WineInk: Six white wine grapes to sip in Aspen

With apologies to Bob Dylan, after I consider white wines, pictures of blondes typically pop into my thoughts. It’s humorous, I don’t consider redheads after I open a rosé and hair shade by no means enters the dialogue after I’m consuming a deep darkish glass of crimson wine. However white wines simply appear to me to be blonde.

And since it’s summer time, this can be a good time to get to get know a number of of the fairest-haired wines on the planet. Oh certain, it’s possible you’ll be a lover of Chardonnay and you will have had a dalliance with Sauvignon Blanc, however what about among the extra unique white wine grapes that inhabit the planet? There are a whole bunch of white wine grape varieties — most are literally inexperienced — that populate vineyards, and there are some that you will have by no means heard of which might be astonishingly prevalent.

The Spanish Airén, for example, is a fairly obscure grape. However due to its position as a grape spirit typically utilized in brandies, it’s, at the least when it comes to acreage, essentially the most planted white wine grape on God’s inexperienced Earth. Effectively, it was as just lately as 2016 when the latest international figures had been compiled. My guess is that Chardonnay has supplanted Airén by now (see what I did there) because it has gained reputation all through the wine world. Whereas I’ve tasted a whole bunch of Chardonnay wines, I need to say I’ve by no means tasted a bottling of Airén.

Ah, however there are different Spanish white wines that may be delectable. The blondes, er, whites, from Spain have proven appreciable enchancment lately as winemakers have been experimenting with historical varieties and stepped up their sport. Wines produced from Spanish grapes like Godello from Gallicia, Verdejo from Rueda and Xarel.lo from Catalonia are all changing into extra extensively obtainable right here within the U.S.

However the grape to know now could be Albariño. Produced within the northwestern climes of the Rías Baixas area of Galicia, the place Spain meets the cool winds from the Atlantic Ocean, the wines might be contemporary and chic. Usually dry and stuffed with the flavors of summer time fruits and melons, with occasional hints of contemporary grass, Albariño wines are transportive. And they’re an ideal accompaniment to meals from the ocean, particularly shellfish. You may attempt a 2019 La Cana Albariño by the glass whereas sitting on a summer time afternoon on the Victoria +co espresso + wine bar and picture that you just’re seaside on the Spanish coast.

Riesling is one other grape that has the flexibility to take you locations in a glass and it has traveled effectively in its personal proper. You might consider sweetness whenever you assume Riesling, however dry wines, these with little to no residual sugar, produced from the grape might be revelatory. Flavors vary from inexperienced apples to pineapples however it’s the acidity that permits it to pair so effectively with meals. Native to the Rhine River wine area of Germany, scrumptious variations of the wine at the moment are discovered from Austria to Australia, the place wines from the Eden and Claire Valleys are stellar. Right here within the States, New York produces some very fantastic wines from Riesling. New York? Order a glass of the Forge Cellars Dry Riesling from Seneca Lake at Clark’s Oyster Bar in Aspen to pair with a choice of New Brunswick oysters and inform me what you assume.

Discuss to sommeliers and the phrase “minerality” will typically pop up as a descriptor when discussing wines produced from the Austrian Grüner Veltliner grape. By no means thoughts that “minerality” is a obscure, un-defined euphemism. Typically it’s thrown on the market to impress, however within the case of Grüner — or groovy as some name it — it simply sounds proper.

Vibrant, with strong acidity, citrusy flavors, a white pepper pop and that sense of “minerals,” one of the best examples of Grüner Veltliner might be good enhances to all kinds of meals. It’s no accident that Aspect 47 on the Little Nell Lodge has a Grüner Veltliner by the glass that you could attempt, the Weszeli Grüner Veltliner “Terrafactum” Kamptal, Austria 2019. It’s a wine that’s licensed as each natural and vegan.

A part of the enchantment of white wines is that they are often so simply paired with dishes that in any other case will not be essentially wine-friendly. The aforementioned vegan Grüner Veltliner, for instance, can match with many vegetarian dishes (assume cauliflower steak). And the Forge Riesling can even stand as much as a spicy yellow curry dish. However what about spicy Thai or Chinese language dishes and even sushi? What goes effectively with these cuisines?

At Jing in Aspen, which specializes within the numerous cuisines of Asia, the wine record options many bubbles, together with Champagne and home sparklers. However a break up of Mionetto Prosecco, a glowing wine made within the Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia wine areas of Northeastern Italy, can be on the record to pair with the meals of the Far East. Whereas the grape utilized in Prosecco was previously known as Prosecco, after the village Prosecco, it was renamed by the European Union as Glera in 2009 in a controversial choice that was made for political functions. Simply so you already know.

However the level is that Prosecco wines produced from the Glera grape have the acidity, the bubbles and a creamy mouthfeel that make the wines nice for pairing with spicy Asian meals. Be it Jing’s Scorching Pepper Prawns, the Spicy Child Octopus, and even the Kung Fu Eggplant, bubbles make all of it only a bit higher.

And since we’re speaking Italy, I just lately acquired a bottle of sunshine from the Italian island of Sardinia. The wine was a Surrau “Sciala” Vermentino di Gallura DOCG Superiore with Vermentino because the grape. This wine got here from a stony, windswept nook of the island within the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. The wine had a wealthy complexity and it jogged my memory of Sauvignon Blanc with heavy doses of tropical fruits, and to make use of that phrase once more, minerality. Vermentino is a grape on an upswing as effectively, and it’s being grown within the Lodi area of California and, beneath the title Rolle, is a grape utilized in many white and rosé wines in Provence.

Wanna give it a attempt? Steakhouse 316 pours by the glass an Antinori “Tenuta Guado Al Tasso” Vermentino from the Bolgheri area of Tuscany — a Ferry journey away from Sardinia — that’s very good as effectively. Give it a go together with some King Crab legs. It is not going to disappoint.

So there it’s: 5 blondes or white wine grapes to maintain you busy this June. You could have observed there was not a French selection within the bunch. We’ll maintain these for a future column.

Cheers!