Hope Estate
2005 Hunter Valley Verdelho, about $10
(Imported by Winesellers Ltd., Skokie, Ill.)
The smartest comment on describing wines that I’ve ever heard came from Larry Bain, director of operations for the restaurant Jardiniere in San Francisco.
“There are basically two things to say about wine,” he said. “They are, ‘Mmmmm. let’s have some more of that,’ and, ‘Hmm. Let’s try something else.”
So, while I could tell you about how verdelho is a Portuguese grape that the Australians used to use for making high-octane sweet wines, and I could go on about grape-challenging heat of the Hunter Valley, I’ll just tell you that this wine’s dry, limey flavors and mouthwatering acidity are the sort of wine that will make you think, “Mmmmm. I’d like some more of that.”
And some fried fish to go with it. Or maybe a big tomato-cucumber salad with feta. Or maybe just some chips. Delish.
-Tara Q. Thomas
