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Aug 04, 2023

9 Best End

Summer’s end is an ideal time to gather with friends for a relaxing cookout before fall activities and the impending holiday season kick into gear. Sure, you’ll still be lighting the grill for the

Summer’s end is an ideal time to gather with friends for a relaxing cookout before fall activities and the impending holiday season kick into gear. Sure, you’ll still be lighting the grill for the next several months, but scheduling becomes more difficult as everyone is going in different directions. Guests love to be greeted with a glass of bubbles, and surprising them with an elegant choice from northern Italy is a great way to show off how savvy you are. A creamy Sonoma Chardonnay is always a crowd pleaser, especially alongside salads, cheese, or poultry.

No barbecue is complete without plenty of red wine on hand. In addition to some bold Napa Cabs to pair with well-marbled cuts of beef, offer your guests something off the beaten track like Syrah, whose fruit and spice flavors are always a good match with ribs or brisket, Merlot, which has softer tannins than Cabernet, or Tempranillo from Spain, which straddles pairing possibilities from pork to lamb to beef. Here are nine great choices to get the party started.

Not all that sparkles is Champagne. Franciacorta is made in a designated region in the north of Italy using the same grapes as the storied French region, but the taste is unique to Italy. Annamaria Clementi 2014 is made in homage to proprietor-winemaker Maurizio Zanella’s mother, who was one of the founders of the denomination. A blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Noir, it is very bubbly in the glass with aromas of freshly baked brioche, Granny Smith apple, and white citrus blossoms. It is vivacious on in the palate with flavors of white stone fruits and wet river rocks. Matured on the lees for eight years, it receives no additional dosage at disgorgement. Drink now or enjoy over the next decade or so.

Buy Now: $110

Only 50 cases of this extremely limited and delicious wine were made. It is the first release of Julien’s Chardonnay made from grapes grown in the Platt Vineyard located on a coastal ridge only a few miles from the Pacific Ocean. Golden colored in the glass, it offers aromas of Granny Smith apple, toasted hazelnuts, and brioche. It has flavors of freshly cut Fuji apple, lemon curd, marzipan, freshly ground white pepper, and caramelized pineapple with silky mouthfeel and bracing minerality in the finish.

Buy Now: $85

If you’re looking for more of a wine and food experience rather than a standard wine tasting while visiting downtown Napa, make sure to call on partners Joey Wolosz and Jeff Durham at their “Bungalow by Gentleman Farmer,” a restored 1926 California Craftsman bungalow where Jeff tells Robb Report they “host private and entertaining experiences of food, wine, magic, music, and more.” You can also taste their wines while at the bungalow and we most definitely enjoyed tasting their 2019 Napa Valley Red Wine. It is a blend of 93 percent Merlot and 7 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and has aromas of bright red cherry, red plum, and a whiff of cherry pie with flavors of cherry cola, cassis, black raspberry, and dried Mediterranean herbs. The tannins are soft and silky and the finish goes on for days.

Buy Now: $77

Winemaker Malek Amrani has a unique approach to making Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. His “double oak series” are aged for a total of 32 months, with the first 20 months in new French oak barrels and the last 12 months in new American oak barrels. His 2019 Cab is garnet colored with aromas of toasted coconut, black plum, and black raspberry. It has delightfully chewy tannins with flavors of raspberry preserves, caramelized plums, vanilla, and brown baking spices. Only 3000 bottles were produced.

Buy Now: $128

Winemaker Bibiana González Rave studied winemaking in France and earned a BTS degree in Viticulture and Enology from Cognac followed by a degree in Enology from the University of Bordeaux. The grapes for this stunning wine are grown in the Pisoni Vineyard tended by Mark Pisoni. They were harvested on October 4, cold soaked for 10 days, and then aged in 100 percent French oak for twenty months. It is brilliant garnet in color with aromas of purple flowers, smoked charcuterie, and dried herbs. Fresh and vibrant in the mouth, it has flavors of red raspberry, red currant, forest floor, and a touch of bacon fat.

Buy Now: $175

Partners Erin Lail, Shannon Lail, and Robin Daniel Lail along with their winemakers Philippe Melka and Maayan Koschitzky produce amazing Cabs from grapes grown in Calistoga, Howell Mountain, Oakville, and Stags Leap District. This stunning Cab celebrates their 25th Anniversary but can age for another 25 years. It is garnet colored with aromas of blackberry, tobacco leaf, pencil lead, and blueberry that prep the palate for enticing flavors of black truffle, black cherry, cigar box, and cassis enveloped in soft, silky tannins.

Buy Now: $300

Organic and biodynamic farmer Mark Neal began making wine in 1966 at his parents Rutherford farm and in 1998 he built Neal Family Vineyards with his wife Laura. Together they produce organic wines from their estate-certified organic vineyards in Howell Mountain and Rutherford. Their 2019 Howell Mountain Estate Cabernet Sauvignon is ruby colored with aromas of dried lavender, blackberry, and cocoa powder. It is soft on entry with flavors of black plum, dried Mediterranean herbs, and milk chocolate. Drink now thru 2033.

Buy Now: $120

This wine hails from the “Golden Mile” of Ribera del Duero. The grapes are grown in Rafael’s Vineyard at altitudes of nearly 3,000 feet and in full view of the famous Peñafiel Castel. It is deep garnet in color with aromas of red plum, cassis, and freshly roasted espresso bean. Soft on entry, it features flavors of crushed violet, black plum, and blackberry. It is full bodied and powerful, yet elegant and restrained with slightly grippy tannins and a persistent finish.

Buy Now: $100

Toro is an often-overlooked Spanish wine region where Tempranillo is known by the local moniker Tinta de Toro. The wines are generally powerful and high tannic in nature, but this one is like an iron fist in a velvet glove, offering a level of elegance. It has aromas of black and red berries, cocoa powder, and dried Herbes de Provence with flavors of black cherry, black currant, dark chocolate, lavender, and a touch of crumbled sage leaf. A brilliant vein of acidity lingers on the palate. Drink now or through 2040.