Spring & Summer Wine Soirée

For everything spring, and into the hot days of summer, we always go back to the Hill Country Bon Vivant’s fabulous recipe pairings with the freshest wines of the William Chris Vineyards collection. Whether they are white, rosé, sparkling, or red we know these wines will keep us cool, and positively shine alongside seasonal flavors such as fresh herbs, fruit, fish, and Summer vegetables. JeriLynne Clifford has outdone herself with a curated Spring and Summer menu for your next party, complete with four mouthwatering dishes that pair perfectly with the wines in our Spring & Summer Pairings Pack.

Aromatic white wines and salad 

With this heat we are pulling out our "zippiest" white wines, with a light body and loads of fruit, flowers, and zesty notes. The Mary Ruth blend is always the epitome of these! The bright acidity, tropical pineapple notes, and aromas of lemongrass call out for a light and crisp salad that has the same element of freshness. Although salad ingredients vary,  there is a common theme of some sort of acid component that helps to keep the salad refreshing. A vinaigrette or a squeeze of citrus usually does the trick! JeriLynne favors asparagus and roasted pistachio with a lemon vinaigrette that will do the job making the salad refreshing, while causing the wine to seem less tart and more juicy.

A welcome and delightful transformation!

Universal food Pairing wines 

There are a few styles of wine that are considered to be friendly alongside almost anything that comes out of the kitchen. Sparkling wine, rosé, and orange wine (a play on the rosé style using white wine grapes). These wines wrap around food and make a dish shine, and so they are my "go-to" when I don’t want to think too much. The newest rosé that William Chris has released is from the Texas Hill Country region, and is rich and ripe - it has me dreaming about the perfect dish! I begged for JeriLynne to go for something BIG because this rosé is fresh but with the texture to stand up to something very flavorful. If you’re getting this in your June Wine club release, you need more - trust me. Our Hill Country Bon Vivant pulled out special for this Hill Country fruit, and crafted a Grilled Swordfish recipe topped off with cucumber salsa and lime segments.

Big flavor needs big flavor to match it, and this pairing delivers. Not a fan of "fishy" fish? Swap it out for a bone in pork chop or grilled halloumi cheese. 

When to bring out a Chill-able red

Chill-able reds are our new favorite way of life. They deliver richness while keeping us from overheating, and we desperately need them in the hot Texas months! While bold red grapes can make our favorite full-bodied red wines, we like to see their brighter side when they are made to be softer, more floral, a touch lighter. The great thing is, the softer side of these grapes still means retaining the depth, spice and smoky characters that we love! William Chris' 2021 Moonlight Blend is what our team keeps coming back to, where our favorite Mourvèdre grape gives us notes of incense and grilled red plum, but is so light in color and body that it’s still nice to sip on in the sun - especially when lightly chilled! And while we would usually choose something like lamb for this bold grape, we can swap it out for the fresher savory notes of tomato and cheese. For softer Mourvèdre-Cinsault blend like this, try grilled zucchini-tempura chips with baked cherry tomatoes and mozzarella. While the high tones of the tomato and wine will complement each other, bass notes from smoky Mourvèdre and the grill will give us that rich feeling without the weight.

Tip* Don't be afraid to treat a light red just like a rosé - but expect more spice and bass tone to show through!

The right red for a summer soirée 

Not all red wines work when you're already feeling the heat, but the ones that will work for you during this time have a nice creamy texture, balancing acid (without necessarily tasting tart), and drying tannins that aren’t too high. These are wines that you can drink at a slightly cooler temperature without them becoming bitter and unpleasant. While big red blends can feel "sticky" in upcoming seasons while they cling to your palate, the 2022 Artist Blend will keep tasting fresh. Drink the wine at around 60 degrees so that it's just-under-full-body is refreshing in all its glory, and simply pair the wine with a lighter dish than a full steak. Pork meatballs will keep you feeling light, while savory Mexican spices will highlight the oak and earth characters in the complexity that we find in G-S-M blends like these.

Complete with a sprig of mint, this dish and wine pairing is a perfect example of how to trick your mind and body into feeling fresh through the whole season and into Fall, and without sacrificing your favorite William Chris reds!

Santé!

WORDS & wine recommendations

BY KELSEY KRAMER

food pairings & styling BY jerilynne

https://hillcountrybonvivant.com/

@the_hill_country_bon_vivant

Photography

by Dave Capote

@freshmediaco