet of late-summer striped bass.Perrin Réserve, Côtes du Rhone Blanc 2007 ($9.99 at 67 Wines & Spirits, 67wine.com) — A blend of hot-clime grapes that get no respect on their own: Bourboulenc, Grenache blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne, and the like. They add up to a toothsome and spicy pour with that extra bit of weight appropriate to the season. An un-shy partner to Indian food.Stadlmann Zierfandler Mandel-Höh 2006 ($26.93 at Crush Wine & Spirits, crushwineco.com) — Unique to the Thermen region south of Vienna, this age-worthy wine is a subtle spice bomb, and more fulsome than typical whites from neighboring Germany. It’s more alcoholic, too. As Crush’s Austrian specialist, Stephen Bitterolf, points out, Zierfandler’s fennel and dark fruit profile is true to summer’s end.Etude Pinot Gris, Carneros 2006 ($23.18 at Cellarbrokers.com) — A wine with more body and presence than its Italian rendition as pinot grigio, this wine expresses late summer nectarine essences propelled by zingy acidity. Etude takes this wine as seriously as it does its pricey pinot noirs, using estate grapes augmented by batches from the esteemed Hyde Vineyards.REDSChinon, Clos des Capucins 2005, Jean-Maurice Raffault ($28.99 at PJ Wine, pjwine.com) — Cabernet franc — the grape of Chinon — can be weedy, even nasty, when it is unripe. In a flawless vintage such as this one, the wine has tang and thrust, yet no great weight. There’s a mushroomy undertone to this wine that verges on autumnal.Lodola Nuova, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva 2000, Ruffino ($37.95 at Sherry-Lehmann, sherry-lehmann.com) — The scent and savor of this wine reminded me what it’s like to deeply inhale while driving by the tobacco aging barns of the Connecticut Valley after harvest. A velvety red with reservoirs of gentle flavor, ready to partner with a root vegetable stew.Bierzo “Petalos” 2006, Descendientes de J. Palacios ($18.99 at Garnet Wines & Liquors, garnetwine.com) — Much “new wave” Spanish wine is blockbuster in style, but not this Bierzo. Made from Mencia, a distinctive indigenous grape, the wine sends up lavender and leather aromas. Not the least bit heavy, but flavors do spread out generously in the mouth. A bargain.

Bridging the Gap Between Summer and Fall Wines

Bridging the Gap Between Summer and Fall Wines

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