In the summertime
THE WINE CLUB
| Of course, we know that in Europe and the US the grapes are harvested in September/October, and that most of their wines are ready to drink by summer, whereas in India even the most basic whites cannot be released before August/September. |
| However, since Indian grapes are harvested when temperatures are as in European during summer (our February/April range is 15-35 degrees C), one could argue that Indian wines are the real "summer wines". |
| Be that as it may, the wine for me on a hot summer's day is a rose "" made from red wine grapes, but with limited skin contact, and bottled early. These tend to be a little sweet, light, low alcohol, and most refreshing drunk chilled "" and match well with both Indian as well as Continental cuisines. |
| The Sula Rose (actually a Blush Zinfandel) is very nice: a beautiful light pink colour, a fruity nose, and demi-sec taste. Quaff it at Rs 395; alternatively, try the Grover's Shiraz Rose (Rs 317 in Bangalore): a salmon-pink colour presages an intense aroma and a crisp, balanced taste. Indage, too, makes white Zinfandels, under both their Chantilli (Rs 362) and Ivy (Rs 442) brands "" I personally prefer Sula or Grover. Try a rose wine this summer "" I promise you'll be pleasantly surprised. |
| Then, of course, there's the all-time summer drink: sparkling wine or champagne (you know, of course, that champagne is a sparkling wine made in the Champagne district of France from a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes using the in-bottle fermentation method first perfected by Dom Perignon). I'm going to call both "champers" (very 1920s, no?) to simplify matters. |
| Champers is best drunk ice-cold, accompanied by light non-spicy snacks or cheeses, but also makes some wonderful cocktails: the Bellini (3 parts chilled Champers, 1 part peach puree/juice); the Champers Cocktail (1/2 peg brandy, lemon twist, dash of bitters, top with champers: the evocative Kir Royale (with creme de cassis) (with white wine its plain Kir) "" and my favourite: Black Velvet, a mix of champers and stout! Careful, though "" champers is strong, and can put you under the table if imbibed freely (on second thoughts, indulge!). |
| Domestic sparklers: Sula Brut comes for an affordable Rs 490 and the venerable Marquise de Pompadour at Rs 535. Of imported sparklers there's the Deinhard Cabinet Trocken at Rs 635, the Henkell & Trocken Brut (Rs 750), loads of the Freixenet Cordon Negro Brut floating around (you'd laugh if I told you the duty-free prices), as well as the Green Point Brut (Rs 1,400). |
| The most widely-available champagne is the Moet Chandon Brut Imperial (Rs 3,000); Veuve Cliquot at Rs 3,350 is less popular, while stuff like Dom Perignon (Rs 8,750) and Champagne Krug (Rs 9,525) are out of reach to all but a privileged few. |
| With a Sante and a Prost! |