Whites-Case | $11/bottle or $132/case before discount | Total Wine | I’m always looking for a great wine for sushi and, not being a big Riesling fan, this is my favorite so far. From Mendoza, Argentina. Crisp, Pear, Apple, Light-bodied. A beautiful structure and acidity along with fruit flavors and plenty of body. Well balanced, this wine displays a pleasant freshness with citrus notes and a long finish. Best enjoyed in its youth.
Mendoza Station Torrontes 2012
Whites-Case | $6/bottle or $72/case before discount | Total Wine | Here is my second submission in the budget category, this time a white from Mendoza, Argentina. This highly aromatic white is filled with bright notes of orange blossoms and hints of apricot. The off-dry palate is balanced by a crispness reminiscent of fresh citrus, with a lingering perfumed finish. Delicious as an aperitif or with fresh seafood, especially sushi.
Chamisal Stainless Chardonnay 2012
Whites-Case | $13 – $19 | The Perfect Pour | Stainless Chardonnay – unoaked 13.5% alcohol. No oak flavors with this Chardonnay. Grown from our friends on the Central Coast in California near San Luis Obispo. Tastes bursts of tropical fruit, peaches and vanilla flavors. Pairs perfectly to pasta and fish, while impressing your circle of friends that you don’t need an oaked chardonnay.
Willm Pinot Gris Reserve Alsace France 2012
Whites-Case | $12 | Perfect Pour | Rarely does a white wine come across as affordable and crushable. This Pinot Gris will change your mind about the Italian version forever. Pear, honey and ginger… This wine is sweet but with a touch of effervescence and acid to balance. Buy a case at The Perfect Pour. $12 a bottle.
Hermit Crab d’Arenberg Viognier Marsanne 2009
Whites-Case | $18 | Total Wine | Wow. Just wow. Julie B is going to fuss at me for stealing her favorite white, but this is awesome. Perfect Seafood wine. Francophiles will argue that real Viognier can only come from France, that it grows best in Rhone valley in rows between huge rock (usually granite) outcroppings. Well this Australian version gets its name from the fossils found in the dead coral in the soil which makes it a perfect white for seafood. If you’re headed to Catonsville Gourmet and need to take a bottle of white, this is the one. Don’t know that I’ve ever had Marsanne grape anywhere else, but if it is the Marsanne that takes the sometimes too sweet Viognier edge off this wine, count me a fan.
Graff Riesling 2010
Whites-Case | $10 | Mail Order Only ? | Riesling is an amazing grape. It has at least as much character as any other white. The problem for many folks is it’s too sweet. Problem solved! This is a dryer Riesling that offers a lot of value for the price ($9.99 per bottle). A crowd pleaser for sure!
Laurence and Philippe Greiner Alsace Riesling
Whites-Case | $18 | Iron Bridge | Fantastic Riesling – yes, Riesling. Normally I think all Rieslings are sickly sweet dessert wines and I can’t stand trying to pronounce all the extra letters in the various types of Rieslings (and keep the differences straight), but just know that this one is a keeper. From Alsace (“Alsatian”) minerals, crisp, little lemon, little salt, and lots of acid to fight off the sweet – this should be your featured summer white.