🍷 NWR Weekly: Summer Drinking, Mastering the Auction Game, California Wineries to Watch

GOING ONCE, GOING TWICE, SOLD!

Ah, auctions. The most needlessly confusing way to buy wine. The obscurities of the auction game can flummox even veteran collectors: What are these fees? Why does no one seem to be paying attention? Is everyone drunk? Why are some people in what appear to be ball gowns and others in Hawaiian shirts? How do you win?

Well, here’s your definitive guide to getting auctions right. And enjoying yourself immensely in the process.

SUMMER DRINKING

Few make it this far into the season without tiring of the frozen margs and poolwater white wines that seemed so satisfying just a few weeks ago.

Fear not, our summer wine suggestions are here, and they’re a lot of fun. Italophiles, value drinkers and oak fiends alike will find plenty to get excited about in Senior Editor Christy Canterbury MW’s guide. Here’s to a sunny second half.

(BARREL) SIZE MATTERS

Whiskies aged in small barrels became an increasingly common sight on shelves during the craft distilling boom, but some distillers (and drinkers) have begun shying away from them of late.

NWR Whiskey Editor Susannah Skiver Barton’s 4-minute guide offers a quick way to know what you’re getting into if you’re intrigued by small barrel whiskey.

HOW TO DO MADRID THE RIGHT WAY

Let two locals—one a winemaker, the other the head sommelier at the Madrid Mandarin Oriental Ritz—light the path for you. Contemporary art spaces, streets filled with booksellers, insanely good churros and wine bars packed with winemakers on their nights off are just a few of the insider highlights that await you in Spain’s revived capital.

10 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA WINERIES DOING INTERESTING THINGS

Northern California continues to be a hotbed of adventurous experimentation. Senior Editor Virginie Boone met with 10 wineries she thinks are up to particularly fascinating things and has a helpful roundup of what to know and drink from these notable spots.

QUICK PICKS FOR HOT WEATHER

Don’t sleep on Grillo, a native grape alternative to Sauvignon Blanc—the Mandrarossa Grillo Sicilia is just $14. Try an oaked white that isn’t Chardonnay with a Sémillon-Muscadelle blend like Château Monestier La Tour Bergerac Sec. For those who like to stray from the beaten path, check out the Bodega Colomé Torrontés Estate Calchaquí Valley Salta.

WHAT WE’RE DRINKING AND LIKING RIGHT NOW

🤹🏻‍♀️Virginie’s making pitchers of Palomas with Cenote Tequila for a summer party.

👛  Christy is fawning over Domaine de Baal’s 2020 Le Petit Baal, a lively blend of Syrah and Merlot from Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.

🪵   Susannah is sipping Rhum J.M Terroir Volcanique, a fruity Martinique rhum agricole aged in new oak.

🐴  Gray is in the tank for a light-but-powerful 2020 Pinot D'Aunis L'Enchanteresse from La Grapperie in the Loire.

VALUES, BARGAINS AND FINDS*

• A Barolo from critic favorite producer Einaudi, for $30

• A 7-year-old, barrel-proof, single-barrel rye from one of the country’s best merchant bottlers for $60

• A beloved Corsican Yves Leccia with “notes of lavender and Mediterranean brush,” for $37

• From Idlewild Wines, a 2022 Arneis fermented in native yeast, for $36

*NWR is not compensated for the links in this section

AROUND THE WINE (AND WHISKEY) WORLD

🕵️‍♂️  The FBI takes a break from investigating political crimes to raid a luxury wine shop.

🧠  Use reverse psychology; get free drinks.

🧫   A French politician wants to help drinkers understand where the yeast in their wine comes from.

Thanks for reading! See you next week.

Santé!

The NWR Editors

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