Summer Reds

by Robert Giles

Conventional thinking is that the wines we drink will change throughout the year. Once the temperature starts rising our beloved red wines are forgotten in favor of lighter fare. While there is some merit to this, you don't have to forgo a glass of red wine just because it's a little warmer outside. Here are a few suggestions of lighter red wines to go with your summer this year.

Gamay is a grape best known in the Beaujolais region where it makes fantastic fruit forward wines that tend to have strong notes of cherry flavor. A good example of this is Louis Jadot Combe Aux Jacques Beaujolais-Villages. This wine has strong sour dark cherry flavor and some spice notes while remaining bright and fresh. With a bit of a chill on it, this is a great compliment to many grilled meats.

If you’d like a twist on the familiar, Grochau Cellars Convivial Gamay Pinot Noir blend may be what you are looking for. Using a carbonic maceration to bring lighter flavors into its profile, this wine is great on its own or with light picnics. Notes of bright red cherry, strawberry, and raspberry combine with light tannins and a bright acidity to punch up any afternoon.

Pinot Noir is the go-to wine for many red wine drinkers in the warmer months. Thankfully, with the breadth of styles available you can find something to sate your red wine craving. Anne Amie Winemaker's Selection Pinot Noir is a fruit forward pinot noir out of Oregon. Light aging in oak allows the wine to retain strong fruit flavors of pomegranate and cherry with a subtle hint of pepper and strong acidity. The balance it achieves will hit your red wine craving and have you coming back for more.

For something with a little more earthiness, I would suggest the Hahn SLH Pinot Noir. Cherry, raspberry, and plum fruit notes with hints of vanilla and spice give this wine the darkest flavor profile of our suggestions but may be just what you are looking for. The extra oak elements found with this wine can pair well with strongly seasoned sausages, herb spiced chicken, or smoky pork chops straight from the grill.

Any of these wines would be fantastic additions to evenings in the back yard. If your curiosity has been aroused, our wine experts can always point you towards any other suggestions from these varieties to try. Warm weather comes and goes before you know it, so I say we celebrate it while it's here.