By Matt Sheker

Summer was officially over last month, and yet many of us are still lighting up the barbecue and grilling some of our favorite meats because we just cannot let go. The smell of the food cooking makes you consider what bottle you are going to serve with your perfect dish.

There is a distinct difference between the wines we consume during the summertime and the wines we tend to drink during the winter months. Winter wines seem to be heavier reds that need a lot of decanting. Summer wines tend to be lighter and have more refreshing characteristics. But regardless, light or heavy, the wine must complement the barbecue dish you are serving.

Wines that pair well with barbecued food are different from everyday drinking wines. Most everyday drinking wines are enjoyed without food; they tend to have more fruit on the front of the palate and have less structure and little acid balance. Wines that have a little more character to them—complex flavors, wood, spice, coconut, smoke, richness, texture, and acidity—pair better with spicier foods. Pinot noirs, zinfandels and cabernets sauvignons have a longer finish, have more berry-flavored aromas, and complement rich BBQ dishes.

If you are more of a white wine drinker, then look for a white wine with loads of acidity. The acidity is the key, in not only the crispness of the wine but also in how long the flavor lasts and how the wine reacts with the food. All food-friendly wines of any color have good bright acidity as a common denominator. Wines less compatible with food have less acidity and tend to have higher alcohol content.

If you’re grilling up fresh seafood and serving salads, try a chardonnay from the subappellation of Alexander Valley, which is known for acidic wines. Chardonnays will have characteristics of butter, vanilla, spice, toast, and flavors of apples, lemons, melon, pineapple, and other tropical fruits that will complement a barbecue dish. This is the perfect accompaniment to oysters, seafood, and light poultry. Pinot grigio, viognier, and sauvignons blancs will have similar characteristics with more emphasis on tropical fruit.

When you think of the flavors brought on by grilling meat, you think big, bold, and appealing. Red wines should also be big wines—full-bodied, with forward fruit flavor, spice, and pepper, along with good acidity. Wines for barbecue should be able to support the succulence of the meat brought out by the slow cooking and not be overwhelmed by or compete with the spiciness and sweetness of the sauce.

You’ve spent a great deal of time preparing this sumptuous souvenir of summer by choosing the right meat, creating your own world-famous spices and rubs, and slow cooking the barbecue to perfection. Why not complement the entire experience with a peppery zinfandel from Dry Creek? Bon appétit.

By Matt Sheker

While we ordinary people chose a dozen roses for our loved ones for Valentine’s Day, David Beckham bought his wife Victoria a vineyard. I am sure you have heard the saying “In the wine industry, if you want to end up with a small fortune, you had better start with a large one.” This simple phrase means that you had better plan to spend a lot of money for a small return.

What motivates Hollywood movie stars like Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, famous racecar drivers like Mario Andretti, rock stars like Maynard James Keenan from Tool, and several sports superstars to jump into the lavish world of wine? It used to be that owning a yacht was the epitome of flamboyance, but it appears that these days, there is only one thing anyone who’s anybody wants to spend their money on, and that is a vineyard. Is it the prestige and glamour of nonchalantly mentioning at a dinner party, “Yes, I own a vineyard,” or do people simply consider it the ultimate lifestyle? Potential investors look at purchasing a winery as an opportunity to hang out with the Mondavis, Kendall-Jacksons, and Francis Coppolas of the world. It seems that owning a winery has indeed become a status symbol.

Like art, vintage cars, and fine watches, wine is now included in the showpiece category—you don’t buy it for enjoyment, but for appreciation. And as long as prices for these collectibles continue to rise, today’s collectors can convince themselves that the bottle of 1998 Petrus Pomerol they just bought for $2,000 isn’t a consumable item, but an efficient deployment of capital. Therefore, wine is no longer meant for drinking. With the huge surge in vintage wine prices and the explosion of wealthy collectors, wine has been transformed from what Robert Louis Stevenson called “bottled poetry” to what wealth managers and wine purveyors like to call maturing investments that just get better with time.

Before you get all excited about spending that $10 million you have lingering in your portfolio on a vineyard, I have realized after talking with several winery owners that the reality of owning and running a vineyard is far from dreamy. Dedication and hard work are required to transform grapes into wine. It is a nonstop cycle of nurturing the vines, harvesting the grapes, and gently manipulating the wine process.

However, if you’re still considering the idea of hobnobbing with the rich and famous, there are a couple of wineries for sale in Napa, California. Of course, you’re aware that if you go to your neighbor’s house to borrow a cup of sugar, Francis Ford Coppola might answer the door.

