WINE OF THE WEEK-DRY CREEK SONOMA OLD VINES ZINFANDEL 2015-$28.98

by Dwight Casimere

A bold, beautiful wine, full of rich red fruit flavors of blackberries, dark plums, dried oregano, and cracked pepper with hints of dark unsweetened cocoa

on the finish, this is the perfect wine to go with a well-aged Cowboy Rib Eye steak, right off the grill or a slab of Baby Back Ribs in a dark molasses sauce. The wine has a dark ruby-red color that is appealing. The color is a sign of things to come, with a nice jammy taste, like the blackberry jam your grandmother made when you were a kid. The smooth tannins and 14.5% alcohol give this wine considerable body. The combination of 78% Zinfandel, 19% Petit Syrah and 3% Carignan makes for a broad flavor palate of black cherries, black currants, cherries, raspberries, with a bit of cinnamon spice from oak aging. This is a beautiful wine that you'll want to linger with long after the meal is over. Have it with a slick of Silton or well-aged Gouda or Machengo cheese for a nice after-dinner treat .It also goes well with California Black Figs, which can occasionally be found at Whole Foods. 

This wine could even be better better with a year or two of bottle aging, but why bother. Enjoy it now, its perfect just as it is. 

VINITALY SHINES AT 2018 SUMMER FANCY FOOD SHOW

by Dwight Casimere

 Just one of the 200,000 new food items at the Summer Fancy Food Show

Venially Managing Director Stevie Kim at the Vinitaly Wine Bar

Breaking down a wheel of Parmesan Cheese at the Vinitaly and Italian Pavilion

Venially Director General Giovanni Mantovani

NEW YORK, NY -ITALY, BRAZIL GERMANY, GREECE and a host of international pavilions greeted visitors to the Jacob Javits Center for the Summer Fancy Food Show. Vintaly hosted the Vinitaly Wine Bar and specialty food items, including brick oven pizza prepared, in part by Vinitaly Managing Director Stevie Kim and  presided over by Vinitaly Director General Giovanni Mantovani.

Over 200,000 products awaited the Specialty Food Association Trendspotter Panel at the 64th Annual Summer Fancy Food Show. Held June 30 to July 2, the show encompassed six football fields worth of specialty food and beverages. Members of the panel were armed with predictions from earlier in the year as they tasted their way through the show, confirming some current, and identifying new and emerging trends.

“The specialty food industry has grown to over $140 billion. Innovation is a key growth driver, and we definitely saw that at the Summer Fancy Food Show,” said Denise Purcell, head of content for the Specialty Food Association. “We’re seeing new flavors and new formats of food. Plant-based foods are growing from a trend into an overall movement, and upcycling is huge. Spins on classics continue to surprise us, and flavors from around the world continue to grow prominent in the marketplace. No matter where you look, something exciting is happening.”

 Just a few of the delights at the Vinitaly Pavilion

WORLD CUP SOCCER DOMINATED THE ATTENTION OF MANY AT THE SHOW

WINE OF THE WEEK-9 LIVES 2016 CABERNET SAUVIGNON RESERVE, SAN PEDRO-$12.95

9 LIVES CABERNET RESERVE, THE WINE WITH GREAT VERSATILITY FOR SUMMER

by Dwight Casimere

This wine has the nine lives of a cat! Direct from Chile's Central Valley comes 9 Lives Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, San Pedro 2016 at a phenomenal price of $12.95. Extreme versatility is its signature feature with bold fruit flavors of ripe berries,  Black Figs and hints of vanilla and baking spices from careful oak aging. This wine has all the finesse and style of a wine three times the price. The big difference is you won't feel intimidated by it and will be comfortable serving it with your summertime favorites; a nice juicy burger with a hunk of sharp cheddar and a slice of Kosher dill pickle, spicy chicken or beef tacos, Fajitas, grilled chicken  or wood fired pizza slathered in Marzano tomato sauce with homemade fennel flavored sausage and fresh arugula. The wine has terrific structure and balance, which means the flavor will persist from one glass to the next and stand up to smoky, charred meats and strong, firm cheeses. With its fantastic price and cat-like nimbleness, this wine could easily become your 'go to Red' for the summer.

WINE OF THE WEEK-ANTONELLI MONTEFALCO ROSSO 2012-$40

A SUMMER SURPRISE WITH FLAVOR TO LAST ALL YEAR IN THE CELLAR

by Dwight Casimere

Treat yourself this summer to one of the truly great wines of Montefalco, made exclusively from Sagrantino grapes, Antonelli Montefalco Sagrantino 2012-$40. This is a powerful wine with rich, complex flavors of wild berries and aromatic herbs with hints of mint and oregano and a surprising splash of tart citrus. The complexity and structure along with persistent tannins make it perfect for steak or ribs done on the grill, game meat, like venison or wild boar, roast pig, or a fatty grilled fish like grouper or salmon and, of course, a board of well-aged cheeses. One of my favorite summertime dishes on the grill is skewered steak cubes made with ti-tip or top sirloin alternated with cubes of onion and alternating slices of red and green pepper. Brush with an oregano and balsamic glaze when its  right off the grill for added flavor. Serve with a side of Orzo tossed with light olive oil, Basil and Fontina cheese.

This is a wine that can be kept in the cellar for years, but its doubtful that you can resist the urge to drink it now. It's just that flavorful. The grapes used in the wine were grown on the slopes of the Umbrian hills, where wine has been made for centuries. You can literally feel the care and craftsmanship that went into the creation of this wine. The grapes were all hand-picked and  fermented on the skins for 25 to 40 days at very cold temperatures. The wine was then clarified spontaneously, with no need for filtration before settling in glass-lined cement vats for 12 months, then aged in the bottle for another year. That accounts for the superb fruit flavor components that ring through every sip. The wine reveals more layers of astute taste the longer it lingers in the glass. Serve it lightly chilled for maximum pleasure. If you can, try to find it in large bottle format, such as the magnum or double magnum, sold in a wooden case. Somehow, the larger bottles  add more depth to the drinking pleasure.