Determining this month’s Top Pick really depends upon where I am, how hot it is and what I’m eating, as each of this month’s Premier Series wines shines, but for very different reasons. If I’m indoors and meat is on the menu, my Top Pick has to go to Pietra Santa’s 2010 Cienega Valley Merlot. Why? Because it’s darn near impossible to find Merlot this good for under $30.00 per bottle, and this Pietra Santa Merlot is a winner, so it easily earns my Top Pick.
However, if I am looking for an aperitif or I’m outside at a party, I want something that’s light and gratifying and that would be Raza’s 2013 Vinho Verde. It’s a light deliciously thirst quenching Vinho Verde, one of Portugal’s gifts to the wine drinking world, especially on a hot day, so it gets a nod too. With that said, another of this month’s selections is Gini Soave, one of my personal favorites. The 2013 Gini Soave is another beautiful effort, so no slight intended. The same can be said for Dei’s wonderful 2012 Rosso di Montepulciano. This Rosso is the best in a long series of fine offerings from Dei, the fabulous producer of Vino Nobile. If pasta or almost anything Italian is on the menu, give me the Dei to enjoy!
Salute!
Don
