by David Haley
Wines of Change or Leaving Your Wine Comfort Zone
The promise of spring and early summer ushers in change on all fronts; the rebirth of trees and flowers is the catalyst to break us out of our winter mold. New seasonal foods arrive daily. So why do we insist on selecting the same wine when we visit our local wine shop? Easy answer: our desire to remain in our comfort zone takes over. Change is constant, healthy, and should be part of our exploration of wine. Resist the urge to buy that same Chardonnay or Merlot.
Break your comfort zone of wine.
Here are some affordable off-the-beaten-path reds and whites that can be enjoyed with a variety of foods. Prices listed are an average retail price.
White Wines
Gruner Veltliner
Hard to pronounce-easy to drink. Fans have shortened the name to Gru-Vee. The difficulty of saying it is worth every drop! From the hills of Austria comes this clean, bright, refreshing white. Gruner exhibits a light mineral character that pairs well with mild to moderate flavored cheese, pasta with lemon, garlic, and basil, or roast chicken. They are reasonable in price and offer an exciting alternative in the white wine category. These are two of my favorites.
Weingut Huber Gruner Veltliner 2005
A great starting point for Gruner, this selection offers aromas of peach and apple, lemon, and lime citrus notes and a slightly mineral finish. Great value at $12.
Berger Gruner Veltliner 2005
A more unique style with interesting aromas of white flowers and minerals. The fruit component tends to pear and tropical fruit with a creamier finish than Huber. A solid wine for $15.
Spanish Chardonnay
Spain has become a treasure trove of superb values in the last ten years and most of my favorite Spanish wines are of the red persuasion. That said, I must recommend this delicious white I discovered at lunch at Eastern Standard in Boston recently. I was leaning to a crisp Sauvignon Blanc when Jackson, behind the bar, suggested the Raimat Chardonnay to accompany an old classic fish and chips. What a match. After sixteen years in the wine business I am still excited about finding great a ten-dollar food-wine! (Restaurant recommendation: Eastern Standard, Boston, Massachusetts, easternstandardboston.com Ask for Jackson at the bar.)
Raimat Chardonnay 2005, Costers De Segre Spain
This Chardonnay offers a solid core of fruit. It has a rounded, appealing, and honeyed nose, crisp fruit and devoid of all oak treatment. A little harder to find, but worth the search. This wine did strike me for exceptional value and quaffing potential. $10.00.
Pinot Grigio with style! 
Too often Pinot Grigio is light, thin (lacking fruit), and just plain uninteresting. That does not mean some great values do not exist. One of my all time favorites for quality, consistency, price, and availability, is Santi Pinot Grigio" Sortesele" 2006.
The Santi family traces its origins to 1843 when Carlo Santi established a wine cellar in Illasi, near Verona in Italy. Santi favors a technique that vinifies Pinot Grigio at a slightly warmer temperature than normal, which enhances aromatics and mouth feel in this wine. Pinot Grigio thrives in the 84 acre Sortesele vineyard situated in the Adige valley, north of Mezzacorona, in Trentino.
Santi is pale straw in color with a green tint. The wine has complex aromas of pears, exotic fruits and wild flowers. On the palate, the wine is generous with lively fruit. Acidity is present to balance the fruit and the wine has a long finish. Sushi, Sole and Shellfish will go very well with Santi. $14.00 (The 2005 vintage is also recommended.)
Red Wines
Two Argentine values!
Argentina has taken its place on the stage of great wine value producers with more to come in the years ahead. A stable economy and infrastructure that makes it the world's fifth ranking country in wine production. Mendoza is the capital of Argentine wine production with many of the top name producers situated here but values can be found in other regions as well.
La Puerta Cabernet Sauvignon, La Pampa 2006
Where did that good $10.00 Cabernet Sauvignon go? It went to Argentina. Here is one to look for from the little known region of La Rioja. A bright core of cherry and raspberry fruit, a nuance of vanilla from four months in oak, and a dry finish with very soft tannin. Nothing too complex here, just a good wine to accompany your trip to the backyard grill. $10.00.
Trapiche "Oak Cask" Malbec 2005
Great producer of quality wines headquartered in Argentina's wine capital of Mendoza. The Oak Cask series, which includes Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and Chardonnay, are all good values, but the Oak Cask Malbec, which is Argentina's signature grape stands above the others.
The Oak Cask Malbec is deep red violet in color with plum and blackberry fruit evident on a rich mid palate. In the finish, it has a light smokey character that adds to the complexity. Lots of wine for the money $11.00.
One for the Rhone
Delas Freres Cotes du Rhone Red St. Esprit 2005
Still a great source of easy drinking reds, the Southern Rhone offers Cotes du Rhone wines made primarily from the Grenache grape, but sometimes Syrah, Mouvedre, and Carignan find their way into these blends. Delas Freres is a consistent, highly regarded producer who excels in the values category.
This delicious wine offers all four of these grapes. Cuvee "Saint Esprit' hails from the Ardeche region where granite hillsides lends the wine a mineral character and a bright peppery spice that works well with Mediterranean foods and grilled meats. Retail $11.00.
Break out of your wine comfort zone and try some of these wines. Let me know what you think about them. Look for my next article exploring the growing trend in Unoaked Chardonnay.
-David Haley
As president of Haley Marketing Group, a New England based wine brokerage, David Haley travels to wine regions around the world to discover exceptional wine values. (He calls it work, but that’s debatable.) His background in wine spans sixteen years in the wholesale and wine import business with some of the most prestigious importers in America.
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