By Matt Sheker

Not all white wines are chardonnays. Not all merlots taste the same.

Everyone’s favorite wine is different. No wine other than chardonnay takes on the flavors of the land in which it is grown. If you want a chardonnay that has hints of apples, pears, and peaches, then try a chardonnay from the Russian River area of Sonoma. If you are looking for a more citrus- or acidic-flavored chardonnay, then look for those grown in Monterey County. How about one with flintiness, or mineral characteristics? Try a chardonnay from the Carneros region of Napa Valley. Have a taste for melons, pineapples, and other tropical fruits? Search for a chardonnay from Santa Barbara, where the climate is a little cooler. In the Edna Valley region of San Luis Obispo, you can find chardonnays with fresh apricot overtones. But remember that not all whites are chardonnays. Chardonnay is just one of many grape varietals that are used to make wine and is the number-one-selling wine sold at restaurants throughout the United States.

Years ago, merlot was only grown for blending with other wines, such as cabernet, malbec, and petit verdot. This is because the merlot is a subtler, less tannic grape varietal, which helps offset the overpowering cabernets and thus makes the wines more approachable or easier to drink. I could line up ten different merlots to sample, and each one would taste slightly different. Winemakers have such a huge impact on the aroma, color, finish, and overall taste of the merlot: they can use French oak barrels to give the wine a creamy, milk-chocolate taste, or American oak to bring out the berry flavors of the merlot. Some winemakers will even use stainless steel for the fermentation process and add wood chips to provide a bacon or smoked sausage flavor. No other grape varietal is flexible enough to bring out so many different characteristics. The merlot grape is also cultivated earlier in the season, and this is because the grape is larger and has a thinner skin than the cabernet’s. Because of these characteristics, the merlot has a higher ratio of grape juice to skin, therefore resulting in less tannic wine than the cabernet. You will hear the term soft tannins used a lot to describe a merlot.

Whether you enjoy a basic white or red, understand that where the fruit is grown and how it is manipulated during the winemaking process drastically influences the characteristics of the wine and how much you’ll pay for it. Simple wines that come from a general appellation, such as California, that are machine-harvested and manufactured into wine, are relatively inexpensive and very average in quality. However, handcrafted wines that come from a very specific region—Mount Veeder, Napa, California, for instance—and are hand-harvested and -crafted by an experienced vintner, are a bit more expensive and superior in quality. Your goal is to find something in the middle. Begin by reading the labels and the information on the back. Most wineries have Web sites that feature their wines, and information about how they are made.

By Matt Sheker

Hosting a wine dinner is not for the faint of heart. You may love attending them, but being the host or hostess involves the pressure of meeting your guests’ expectations of good food, good wines, and good times. Advance planning will allow you to be an attentive host, and relax and enjoy yourself at the same time. Here are a few guidelines that will help make your party a hit.

First, a few weeks before your party, create a guest list of people who enjoy wine and gourmet cooking. Getting the invitations out early will ensure that fewer of your guests make other plans. It almost goes without saying that you should invite guests who will get along, This will make for not only an enjoyable evening, but also for lots of conversation about the wine, food, and preparation.

Second, determine the number of courses (arrival, appetizer, main entrée, and dessert) and what wines to serve with each. A bubbly wine like a prosecco or champagne would be perfect for your arrival appetizer, while a sauterne port would complement your dessert. If you serve a hearty main course like beef tenderloin, then decant a bottle of cabernet sauvignon or Bordeaux a couple of hours ahead of time. This will allow the wine to breathe and open up before serving so as not to overwhelm the main dish. Check with your local wine store to determine how long the wine you choose should decant.

Next, create a menu and fit your wines to it. Begin with a chardonnay or pinot grigio to go with your appetizers because, just like the wine, you want your food to go from lighter to heavier. You can then graduate to a merlot or pinot noir, again depending on your food pairing for your next course. During the dinner, serve smaller-than-normal portions; if the servings are too large, your guests will not have room for the scrumptious dessert you have prepared.

During dinner, announce to your guests what each course is, and name a few ingredients. Tell them a little about the wine you have chosen to accompany the course. You do not need to be specific; explain for example why you chose a white Bordeaux to go with the shrimp scampi. This will add to the elegance of your dinner party. Your guests will appreciate it, and it probably will spark more conversation.

