Hot enough for you? Yep. Often too hot or too humid for anyone sane to go on a picnic or barbecue.
Doesn’t stop us, though, does it? Just peer into any back yard, at least any yard with a pool. Mad dogs and us.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m not suggesting that you stay inside or pack away your corkscrew until winter. The trick to dealing with global warming is to choose wines that are low in alcohol.
A big, ripe California chardonnay or cabernet sauvignon often has 13 percent or 13.5 percent alcohol. A real, red zinfandel might have 15 percent. This makes them too full-bodied for a lot of picnic foods, and the alcohol will make you feel hot and put you right to sleep. Lighter wines, with just 12 percent or even 11 percent alcohol, can help avoid these problems.
Wines can be low in alcohol for two reasons. White wines like riesling, gewurztraminer, pinot gris or chenin blanc are sometimes slightly sweet because not all their sugar has been fermented into alcohol. They’re often only 11 percent alcohol and are best served cool.
Red wines grown in cool mountain regions, like Italian valpolicella, bardolino or even merlot, don’t develop as much sugar in the first place, so they can sometimes be fermented totally dry at 11 percent to 12 percent alcohol. These, too, are best served a bit cool, even though they’re red.
And wines like these are great matches for casual picnic foods. The slightly sweet whites go well with fruit salads, tuna, chicken or potato salads. The dry, fruity, light reds go well with sandwiches and grilled burgers or chicken or even veggies that are lightly brushed with oil and black pepper and briefly grilled.
Now, if you’re into serious barbecuing of ribs, steaks and chicken slathered with spicy sauce, you might as well go with the perfect wine match: a big, spicy, full-bodied red zinfandel. If you’re already standing in 90-plus heat over an 1,800-degree grill, you’re probably oblivious to temperature anyway.
Another advantage of back-yard barbecuing is that you can stay within a few steps of the blender and the ice cube maker. Jimmy Buffett was right. Those frozen concoctions can help you hang on until the first cool snap or the New Year, whichever comes first.
Low-alcohol wines
Non-vintage Etoile sparkling wine from Domaine Chandon, California (12 percent alcohol): Light-bodied, crisp, tangy, so fruity it seems sweet even though it’s not, $22.
Non-vintage Grandial Brut Sparkling Wine, France (10.5 percent alcohol): Big, lively bubbles, minerals and sweet-tart lemons, $9.
1997 Beringer Chenin Blanc, California (11.9 percent alcohol): Pear aromas, slightly sweet, smooth, luscious, $5.
Non-vintage Frascati Superiore, Monte Porzio Catone, Italy (11 percent alcohol): Light, spritzy, lemon and mineral flavors, refreshing, $8.
1997 Rosemount Traminer/Riesling, Southeastern Australia (10 percent alcohol): Floral aromas, ripe pear flavors, soft, fruity, $8.
1995 Josmeyer Tokay Pinot Gris L’Exception, Alsace (France) (11 percent alcohol): Slightly sweet honey and grapefruit flavors, $11.
1997 Bolla Bardolino, Piemonte (Italy) (11 percent alcohol): Light, crisp, raspberry flavors, $7.
1996 Torresella Merlot, Veneto (Italy) (11.5 percent alcohol): Light cherry flavors, $8.
1995 Beringer North Coast Zinfandel (13 percent alcohol): Floral aromas, tangy, sweet-tart plum flavors, firm tannin, $12.
