Summer Wine Down
St. Regis wine experts share their favorite summer selections.
By Michelle Franzen Martin
Even when the town of Aspen is blanketed with a thick powdery snow, LeeAnn Kaufman is thinking about summer wines. “Inescapable summer heat calls for crisp, edgy wines,” says Kaufman, sommelier at The St. Regis Aspen Resort. “Chenin blanc is a great summer alternative to the fashionable sauvignon blanc.”
Kaufman recommends the 2010 Cederberg chenin blanc, with kiwi-berry fruit marked by herbal verbena notes that goes well with a beet and goat cheese salad. She also likes the 2009 Ken Forrester handmade chenin blanc, which has the real richness of guava and passion fruit, cut by shimmering apple acidity and a hint of custard in the finish.
Michael DeCanio, sommelier and director of food and beverage at The St. Regis Houston, enjoys Chateau Ste. Michelle Eroica riesling, an off-dry riesling from Washington. “It features great flavors of orange and apple with nice mineral components and some acidity that you will often find in the great rieslings of Germany,” he says.
DeCanio also recommends Chateau Potelle VGS (Napa Valley) sauvignon blanc, a “more complex” varietal.
At The St. Regis San Francisco, sommelier and wine director John Vuong suggests Andrea Cortese Mutti Noceto from Piemonte, Italy, which has a round texture and nutty aroma.
Champagnes also are among Vuong’s summer favorites. Two to try: Jean Lallement Grand Cru Brut from Verzenay and Cedric Bouchard Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs (a French term that means “white wine from red grapes”). “Both are extremely savory and briny,” Vuong says. “These pinot noir-driven Champagnes smell like fresh raspberries and fresh brioche.”
Harry Constantinescu, sommelier and wine director at The St. Regis Atlanta, enjoys torrontés in the summer. “It is known as the ‘music of Argentine wine industry,’ ” he explains. “It has a striking similarity to some well-made viognier wines with hints of peach pit, flowers and orange citrus.”
He also likes grüner veltliner, a food-friendly wine from Austria that has subtle undertones of citrus, peach and sometimes tobacco.
For Sebastien Verrier, sommelier at The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort, variety is the spice of summer life. He recommends sparkling wines such as Billecart-Salmon rosé, reds such as Charles Joguet Cuvée Terroir 2009 (“An amazing value for the summer with any type of meat on the grill,” he says), and rosé varietals from around the world.
One summer standout: Domaine Huet 2009 Vouvray Le Haut-Lieu, from the French region of Vouvray. “Green apple, lemony, honeyed-nose, it’s full and fruity with some richness,” Verrier says.
At The St. Regis Monarch Beach, Daniel Grajewski, sommelier at the resort’s Stonehill Tavern, is toasting summer with Brokenwood sémillon from Australia’s Hunter Valley. “It is crisp and dry, with a fresh, great acidity and citrus flavors,” he says. “It has a touch of almond that comes out as the wine ages.”
Grajewski also enjoys dry rosé wines from northern Spain or the South of France.
Anthony Rostock, general manager of Adour by Alain Ducasse at The St. Regis New York, says rosé, particularly 2010 Domaine de Triennes rosé, pairs well with food. “It’s food-friendly with anything grilled, light and fresh and easy to drink,” he explains.
For white wines, Rostock enjoys Fuedi di San Gregorio 2010 Falinghina, which also goes well with many dishes. “The soil [in southern Italy] is loaded with minerals from eruptions from Mount Vesuvius and it is imparted into the wines,” he says. “Falinghina is typically un-oaked and offers flavors of green apple and citrus. It makes a great pairing for grilled fish or shellfish as it displays wonderful acidity and minerality.” As they say, it’s good to have options.
Doubly Distinct
Woodford Reserve entices the palate with its seductive new release, Double Oaked.
The newest bourbon released by Woodford Reserve offers a unique flavor profile created by a complex double-aging process in barrels that are both charred and toasted. The whiskey goes through an initial aging that imparts its distinctive color and flavor, and then is aged in a second, slightly charred and toasted white oak barrel that infuses a combination of spice and sweetness that’s unseen in other bourbons available today.
“Maturation in a new, charred oak barrel provides Woodford Reserve with all of its natural color and a great deal of its award-winning flavor,” says Chris Morris, master distiller for Woodford Reserve. “This Double Oaked expression has been uniquely matured in two separate, custom crafted barrels.”
The release of the premium bourbon is Woodford Reserve’s first permanent extension of its bourbon line in the company’s 16-year history.
Southern Spirits
Tennessee serves up a smooth new rye, perfect for whiskey novices and aficionados alike.
The Tennessee Spirits Company, part of the newly launched Capital Brands LLC, recently premiered Breakout Premium 8-Year-Old American Rye Whiskey, a smooth introduction for those new to the world of rye. Aged eight years and then chill-filtered for clarity, the whiskey boasts full-bodied flavor with smoky, toffee overtones and a long and pleasant finish. The rich caramel and vanilla aroma is smooth and pleasing to the tongue, like melted butter on the palate. Smooth and delicious by itself or on the rocks, Breakout also makes a nice foundation for any classic rye cocktail, such as a Manhattan or Old Fashioned.
Himalayan Heights
An exclusive new vodka makes its way down the mountain from premier vodka creator elit by Stolichnaya.
Featuring global water sources, elit by Stolichnaya recently released the first in a collection of new limited-edition vodkas. As part of the elit “pristine water series,” the Himalayan Edition is the latest in the class of ultra-premium spirits, with only 300 bottles offered for global distribution. Water used for this handcrafted vodka has been sourced from the heart of the Himalaya Mountains, formed from the perpetual melting of snow and paired with the purest winter wheat in a freeze-filtration process. The result is a crisp, crystal-clear vodka with subtle aromas of citrus and fruit blossoms, and a long and elegant velvety finish. Bottled using hand- blown Bohemian glass and sealed with a gold-plated decorative ice pick, each bottle is packaged in an individually numbered walnut carved chest for a one-of-a-kind presentation fit for this rare vodka.