For the pairing of the wines, make sure they are compatible with each course, keeping in mind different textures, flavors, aromas, colors, and food compatibility. Choose recipes and wine pairings that you have already tried and tested. You would hate to go through the efforts of preparing an incredible meal and have it ruined with a wine that does not complement the food. Keep the portions of wines within reason—you do not want your guests getting inebriated before the entrée arrives. A good rule of thumb is to serve a single four-ounce serving of wine with each course, which is enough to get the nuances and note the flavors that complement the food and not become intoxicated.

Last is the presentation. Consider a theme to match the ambience and environment when laying out and decorating the table’s surface. You’ll want your table to be beautiful and inviting.

On a final note, as the dinner winds down and the guests begin to leave, feel free to talk about the evening and ask what people liked or disliked. This will help when you are ready to organize that next wine dinner party.

By Matt Sheker

I have a simple New Year’s resolution for all wine enthusiasts around the globe: try different varietals of wine from unfamiliar growing climates. Given the fact that there are over 5,000 different varietals of grapes around the world, with over 70 countries producing wine, the pursuit of different wines is endless.

New Zealand is known for its sauvignon blancs; however, try one from California instead and notice the distinct difference in the two styles. Most people are familiar with the Rieslings from Germany, but what about a Riesling from Alsace in France? Australia transplanted the syrah vines from France and renamed them Shiraz, yet produce the wine in a new-world style using American oak, which completely changes the same grape.

Try wines that do not have well-known labels. Everyone is familiar with Gallo, Beringer, Sutter Home, Mondavi, Kendall-Jackson, BV, Silver Oak, and Dom Perignon; but what about Schug, Galante, Midnight Cellars, Bernard & Griffin, or Duval Leroy? Some smaller individually owned and operated vineyards could open your eyes to quality wines that are available to the consumer, but may be limited in availability because they are produced in smaller quantities.

Set aside a couple of bottles. You can purchase some wines now at a lower price and then store them for a couple years—they are designed to get better with age. Today, a 1997 cabernet from Napa Valley might be a little pricey; however, if you purchased the wine back in 1997 when it was first released and laid it aside until now, you made out like a bandit.

Experiment with wines at restaurants. Restaurants are known for carrying only name-brand wines because consumers recognize the labels. Try ordering a wine you have not yet heard of, and make sure to ask your server if this wine will complement the food you have ordered. Always try to pair your wine with food. This seems like a daunting task, but it is really quite easy. Some wine stores even have food-pairing charts that can assist you.

Lastly, allow your wine to open up and breathe. Use a decanter on your wine, and allow it to mix with oxygen and expose the nuances that make this wine unique. Taste a big, heavy red like a cabernet, or try a Bordeaux blend right after it is opened. Then decant the rest of the wine and try it again in thirty minutes, sixty minutes, two hours. Note how the fruit of the wine begins to mellow and the finish becomes more dominant. The true essence of the wine reveals itself.

For your New Year’s resolution, expand your palate and your wine knowledge—try an unfamiliar grape from an unknown region. Whether you’re purchasing from a wine shop or selecting from the wine menu at your favorite restaurant, I guarantee you will find a new favorite for your wine cellar.

By Matt Sheker

Pairing wines with foods allows chefs to heighten the dining experience and bring out similar characteristics in both food and wine. For example, a nice acidic Chianti pairs excellently with tangy tomato-based pasta or a pungent cheese such as parmesan. A light and fragrant vernaccia white with a nice garlic and butter-based seafood dish complement each other. If you add basil to the dish, you’re working with the herbal textures of the wine. Sommeliers will assist you with matching wine and food, adding layers and complexity for a more complete, enjoyable dining experience.

Sometimes wine is best paired with people, because many people have a preferred type or taste of wine that they stick with regardless of the food being served. If you are not a red-wine drinker, you should not be forced to have a cabernet sauvignon with a hearty steak. There is always considerable room for interpretation, and customizing a wine to your preference will always make the meal more enjoyable. When you do pair wine with food, try to match the weight and texture of the food to the weight and texture of the wine. For instance, a light-bodied fish—sole, for example—works best with a light-bodied white wine like pinot grigio, while a heavier-bodied fish—salmon is a popular choice—calls for a richer, fuller-bodied white wine such as chardonnay.

