White Wine In Winter? With Red Meat? Hell yes!

I confess, I’m a rule breaker.  Too many musts and must-nots get in the way. I can make up my own mind!  I say, free yourself from those iritating rule shackles!  

White wine goes with fish.

Red wine goes with red meats.

Only serve sparkling wines for special occasions.

Bad luck to walk under ladders.

Step on a crack and break your mother’s back.

Of course, the last two are absolutely true.  But, the wine rules?  Toss ‘em!  Lately, I’ve had some wonderful whites that I drink anytime I damn well please!  Last night we had friends over for a chili party.  Nope, not talking about hamburger chili.  I’m talking hunks of beef, simmered for hours and hours, until the meat falls apart and people wander in off the street, following the aroma.

The first drink I served was Margarita Tea.  Well, that lasted no longer than you could say, “Gimme another glass!”  After that, I cracked open a chilled bottle of my newest favorite white wine, UBY Collection Unique 2016 (about $12 ).

Ok.  You’re intrigued by Margarita Tea, so I’ll patiently give you the recipe before getting back on track with the white wine.

14 Cups brewed tea

2.5 Cups Tequila

2.5 Cups Triple Sec

Simple syrup to taste  (Dissolve 1 Cup sugar in 1 Cup water)

Juice of 1 lime or lemon or to taste.  Serve over ice.

If you stand too close to the punch bowl, you’re taking your life in your hands, so don’t be greedy.  Grab a glass-full and move swiftly outta the way!

See how you’ve distracted me?  Back to the fav white wine… I’ve had several UBY wines from Domaine UBY , a family vineyard in the southwest of France.  I’m only sorry I didn’t marry into the fam.

Look in the southwest.  See Armagnac?  UBY vineyards are close to the c.

UBY’s full range of wines goes from the lusciously sweet Number 4 to the fruity, dry Number 3.  All are delicious.  Then comes the latest product, Collection Unique.  Well named, Collection Unique is light, but with a fruity nose that makes you think you’ve landed face down in a grove of ripe mangos and been pelted with peaches.

So, it’s sweet, right?  Not at all.  Dry, with a well-rounded finish.  For the uninitiated, when I say well-rounded, I mean a smooth-ending, with none of the bitterness or harshness normally associated with the title “dry.”  The huge question is: Can a light, fruity white stand up to the heavy spice of chili?  Oh, hell yes!

Don’t hold back! Buy a few bottles of UBY Collection Unique.  You’re going to need them as your guests polish off your chili, hold out their empty glasses and give you a look that says “We ain’t leavin’ yet!”

UBY Collection Unique 2016 is a blend of three grapes, Colombard, Ugni-Blanc, and Sauvignon Blanc.  Very different tastes, but put them all together and the balance is amazing.  I know 2016 is young, but that’s the kind of wine this is.  Young and frisky and as fresh as a stroll through the springtime vineyards.  Best to drink it within a year.

Colombard

 

Sauvignon-Blanc

Ugni-Blanc

No trouble recognizing Colombard and Sauvignon, but Ugni is a different matter, even though it is France’s most commonly grown white grape.  You may not recognize the name. That’s because Ugni goes under dozens of names, spread across a dozen countries. The taste ranges from very acidic to more politely nuanced.  Want to impress your wine-snob buddies?  In its home region, Tuscany, Ugni is known as Trebbiano.

And, my main point (which almost got lost as I rambled) is that you can toss out the wine rules.  The only important rule is that taste rules!  Pick a wine that suits YOUR palate and forget the snobs at the other end of the table who mumble under their breath about your lack of sophistication.

Now, a little more chili and a top off for that glass of UBY?  I thought so. Good choice!

And, the rules about symmetry?  Don’t even get me started!

Here’s where to find out about the full range of UBY wines and Armanacs?  http://www.domaine-uby.com/uk/the-history-domain.aspx

Blanc de Noir

Here’s something from the dark corner of the wine cellar, Blanc de Noir.  What the hell kind of grape is that?  Not a variety of grape.  It means white from black and refers to using dark grapes to produce white wine.  Most of the time you see it on the labels of sparkling wines, many notably from the Champagne region of France.

But there are also lots of still wines that feature Blanc de Noir.  In Germany, much of the time the B de N’s come from the Spätburgunder grape, the German word for Pinot Noir.  How in the living swamp of Mesopotamia does Pinot Noir get translated to Spätburgunder?  You’re about to find out.  Spätburgunder means late Burgundy and refers to the first vines of Pinot planted in Germany coming from Burgundy.  Also, Pinot matures late.

But, lots of other dark grapes can do the job.  In this case, my favorite German weingut (wine grower and seller) Karl Dennhardt, used Cabernet Sauvignon and Lemberger for his 2010 Blanc de Noir.  Pretty much everyone is familiar with Cab, but Lemberger? 

Although not widely known by wine swilling Americans, Lemberger vineyards stretch from Austria to Hungary to Germany.  It’s also grown in Washington State.  It’s a late maturing, dark grape, usually sturdy and rich in tannins, but there is also a softer side to Lemberger and that’s what Dennhardt has tapped into.

But, let’s back up a sec.  Black grapes, white wine?  How does that happen?  Most grape juice is white, but when you squeeze the grapes and leave the juice to soak in the skins, gradually the juice turns dark, absorbing not only the color, but also the tannin.  So, guess what?  If you want a white wine from dark grapes, you juice the grapes and separate the juice from the skins immediately.

In the case of Karl Dennhardt’s Blanc de Noir, you end up with an amazingly sturdy and flavorful dry white wine.  A fragrant, almost yeasty nose kicks in, and your first sip offers notes of pear and plum.  When I say notes, I don’t mean the whole damn song.  Slow sip this dry white a moment and let the nectar float to the back of the throat.  You’ll see what I mean.  It’s full, yet crisp, and lacks that heavily acidic finish you find with many dry whites.

A note on temperature.  Lots of folks think if a white doesn’t have frost on the bottle it’s not cold enough.  Don’t believe it.  Try it cool, but not cold, somewhere north of 60 ºF.  If you don’t like it immediately, give your taste buds a little more time to adjust.  You’ll start to pick up flavors you didn’t know were there.  Another hint:  If it’s not a sparkling wine and the bottle says ‘Serve Chilled,’ I advise you to put it back on the shelf.  There’s something the vintner doesn’t want you to know and he’s using the cold temp to cover up the wine’s shortcomings.

Blanc de Noir pairs perfectly with avocados, salads light on vinegar, shrimp cocktail, fish, ripe fruit, and light desserts.  Don’t despair if you can’t find the Dennhardt label.  It doesn’t travel far.  Find another German Blanc de Noir and enjoy the last days of summer, in a bottle.  You’re gonna be sorry if you didn’t buy a couple of bottles.  Nobody drinks just one.