Beyond the Hype

Summer's here and the livin' is easy. It's the time for casual wear, casual food, and of course casual wine. For a backyard barbecue, a concert in the park, or a picnic on the beach, I prefer laid-back wines that I don't have to think about. I simply want my "summer whites" crisp, cool, and refreshing and my hot-weather reds fruity, forward, and gulpable.

At this time of year, I prefer not to mull over vintages or vintners or even ratings and reviews. In fact, when visiting friends at their summer homes located in rural towns or seaside resorts, I'm usually faced with the task of shopping for wine at a local store that typically has a wider selection of drink mixes than of chardonnay. In such cases, I tend to go with trusted labels and moderately priced brands. I want wines that haven't been on the shelf too long since country wine stores, at least in my experience, sometimes don't seem too concerned with temperature control or storage. And it appears to me that the wines that move the fastest in these stores are the ones that are mass-marketed on television and radio: Turning Leaf, Ecco Domani, Austin Vale, Corbett Canyon, to name just a few.

So this month, I thought why not take a look at some of these wines and see if they live up to their hype; if, for example, a bottle of Bella Sera will indeed make for a "beautiful evening" or a bottle of Turning Leaf will prove itself "handcrafted for perfect moments."

The best place to find a wide selection of these popular brands was my local wine superstore. Within minutes, my mini-shopping cart was full, with more than a dozen bottles chosen solely on the basis of their radio or television advertising.

I have to admit that I was skeptical; the prices of many were so low that I wondered if my fellow tasters would take them seriously or if I would find more than just a few potable wines. Well, I'm happy to report that out of the thirteen wines in this tasting, only a few received negative reviews. In fact, several of them were found to be outstanding values and would be as appropriate for a formal dinner party as they are for backyard get-togethers.

For our menu, we chose grilled tuna steaks, brushed with olive oil and rubbed with a mixture of parsley, lemon zest, garlic, and sea salt. They were accompanied by a simple couscous and peas. As is our custom, we tasted the wines first by themselves and then accompanied by the meal. The wines are listed below in the order in which they were tasted.

	2001 Ecco Domani, Pinot Grigio delle Venezie IGT ($8.99) Pale straw in color, this Italian Pinot Grigio has a pretty, forward nose, with peach aromas complemented by citrus notes. Light to medium bodied, it has crisp acidity and delivers lingering tart-peach flavors along with some hints of citrus. The wine has good length and finishes with lemon and peach flavors. "As charming as its TV ad," commented one taster. This wine was very good with the food and supported the fish nicely. One of the stars of this tasting. Imported by Ecco Domani USA, Inc. Hayward, CA.

	2000 Bella Sera, Pinot Grigio delle Venezie IGT ($5.99) Pale straw in color, this wine has an off-putting, moldy, almost chemical nose. Light bodied, the faint lemon-citrus flavors are diluted and watery. It has almost no finish to speak of. The nose fought with the food. Definitely not a wine I would recommend. Imported by Ecco Domani USA, Inc. Hayward, CA.

	2000 Woodbridge, Chardonnay, California ($7.99) Pale yellow in color, this wine has an attractive, forward nose, with aromas of melons and peach and just a hint of cream. On the palate, it's medium bodied and delivers buttery flavors complemented by lemon citrus. It's well structured with good acidity and has a nice mouthfeel. The finish is adequate, with butter and tart-peach notes. Very good with meal; the acidity supported the fish.

	2000 Turning Leaf, Chardonnay "Reserve," California ($6.99) Pale yellow in color, this wine has an interesting nose that might remind one of wet or decaying leaves. There were some hints of sulfur as well. Light to medium bodied, it's a bit unctuous on the tongue. The flavors are buttery with some lemon-zest notes that give way to a grapefruit-pith tartness. The finish is adequate, with hints of citrus zest. We found this wine a bit too aggressive for the fish.

	2001 Austin Vale, Chardonnay, South Eastern Australia ($9.99) Pale yellow in color, this Australian import has a big, attractive nose, with fruit-blossom aromas, complemented by nuances of peach and citrus. There's some complexity to the nose. Medium to full bodied, this wine has loads of pineapple and peach flavor together with some butterscotch. The flavors linger, and the wine has a nice mouthfeel and good acidity. There's butterscotch and citrus on the finish, which is a bit more tart than the wine's initial flavors. It complemented the fish nicely. Another star of this tasting. Imported by Austin Vale, San Luis Obispo, CA.

