White Wine(s) Wednesday & Memorial Day Weekend

It's really exciting to see 80's back in the forecast. May of this year started cool again too and last year we didn't see an 80 degree temp until June 7. 80's sounds great even though there is a chance of rain.

So the unofficial start of Summer kicks off with Memorial Day Weekend. And even with social distancing you'll probably be having people over the holiday.

Let me give you some White Wine options for Wine Wednesday, Memorial Day Weekend and all summer long. Listed in order of sweetness. Sweeter to dryer.

Rose' (rhymes with Jose) And the term Rose' All Day applies - Rose' wines are very light with a slight pink hue to darker and much sweeter White Zinfandels wines. The color comes from a red grape that comes in contact with the skins and gives it some color. You may not know that the same process is made with Champagne - that is made from 2 red grapes and 1 white grape. So Rose' wines are a great light wine for lunch, serve slightly colder - right out of your regular frig will be great. And other good news these are very affordable. Starting around $10.99 for SeaGlass Rose and works it way up to $21.99 for Miraval Rose.

Riesling: Your first experience with this grape may have come from a Frankemuth, MI visit. As it originates from the Rhine region of Germany. Some good options also very affordable starting around $9.99 is Chateau St. Michelle Riesling that comes from Washington State. Another one in this price range is Cupcake Vineyards.

Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris: These wines are made from the same grape and the difference is the country. Italy has Pinot Grigio which is light and bright and in France it's called Pinto Gris and may have a little more spice. What can be more confusing is wineries in the US may use either name. Oregon makes some great Pinot Gris

Sauvignon Blanc: You'll find this wine lighter and possibly sweeter than Chardonnay. While it originates from France there are great options from California and New Zealand. Oyster Bay Sauviganon Blanc around $10.99 on sale and one of the most popular Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is a best seller.

Chardonnay: Today's Chardonnay's are made with less oak. The big seller of the 90's Kendall Jackson Vintner's Reserve was buttery with an oaky finish. And that was easy to copy. All wineries had to do was throw oak chips in the steel barrels to duplicate that flavor. Today the trend is with less oak and some totally un-oaked. The more gold the Chardonnay is - the more time it spent being on oak. With less oak you'll to experience more flavors like Apples, Pear, Peach or Melons an vanilla taste. Affordable options include Clos du Bois, Rodney Strong has several Chardonnays from the Sonoma County $10.97 at Total Wine to the Rodney Strong Chalk Hill region just a few dollars more, but worth it. If you still like the oak flavor I recommend Rombauer Chardonnay and you'll find that under $20.

All wine pictures courtesy of wine.com