It is also important to balance the intensity of flavors in the food and wine. A mildly flavored food like roast turkey goes well with light-bodied white and red wines such as sauvignon blanc and Beaujolais. However, in the context of a Thanksgiving dinner featuring stuffing, cranberry sauce, and other strongly flavored side dishes, an intensely flavored white such as gewürztraminer or a rich, fruity red—syrah or zinfandel, for example—would be preferable. Flavors are combinations of tastes and aromas, and there are an infinite number of them. When possible, fine-tune food and wine pairings by matching flavors in the food with those in the wine. For example, a roast duck in plum sauce is nicely complemented by red wines such as barbera or syrah, which have pronounced black-plum flavors. Grilled steak in a pepper sauce, on the other hand, goes beautifully with a peppery zinfandel.

Sometimes the best choice is to counterpoint flavors rather than match them. Pairing a spicy dish like Jamaican chicken with a high-alcohol red wine may seem logical, but the heat in the dish will ignite the alcohol in the wine to produce an unpleasantly hot, harsh impression. A better choice is a low-alcohol fruity wine like riesling or gewürztraminer, which will tame the spicy flavors of the dish.

And to properly finish off a meal, pair desserts and dessert wines. Remember, the wine should always be sweeter than the dessert. Otherwise, the wine can taste dull and acidic. Dark, intense, rich chocolate cake needs a full-bodied vintage port with concentration, dark fruit, some tannin, and occasional spice, but not so much of anything as to be overwhelmed by all the chocolate.

For your next dinner, put a little extra effort into food and vintage pairing, and watch the compliments come pouring in with the wine.

By Matt Sheker

The wine’s bouquet gives off a slight hint of milk chocolate, with aromas of berry fruits and cassis and a cedar-and-smoke center, which helps elongate the earthy tannic finish.

Have you ever heard someone describing a wine in these terms? “Wine lingo” has become a necessary part of describing wine attributes. For example, a smoky flavor does not mean it smells like a cigar or fireplace, but rather a smoked sausage or other such cured meat that we can relate it to. The tannic finish helps describe a wine’s astringency, which is essential for the aging process. These types of adjectives are designed to create a common description to help others decipher a wine’s characteristics. Wines can contain various chemical compounds that allow us to associate with everyday smells, which in turn allows us to describe what we taste, based on the aromas of the wine.

Sometimes, wine lingo gets in the way of the true essence of the wine and starts to dilute the purpose behind the adjectives. Using too many descriptions for a wine, or using terms that people are not accustomed to, can have an adverse effect. If someone describes a wine as having a mango or honeysuckle aftertaste and we have never experienced those flavors before, then the description does not serve its purpose. On the other hand, if you don’t give enough descriptions, you do not do it justice. Typical words like young , firm , yummy , mouthful , delicious , elegant , soft , full-bodied , and stringent help you with the “feel” of the wine, but not necessarily with its characteristics. Referencing words like asparagus , grapefruit , green apple , strawberry , and pear can help someone relate to what the wine has to offer, with the assumption that we are familiar with and have tasted these foods before. This is designed to assist with the flavor and texture of the wine, and does not indicate that the wine will overwhelm you with characteristics similar to carbonated beverages.

Sometimes, wines have so many aromas that we just relate it to a category like fruit or berries, or a classification like vegetables. Winemakers will use certain types of barrels to achieve a cedarwood aroma, such as American oak to achieve a chocolate taste; and also use it to get a cappuccino-cocoa flavor. This is all by design, with the vintner wanting you to capture these aromas.

With your next bottle of wine, try to go beyond the bright acidity, great balance, lovely body, and beautiful nose, and describe the wine to the friend next to you, using such wine lingo terms as mineral finish , earthy overtones , butterscotch aroma , and buttery richness .

By Matt Sheker

Whenever I hear the title of this article spoken by one of my customers, I have to ask the question “What bottle did it for you?” I can then anticipate a detailed conversation about the wine—maybe the meal that accompanied it, or the specific occasion that changed a wine lover into a wine enthusiast. Still, many people will argue that a ten-dollar bottle of wine is just as good as a fifty-dollar bottle. I would bet, however, that these people have never experienced a bottle of Silver Oak Alexander Valley or Napa cabernet, a Cakebread chardonnay, a Shafer merlot, or a Silverado SOLO cabernet.

First, we must distinguish the cost categories of wine. A cheap wine is classified as a bottle sold for seven dollars or less. These are wines made in mass production for grocery stores and other large-quantity outlet stores. Usually the shelf life of these wines is brief and the balance inconsistent. Once in a while, you can find discounted wines in this price range, but they are usually past their prime and ready to be used for cooking. An inexpensive wine is categorized as ten to fifteen dollars per bottle, while expensive wines are priced fifteen dollars and over. According to the AC Nielsen reports, expensive wine buying has increased 41 percent since January 2004.