	1998 Gossamer Bay Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon delle Venezie ($5.99) Deep ruby in color, this wine has plenty of legs. It has a severe nose of wild cherry and green bell pepper. Medium bodied, the wine is well structured, with supple tannins and good acidity. It's forward on the palate and packed with wild-cherry flavors. It finishes well, showing notes of green bell pepper. This wine went well with food. Given its price, this wine is an outstanding value. Imported by Gossamer Bay Vineyards, Modesto, CA.

	2000 Delicato, Cabernet Sauvignon, California ($9.99/1.5L) Deep ruby in color with good legs, this wine has a forward nose that starts off with vegetal aromas but ends with Bing cherry. (We were divided over the nose; some liked it; others didn't.) Medium bodied, with supple tannins, the wine delivers black-cherry, cassis, and raisiny flavors. There's not a hint of wood. It finishes well with raisiny notes. It went nicely with the fish; however, one taster found it too aggressive. A pleasant wine that delivers more than its nose promises.

	1997 Corbett Canyon, Cabernet Sauvignon "Reserve," Napa Valley ($5.99) Garnet in color with tinges of rust, this wine has good legs. The nose is forward, with burnt-sugar and vanilla aromas. There's some heat on the nose. Light to medium bodied, this is an uncomplicated wine that delivers black-cherry and licorice flavors. It's nicely structured, with adequate acidity and very soft tannins. It has a good finish with licorice, spice, and raisin notes and a bit of warmth as well. There's an underpinning of raisiny sweetness from start to finish. The wine was very good with the food. Another star of this tasting. And another exceptional value.

	1998 Gallo of Sonoma, Gallo Family's Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County ($10.99) Deep ruby in color with nice legs, this wine has a deep nose of berries and black cherry, complemented by nuances of woodsy mushrooms. On the palate, this is an elegant wine. Medium bodied, it delivers smoky, tobacco flavors that evolve into spice and black fruit. There's a level of complexity to it. It's well structured with fruit and tannins in good balance. The finish is good. This wine went well with the fish. One taster found it more European or old-world in style than Californian. One more star of this tasting.

	1999 Turning Leaf, Shiraz "Reserve," California ($6.99) Ruby in color, this wine has long legs. The nose is locker-room, with vegetal and cabbage notes along with some sulfur. On the palate, it's light bodied with vanishing flavors of sour fruit. There's almost no finish to it. It was just a tad better with the food. "Turn the page," quipped one disappointed taster spitting.

	2001 Austin Vale, Shiraz, South Eastern Australia ($9.99) Bright ruby in color with nice legs, this wine has an attractive nose with rock-candy and spice aromas. There are some berry notes as well. Light bodied with supple tannins, it delivers rock-candy and sweet, yet not overly fruity, raspberry flavors that are complemented by some spice notes. It has an adequate finish, again showing some spice. There's some heat to this wine. It was good with the food. Imported by Austin Vale, San Luis Obispo, CA.

	2000 Woodbridge, Zinfandel, California ($5.99) Ruby in color, this wine has good legs. The nose is attractive, with spice and blackberry aromas complemented by root-vegetable notes. On the palate, it's medium bodied and it delivers sweet raisin and black-cherry flavors as well as some crushed black pepper. The flavors linger. There's some heat on the burnt-sugar finish. This wine was good with the meal, even though it was a bit too heavy for the fish. It would be better served with beef or sausage. It's really a great value.

	N.V., Arbor Mist, Exotic Fruits White Zinfandel ($3.99) Perfect pink in color, this wine is kool-aid with a kick. It's not really a serious wine, but given the amount of advertising, we had to try it for this feature. However, if you like your wine sweet and low in alcohol, you might enjoy it--but more as a cooler than as a dinner wine.

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TableWine is a personal website and does not sell any wine. However, many of the wines we review are purchased from our local wine merchants, Wine & Spirit World in Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ and The Wine Seller in Ridgewood, NJ. The Wine & Spirit World website may help you locate a good number of our selections. You might also use the database of quality wine merchants at Wine Searcher.com to help find wines that are difficult to locate. Finally, if your local wine store does not carry a wine that you've read about here, don't hesitate to ask them to order a bottle or two for you. For imported wines, you may need to supply them with the name of the importer or distributor.

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