{"id":12172,"date":"2014-07-14T08:00:12","date_gmt":"2014-07-14T12:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=12172"},"modified":"2014-07-21T13:29:58","modified_gmt":"2014-07-21T17:29:58","slug":"chilled-red-wine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/chilled-red-wine\/","title":{"rendered":"Chilled Red Wine"},"content":{"rendered":"

Attention, diners: You may chill red wines.<\/p>\n

Many people would have you think otherwise – like the waiter who balked when my dining companion, a winemaker, asked for an ice bucket to accompany a bottle of red Bordeaux we were enjoying on a 90\u02daF day. But never mind the doubters: When temperatures are high, you have every reason to put red on ice.<\/p>\n

This is particularly relevant considering a new wave of fresh, bright reds from serious wine producers. Call it high-quality glou-glou (French onomatopoeia for \u201cglugable\u201d)\u2014wines like Glou from Rh\u00f4ne vintner Jean Delobre, Trinch! (named for the sound of wine glasses clinking) from the Bretons in France\u2019s Loire, or Bebame, meaning \u201cdrink me\u201d in Spanish, a California collaboration between Edmunds St. John and Don Heistuman.<\/p>\n

These wines may have humorous names, but they aren\u2019t plonk. Instead, they value freshness over richness. Some make the best of fruit off young vines, which tends to be less complex than that of older vines; others are made to show off a grape variety that simply isn\u2019t big and bold.<\/p>\n

In most cases, these wines tend to be made straightforwardly, without leaving the grape juice to macerate with skins for weeks on end in an effort to extract all color, flavor, and tannins. Rather, they\u2019re all about fruit and earth: Simple expressions of themselves.<\/p>\n

These wines are a boon with cheese, offering red fruit flavors that still give a clear view to a cheese\u2019s complex components. Plus, cheese generally likes acidity\u2014it\u2019s what helps cut through milk fat. And acidity likes acidity, thus why green salads go best with high-acid wines, why goat cheese loves a good crisp sauvignon blanc, and why tangy manchego pairs with classic Spanish rioja. Rich, low-acid wines feel insufferably flabby in the face of acidic foods.<\/p>\n

To keep that acidity vibrant and fruit flavors fresh, a quick chill is invaluable. Think of the difference between a sunwarmed plum and one that\u2019s been lightly chilled. The sun-warmed plum may be luxuriously soft and juicy, but it\u2019s on the downhill side of its life, losing freshness before your eyes. A light chill preserves its freshness, extends its energy. Ditto with wine: Colder temperatures accentuate wine\u2019s acidity, making the fruit taste more taut and vibrant\u2014in sum, more drinkable.<\/p>\n

Conversely, an ice-cold red won\u2019t smell like anything, as it\u2019ll be too cold to let off aromatic volatile compounds. And if it doesn\u2019t smell like anything, it\u2019s not going to taste like anything, either. But this is an easy dilemma to address: Let a freshly poured glass sit at room temperature for a few minutes or warm the bowl of the glass with your hands.<\/p>\n

High-acid, bright, lighter-bodied reds are found in cold areas, places where grapes don\u2019t ripen easily and the sun doesn\u2019t shine so hard it burns off their acidity: Upstate New York, for example, or the far Sonoma Coast; Galicia and France\u2019s Jura, a region high in the Alps more famed, perhaps, for its Comt\u00e9. Or look for grapes that come by their lightness naturally. Jura\u2019s trousseau varietal is made in California, where the grape has been grown since the 1800s under the name \u201cbastardo.\u201d Only recently did vintners figure out its true identity, and they\u2019re making gauzy, earthy reds from it.<\/p>\n

Think of lambrusco, made into spicy, purple-fruited bubblies perfect for sipping while eating chunks of salty Parmigiano Reggiano; gamay, Beaujolais\u2019s fruity grape, or valdigui\u00e9, long mistaken for gamay in California and now finally getting its due. Choose reds that are bottled young and fresh, with no extended time in wooden barrels. You may save yourself some money over the fancier, barrel-aged versions on the wine store shelf, but you\u2019ve found a tastier match for a summer cheese plate.<\/p>\n

\"Some<\/a><\/p>\n

6 high-acid reds for cheese<\/h3>\n