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The fledgling oenophile

How to navigate a restaurant’s wine list like a pro
A variety of wines, including some refreshing summer varietals, lines the shelves at Star Liquors on Florida Road.

You’re out for a nice dinner with a companion or friends. You surveyed the wine list, but many of the choices are unfamiliar. You love sauvignon blanc, but don’t see one you recognize.

The waiter arrives. What do you do?

“That’s a pressure moment, ‘What do I order?’” said James Allred, general manager and co-owner of Eolus Bar & Dining. “A wine list can be intimidating.”

There’s no need for that. If we foodies can ask for the provenance of the mushroom on our plate and discuss the superiority of whey-fed pork, surely we can order a bottle of wine – that heavenly elixir – with just as much confidence.

Herewith, everything you wanted to know about ordering a bottle of wine in a good restaurant but were afraid to ask.

So, the first thing to do?

Ask for help, silly. Every single wine expert in town emphasized that they and their staff are trained to assist diners and, in fact, enjoy doing it.

“Never be afraid to ask for help,” said Karen Barger, owner of Seasons Rotisserie & Grill and author of one of the most extensive wine lists in the Four Corners. “We have someone who can help you determine what you’re looking for.”

That can be easier said than done, however. What if you want to try something a little different than your usual cabernet sauvignon but don’t want to spend a lot of money experimenting?

Ask your server or the in-house expert (all of Durango’s upper-end restaurants have one) to try a wine that has the same flavor profile. They can recommend a wine from a different country or a grape with similar properties. And often, they’ll give you a taste before you buy.

What if you honestly don’t know what you want, either out of ignorance or whimsy? Well, put your server to the test.

For example, Guido’s Favorite Foods serves only Italian wines, which are unknown to many diners. General Manager Amber Jaicin starts out by querying customers about which kinds of California wines they like, because most Americans are familiar with those varietals – merlot, syrah, cabernet, chardonnay and on.

Once she ascertains their favorites, she advises them on a comparable Italian wine. If they’re truly clueless, she’ll pour a wine or two so they can taste their choices. To discover which wines suit you, she recommends researching your options online beforehand. Then you’ll be prepared to ask for a sample that caught your oenophilic interest.

Here’s another tip from the experts. Differentiate between the bottle you order for cocktail hour and the bottle you drink with your meal. That doesn’t mean you have to order two bottles. But some wines stand on their own better and others are made to be drunk with food, so know which quality is most important to you.

“The French believe you can’t eat without drinking wine and you can’t drink wine without eating,” said Aaron Brandes, general manager of Mahogany Grille.

He suggests pairing wine with food from the country or region of its origin. Trying a dish with jamón ibérico, the intensely flavorful Spanish ham? Go for a rich, red, rioja. If you’re indulging in a French entrée with a delicate cream sauce, continue the party with a wine from Burgundy, red or white. And if you just have to appease your hunger for a juicy American steak, California is the place to go for an equally juicy cab.

But also, he says, don’t be afraid to like what you like whether it goes with your dinner or not.

“If you like white zinfandel, that’s fine. Your opinion is the most important,” he said.

One of the most frightful aspects of ordering wine is confronting your wallet. Without a doubt, knowing how much you want to spend and being upfront about it is the key to confidence. If anybody tries to push the most expensive bottle in stock, shun them, say local restaurateurs.

“That’s an icky feeling when someone talks you into something you really don’t want,” said Scott Wells, general manager of The Palace Restaurant.

To a person, local wine experts say they can find you the bottle of your desire for what you can afford to spend. After all, they have their tricks of the trade. A $60 bottle of wine can taste as dreamy as a $300 one.

Let’s say you hanker for that mouth-filling, budget buster of a wine, Bordeaux, from southwest France. Most decent bottles start north of $100. But some wineries siphon off some of the grapes to create a blend, giving you the same flavors for half the cost. Ask your server what they have in your price range that mimics Bordeaux’s grapey essence.

Local restaurateurs say more people are drinking wine than used to, following the national trend. Whether it’s because of stricter drunken-driving laws (wine is lower in alcohol than spirits) or people watching their weight and worrying about the carbohydrates in beer, more folks are making wine their drink of choice.

To help them find a vintage they enjoy, many local restaurants and bars offer affordable bottles – for example, Seasons has a list of 20 bottles for under $20 – so you can try something new without blowing up your credit card.

