I'll stop whining about whites if you suggest some great wine!

June 1, 2008 10:47 PM

I'm a red wine snob. But I was wine tasting last week and got persuaded to try a Ravenswood muscato. I loved it! It was sweet, but tart, crisp, and refreshing, and I'm looking for more.

I always thought of muscats as overly sweet, cloying dessert wines but this was great with apples and cheese on a hot Sonoma day. It would be great to try more muscats that have a slight sweet component but are tart, crisp, and refreshing as the summer months hit us - can you make more suggestions? I also really dig Vinho Verde from Portugal. Things readily available in the bay area are great and things priced <$15 (or, ideally, <$10) are even greater. Thanks for your suggestions!

posted by stewiethegreat to food & drink (11 comments total)

There are a few nice muscats down in may part of the world (South Australia), but most are small boutique wineries that wouldn't have much of a showing overseas. Can you go back to the winery you tried the nice one at? Ask them for recommendations? In my experience, the winemakers all know who's doing similar things, and would be happy to help you find something you like.
posted by twirlypen at 12:01 AM on June 2, 2008

I was going to say Purple Cow in Oregon, and some other PacNW makers, but I stumbled across... Bonny fracking Doon's Ca' del Solo Muscat. Give Randall Grahm your money. He is bonkers, and makes bonkers wines. It's $17 a bottle, but what the heck. Go down to Santa Cruz and say hello.

Warning: heavy Flash. But there's a store now. That ships to my state. Oh my, must resist buying a case of Cigare Volant.

(If you're looking for other crisp, grassy wines from California, then there are Rieslings and Sauv Blancs and some tiny parcels of Gewürztraminer that are made for summer picnicking.)
posted by holgate at 12:43 AM on June 2, 2008

A vinho verde comp might be Txacoli. To me at least thinking geographically the next seaside white I think of after those two is Muscadet. You should be able to find a really quality muscadet for like 11-12 bucks.

Crisp, Acid, slightly sweet screams Spatlese Riesling to me, though isn't aromatic in the way Moscato can be.
posted by JPD at 4:49 AM on June 2, 2008

Like holgate, I 'll suggest you extend your search to Reislings. I've been into them a lot lately, and one I can recommend is Brotherhood 2006 Reisling (from NY!). It's semi-dry, with a great balance of sweet and sharp. And now, I am going to go try the Ravenswood that you mention.
posted by kimdog at 6:50 AM on June 2, 2008

I love me some Penfold's The Grandfather Port.
posted by jeffamaphone at 7:20 AM on June 2, 2008

Oh, under $15? Penfold's Club Port.
posted by jeffamaphone at 7:20 AM on June 2, 2008

More about Reislings or Gewurtztriminers - if you can find good imported ones, the word you are looking for are "trokken" or "halb-trokken" on the label (may be "troken" I dont speak German) - anyway it means 'dry' or 'half-dry' and its less sweet than the standards. I very much prefer red wines, but a good dry Reisling or Gewurtztriminer is wonderful.
posted by elendil71 at 8:40 AM on June 2, 2008

In general, if you want slightly sweet but acidic white wines, Alsace is the place to look, and there are certainly some good wines from there in at least the high end of your price range, including Rieslings, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminers and Muscat.
posted by cardboard at 1:03 PM on June 2, 2008

Yeah, Reislings. I thought I hated white wine until I tried a decent Reisling.
posted by lekvar at 1:14 PM on June 2, 2008

Marco Negri Moscato D'asti is one of my favorite dessert wines ever. It 's almost like a sparkling wine, which helps cut the sweetness.
posted by lemoncello at 12:19 AM on June 3, 2008

My favorite summer whites wines are New Zealand Sauvignon blanc. They're not as sweet as a Muscat or Riesling, but they're definitely crisp compared with buttery American Chardonnay (or even American Sauvignon blanc). The exchange rate is making a good sub $15 bottle hard to find these days, but it's worth looking for.
posted by pb at 10:34 AM on June 3, 2008