Perhaps you’ve encountered a white wine that comes in a 1 liter bottle inside the cooler at your local fine wines shop this summer. There are a handful of them on the market this year. But it’s not necessarily something you see every day. Some of these wines are 100% Gruner Veltliner, Austria’s flagship white and a fast favorite here in the states; some others may be a little known white blend called “Edelzwicker.”

Eldelzwicker can be hit or miss, like any wine, but the stuff making it across the Atlantic and onto our shores so far has proven very worthy of our attention. Pop on over to Wicked Local today to find out what all the buzz is about!

Have you uncorked an Edelzwicker this summer? Which one?

Those of us in the wine industry know August is a sleeper month. Sales always drop as folks head out of town for some rest before school starts again. This calm-before-the-storm is a relief to many of us because we’re about to embark on Trade Tasting Season, which starts in just a couple of weeks – and is, quite frankly, insane.

Further evidence of this quiet month is just how little truly newsworthy wine “news” is out there these days. No less, Decanter comes through for us once again this week! Here are three articles that rose to the top for me:

Wine from Finger Lakes wins top prize. (Do they really think any other region can compete?)

Find out what “The Terminator” is doing to get CA back on the consumer radar…

Sad news for wine professionals… Our beloved Wine Report is going off-line.

What’s your reaction to these news tidbits?

After a summer respite of sorts, this Monday we find ourselves concluding the Pour Favor series on eco-friendly wines with a discussion on Biodynamics. It’s the topic that “mindbottles” people the most. But I happen to find it the most fascinating – and so have saved the best for last!

Head on over to Wicked Local today for some insight on the goodness…

Do you pay much attention to Biodynamic wines? What’s your impression?

This week Decanter “wins” for the most captivating wine news. Tune into these fast-paced articles over your morning coffee. These headlines are sure to get you sailing right into your weekend!

Here’s a preview:

Reservatrol, the compound found in red wines that often gets plugged for its health cache has made headlines once again – as having anti-inflammatory properties. But does everyone agree? Find out here.

I’m more likely to be watching the Red Sox or Sports Center than any mainstream TV program. But I am a sucker for Top Chef and Project Runway, and this fall I may have to add another one to my list of “must-sees”: The Winemakers!

Last but not least, as we continue to watch Aussie wine sales dwindle at the shop (it seems the public might be over “it” and onto South America for cheap, satisfying wine finds) some wines from down under are proving quite tasty, albethem at a higher price point. Now it seems a concerted effort will be made by top wineries to establish Australia as something much more than plonk-worthy. Read more here.

Will you be tuning in to “The Winemakers” this fall? What’s your take on Aussie wines these days?

Yes, there are the ABC wine drinkers of America – “Anything But Chardonnay”. And their club was probably worth forming back in the day given the prolific amount of lackluster Chard on the market, practically flowing with splinters from over-oaking. Before I “officially” became part of the wine world (professionally) I may have even been an “unofficial” member….

What I learned quickly is there is a lot of juice on the market. Some of it is good. Some is ok. Some of it is just plain undrinkable. And, of course, everything in between and beyond! It is not right to discriminate against a grape – or even a style – entirely. You have to be on the lookout for the exception to the rule, the producer who is going above and beyond to let the grape’s natural fruit flavors emerge, or the terroir shine through. We’ve said it time and again: wine making is both an art and a science.

Hamilton Russell Vineyards is the diamond in the rough. Arguably they have a few advantages working for them. They are a South African winery – one of the Southern most in fact, located on the Cape of Good Hope in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley appellation. South Africa also has it’s own unique terroir – vineyard site to vineyard site, of course, but also in broader terms than, say California. South Africa’s location and aspect on the globe, let alone its unique soil types, maritime influence and the like, will bring to bear additional nuance to a wine you might otherwise think you’ve “tried”. The Russell family is savvy, too, focusing their efforts exclusively on producing exceptional Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

I had no extraordinary cause to pop the cork on the 2007 Hamilton Russell Chardonnay (which retails for about $26) other than the end to a gorgeous weekend, and the start of a tremendously delicious meal. I served up a plate of grilled pineapple and veggies – summer squash, zucchini, plumb tomatoes, vidalia onions, and snow peas – dressed in a touch of garlic and a soy/honey marinade.  I threw in a helping of grilled shrimp, seasoned with a touch of red pepper and Old Bay spice.

Enter the Hamilton Russell Chard, a gorgeous wine that happily continues to change and evolve at first sip, with food, and again after you’ve finished your plate.  As you continue to retaste it, various components tackle your tastebuds. The flavors? Imagine a bowl of apricots, a ring of freshly cut pineapple, and juicy, ripe pear slices all squeezed with lemon juice and then tossed with a great helping of taught minerality. Its backbone of minerality is most intriguing, almost forcing you to question whether you had in fact opened the Chard. But then its satisfyingly rich texture brings you back home again – you know all too well Chard is more of a sultry, curvy broad, like Joan from Mad Men. And this wine is absolutely that.

Most memorably, the Hamilton Russell was an absolutely stunning complement to my meal. It proved to be The Perfect Pairing, as the wine and the food both showed even BETTER when partnered up.  We all strive for such an experience; yet it is a rare treat when a wine and a dish don’t just go well together, but each gets better in the company of the other.

This one really is one to behold – and one that’s so dynamic even my description leaves room for you to add your own insights. This wine is that good – and that good at defying “the odds”.

What wine made you a believer in the “exceptions to the rule” caveat?