OK, so you know what you like. You’ve checked out the restaurant’s wines online. You order your wine with assurance. But when it comes, it tastes … odd. It doesn’t have those fruity notes you’re accustomed to or maybe it has a brown tinge or maybe it’s just plain sour. Now what?

Send it back. Just as you would return a dish that was undercooked or over-salted, you’re equally within your rights to reject a bottle of wine that doesn’t taste or smell as it should.

What if you just don’t like it? You thought it would be dry and refined and it’s juicy and bold. There’s nothing wrong with it per se, but it doesn’t appeal to you.

Tell your server. Often they’ll swap it for a bottle you’ll like better. (Bet you didn’t know that.)

“We offer an ‘If you don’t like it, we’ll drink it,’ guarantee,” Wells said. “I want our customers to be happy. I want them to come back.”

The lesson in this for us wine drinkers is to be bold, experiment, trod where our parents never dared – try a crisp vinho verde from Portugal or a deep, berry-inflected carménère from Chile. Drink a red wine chilled and a white wine with meat. Create a great memory. It’ll be OK, I promise.

phasterok@durangoherald.com

Top picks for seasonal summer wines

Wine is an evening’s great pleasure – it makes the company more alluring, the food more scrumptious, the event, whether a barbecue or a fancy meal, more memorable.

So what’s good to drink right now, in the heat of summer? What goes with grilled chicken and potato salad or trout meunière and sauteed green beans? What will compliment a glorious Colorado July day, whether it’s cocktails in the garden or drinks on the patio?

Local wine experts divulged their favorites for this sweet summer moment, when memories of snow flurries and slushy roads are long forgotten and the deep green arbor that is Durango seems like it will last forever.

White wines are a staple of hot weather happy hours for their lighter, cooler flavors and refreshing, tangy pop.

Jolin Fleshood, wine buyer for Star Liquors, can’t get enough of the Spanish Honoro Vera made from the verdejo grape, a smooth and citrusy sip. She also keeps a stack of bubbly rose in her fridge.

“It’s light and fresh and fun and easy,” she said.

In other words, it’s a party in a bottle, and who doesn’t love that? And it’s cheap (less than $20), another fine quality in summer wines, which tend to be younger and more affordable.

Alan Cuenca, owner of Put A Cork In It, shares Fleshood’s love of all things rose, contending the Provençal version from Southern France is the most versatile wine in his shop.

“It works with salmon, tuna, Thai food, red meat, lamb, chicken, lasagna. It works well with charcuterie and friends and sunny afternoons,” he said.

Several restaurateurs would slip in a pitch for that ubiquitous warm weather favorite, sauvignon blanc, a staple on every wine list and a stalwart at every summer dinner party. There’s a reason for that, of course – it’s clean, light, cold and goes well with food.

It’s also variable, with as many different flavor profiles as winemakers. You could taste a dozen and each would be different. If you’re looking for a fruity, round and fragrant version, give Merry Edward’s 2011 Russian River Valley a try. The notes of grapefruit and peach add to the allure of the outdoors, even if you’re inside.

But let’s not leave out reds. Some of us are addicted to them regardless of the climate. And it’s easy to trade lighter renditions for the deeper, darker types we drink in colder months.

To capitalize on the charms of summertime, local wine experts turn to Italian wines, which combine red fruits and a soft drinking style. Barbera from the Piedmont is a juicy, vibrant, medium-bodied wine that goes with everything from red meat to cheese and crackers.

“It’s a wine I can drink with steaks or burgers that won’t weigh me down like a cab,” said Scott Wells, general manager of The Palace Restaurant.

If you want to try one, Cuenca offers a biodynamic Mauro Molino for $15; Wells, an Odero in the $30 range.

You might also want to give Italy’s best-known wine a whirl. Chianti left its jug-wine reputation behind two decades ago, and today you can find a luscious, berry-inflected bottle at any restaurant or shop. Guido’s Favorite Foods has a tasty Il Murietto Chianti Riserva on its list that sells for $26; Wine Merchant has a bright, fruit-forward Santa Christina, Chianti Superiore, for $16.59.

For a change of pace and country, Wine Merchant co-owner Lesley Ponce puts in a good word for a $14.59 Berger Zweigelt, a light, ripe, Austrian red, perfect for that summer standout, a picnic.

“It’s fun, it’s different and you get a good bang for your buck,” she said.

You could say the same about warm weather wines in general – easy-drinking, pleasurable and affordable. What’s not to like? Happy summer.

phasterok@durangoherald.com



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