Wine Recommendations

In the US, Chinese food has evolved from being a novelty ethnic food to a virtual staple of the American diet. Nowadays Chinese cuisine permeates the restaurant landscape with a presence ranging from the local shopping mall food court to upscale (almost) fine dining. With this seemingly ubiquitous presence in mind, IntoWine.com asked its panel of wine experts to suggest the best wine to pair with chinese food:

OK, if I’m not allowed to recommend Tsingtao beer, wine it will have to be. Naturally, Chinese wine makes most sense and, guess what, it is now available in the US. Although I recommend Riesling, believe it or not, in China, the Chinese drink almost exclusively red wine with their food. Dragon’s Hollow Cabernet Sauvignon is ideal for Chinese food. The wine is picked early, not only does this result in a nice low alcohol which makes any wine more food friendly but it is less opulent in fruit. Opulent fruit and Chinese food don’t sound right. Dragon’s Hollow Cabernet Sauvignon has an appropriate amount of green bell pepper character which makes it match a large variety of Chinese dishes. The low alcohol [though it states 12.5% on the label, it is actually lower than that], makes it even more versatile. Well, ok, if you want to stick with a white wine, Dragon’s Hollow also produces a wonderful dry Riesling. - Bartholomew Broadbent, CEO, Broadbent Selections, San Francisco

As wine enthusiasts know all too well, great Napa Cabernet Sauvignon's are often priced north of $100 and out of reach for many buyers. Of course, price by itself is not a good indicator of a great wine. Moreover, the price of a wine is likely to be impacted by scarcity and marketing as much as the quality of the wine. As such, we asked our panel of wine experts to recommend great Napa Cabernet Sauvignon's priced under $100:

Napa Valley makes some of the best Cabernets in the world.  While they can be pricey, in the scheme of the great wines of the world, I think they can be fairly priced.  One hundred dollars should buy a bottle of wine that makes you sit up and take notice.  It should be special.  It may not be the best bottle you ever had, but it should make you think of those.  I would like to recommend a wine that often is a bit under the radar.  The Forman Cabernet Sauvignon while not 100% Cabernet has enough (at least 75%) to carry the designation on the label.  It straddles the wine between the structured long ageing Napa Cabs of yesteryear and today’s lush fruit bombs.  This is a wine that drinks well on release, yet ages wonderfully for 20 years or more in the better vintages.  It is usually around $65 on release.  You can expect great cassis, cedar, cigar box and spice aromas.  It drinks lush but with plenty of tannins young, so I would recommend decanting.  With ten or more years, the wine obtains wonderful complexities.  Better than a lot of wines at twice the price. - Loren Sonkin, IntoWine Featured Writer

The fourth most widely planted grape in Italy is Barbera.  In the Piemonte, it is the most widely planted grape and accounts for over 50% of the annual DOC red wine production and 35% of the vineyard area.  Thought to be native to the Piemonte, Barbera has been grown there for centuries.  It is most likely the grape written about by Paul the Deacon in his description of the Battle of Refrancore in 663 when the Longobard troops of Grimaldo defeated the Franks after getting them drunk on wine.  He confirmed that the Longobards filled amphorae with wine and scattered them around the surrounding fields.  The Franks found these jugs and drank voraciously from them making them unfit for battle. 

Pizza may very well be the most popular dish in America. It comes in myriad varieties - deep dish, thin crust, cheap, expensive, and with an endless selection of toppings, sauces, and cheeses. So picking a wine to match with pizza is a daunting task. Neverthless IntoWine.com posed the question to our panel of wine experts: What wine do you suggest for pizza? 

A juicy, light to medium bodied red wine is what I reach for most often when pairing wine with pizza. The red fruit flavors of the wine will pair with the tomato sauce component of the pie, and the vibrancy and the lighter style of the wine will not compete with the various meat and vegetable toppings often used. I also like to stay away wines that exhibit too much oak influence as it often interferes with the complex flavors of a pizza with more than a couple different toppings. Try an Italian Barbera like the 2005 Agostino Pavia Barbera d'Asti Bricco Blina $13.99, or a southern French red like the 2005 Mont Tauch Fitou $13.99. - Mulan Chan, Rhône and French Regional Buyer, K&L Wine Merchants

Super Tuscan wines can be expensive and, let's face it, with the Euro kicking the Dollar's butt, finding a Super Tuscan that doesn't break the bank can be a challenge. IntoWine.com asked our panel of wine experts to recommend the best Super Tuscan "Value" wines:

A Sangiovese-less Super Tuscan!?!? Specifically I suggest the 2003 Rocca di Montegrossi "Geremia". I know, I know. There’s no Sangiovese in this Super Tuscan! It’s 60/40 Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, respectively. And truly, it is a brutish wine, filled with tannin and body and yet there is a substantial amount of finesse. The 2003 vintage was a beauty for Northern Italy, unlike 2002.