So, what has changed over the last five years to make people spend more money on wine and demand higher quality? Growth in consumption has come from the millennial generation—the roughly 70 million Americans between 21 and 28—who are fast becoming the wine connoisseurs of tomorrow. The health-conscious baby boomers have a significant disposable income and have acquired discriminating palates; therefore, purchasing the pricier wines has become part of their lifestyle.

“The November studies from the Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging garnered significant positive attention for red wine,” says Danny Brager, vice president of client service at Nielsen Beverage Alcohol. “Our latest figures show that the extensive coverage, including the February 2006 cover of Fortune magazine, which proclaimed ‘Drink Wine and Live Longer,’ may be impacting consumer choice within the wine category. As consumers search for products that promise better health and guard against aging, it would be reasonable to assume that recent favorable press has tipped some decisions toward red wine.”

Is there really a difference between a seven-dollar bottle of wine and one that costs upward of fifteen dollars? The real decision is always in the eyes of the beholder; however, premium grapes that make higher-end wines that come from specific award-winning wine regions are obviously more expensive. If you have an opportunity, purchase a fifty-nine-dollar bottle of Silver Oak Alexander Valley cabernet sauvignon—just once. Take notes about the wine—like the fragrance, the clarity, the taste, and the finish—and forget about the price for a second. Then purchase a seven-dollar bottle of wine and take similar notes. After comparing the two, I believe you will be able to argue that life is too short to drink cheap wine.

By Matt Sheker

“Research has shown that 60 percent of people buying wine base their decision on the look of the bottle and the label,” says Bob Nugent, curator of collections for the Benziger Family. There are two schools of thought when wineries design a wine label. Do you want to have your wines in a restaurant where the standard classy, elegant label is desired, or do you want a fun label that will be purchased from your local wine store because the label makes you laugh, or tells a story through unique packaging?

Amazingly, a tremendous amount of thought and energy go into designing wine labels. After all, with so many winemakers and different choices for consumers, you need to have either name recognition or a remarkable eye-catching label to make your wine stand out from the crowd. Wineries have the advantage of being able to use unlimited creativity and resources for their label designs. The ATF (Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco) requires that certain information be presented on the wine label; however, most wineries give the labels personality to reflect the character of their wineries. The wine label can play a huge role in the success or failure of a wine, regardless of its quality. Yellowtail from Australia, for example, which is widely credited with starting the “crazy critter” trend, sold 7.5 million cases in the United States in 2005, making it the most imported wine in the United States. People were buying it off the shelves at a staggering pace based on the appearance of the label and not the contents of the bottle. The winemakers’ note on the back of the bottle describes raspberry, oak, and soft tannins, but instead, you taste a noncomplex sweeter wine that’s more like fruit punch/ But at least the wine label gave the guest at your extravagant party something to talk about besides the quality of the wine. Chances are, without a kangaroo or a penguin on the front of the bottle to catch your eye, you would not have purchased that particular bottle. Europeans, who have been making wine for years and have a long and intimate history with wine, consider geography to be the single most important factor when classifying a wine. This is different from American wine as well as other New World wine-producing countries where the wine is named for the grape varietal as opposed to where the wine was made. The European system reflects centuries of trial and error, so that by now, growers have figured out the best places to be as flamboyant with their labels because their wines come from a region of California, which is known for producing award-winning wines.

Because most Europeans buy their wine based on region and producer, there hasn’t been much need to put a lot of effort into coming up with flashy labels. In the United States, however, loud and showy packaging is almost a must to get noticed on the rack. In some of the larger wine stores, you can find just about any theme you can dream up on a wine label. Some go for high art, others for cartoons, and still others have a choice of animals of all sorts. Some wineries have opted for a retro look in an effort to instill the notion of sophistication, and others have gone with the basic black-and-white label with a fancy script font to resemble the classic wines of Europe.

Wineries know full well that many Americans buy wine simply on how appealing the label is. This is often done to compensate for lack of wine knowledge, and that is why wineries invest so much time and expense in producing something that is so eye-catching. Most wine stores have a great selection of wines with “crazy critters” and traditional wine labels. Ask your local wine shop if the wine inside the bottle compensates for the wine label, or if the wine label compensates for the wine.