A Sangria blend that's a cut above

I was getting my hair cut, and Amy, who wields a razor blade like I work a corkscrew, reminded me that I had promised to do some research on sangria.

"What's your favorite sangria recipe?" she inquired. Believe me, when a woman with a razor blade aimed squarely at your head asks a question, you find a quick answer. Sangria, you say? Yes, I do seem to recall a conversation some weeks ago. I was going to try to re-create the excellent sangria I had whipped up one hot summer day two years ago.

Amy had seen something labeled Sangria at the liquor store and assumed it was a type of wine. In fact, it was more like a wine cooler, what a bartending friend calls "wine puttanesca." In other words, you can toss almost anything into the mix, and if it tastes good, go with it.

Bartending guides offer some pretty snazzy recipes, but for a simple summer party punchbowl, I don't think you need to fuss. For me, homemade is infinitely better than store-bought, and more fun.

Figure on a half-bottle of wine per person. Along with that, you will need fruit juice — this time I went with lemonade/mango, but the sky is the limit — and fresh fruit. Sangria is traditionally Spanish, so I used a bottle of a decent, dry Spanish rosé, then doubled it up with a lovely Washington gewürztraminer. You don't want oaky wines in sangria; you want wines that offer fresh fruit, crisp acids and some nice floral notes.

Don't cheap out. Better wine equals better sangria. I find that roughly a 40/60 fruit-juice-to-wine ratio works for me, but you can adjust to your own palate. Chop up fresh fruit; whatever is juicy and in season. I went with plums and nectarines. If your fruit is sweet, you shouldn't need to add sugar or syrup to the mix. But there is a secret ingredient ... sherry. Go with a sweet Amontillado or Oloroso if possible; another option would be Madeira. It doesn't take much — just enough that you can taste it, but no one else can identify what's in there.

Ta-da! Let everything chill for an hour or so, and serve it in tumblers for a great party starter.

New for summer

Summer is a fine time for exploring new wineries; trying lighter aromatic white wines; and pouring hearty, blended reds with your grilled foods. Here are some outstanding new releases from Washington producers. For those of you keeping score, these are all 90-point wines or higher.

Chinook 2005 Semillon ($17). Clean and crisp, this lightly pear-flavored semillon might easily be mistaken for an elegant Italian pinot grigio. As with all Chinook wines, it shows pure varietal character, cool climate acidity and sophisticated winemaking.

Seems as if everyone is doing viognier these days, but only a few wineries manage consistently to do it right, avoiding both bitterness and alcoholic heat. Bergevin Lane's 2005 Viognier ($25) includes a substantial amount of roussanne. Stone fruits morph into tropical pineapple and bright citrus, the perfect flavors for viognier.

If you really want to pin the aroma meter, here are a couple of incredible gewürztraminers (just say "guh-werts," and your wine seller will know what you're after). Columbia Winery's 2005 Gewürz ($12) may be its best ever; it's beautifully varietal, mixing floral, bath powder, apple and grapefruit components in both the nose and the mouth. There is an elegant intensity that powers the wine through a long, brilliant finish. Partner it with the Canoe Ridge 2004 "Oak Ridge Vineyard" Gewürz ($13), a lovely mix of candied citrus, spicy resin and tangy pineapple. Chill these wines a bit, and you will find they are just right with all kinds of spicy food, both hot and cold.

Latitude 46{+o} N is a new winery west of Walla Walla. Winemaker Chris Dowsett has a winner with his 2005 Clifton Cuvée Red Wine ($18), a compelling blend of grenache, syrah and a splash of mourvèdre. He calls it "a big jam bomb"; I would compare it to a good California field blend with fresh scents of cherries and black raspberries and plenty of crisp acid.

C.R. Sandidge is one of a growing number of quality boutiques popping up in the Prosser area; its 2003 Minick Vineyard Syrah ($20) is a gem, streaked with smoke, laced with flavors of coffee liqueur and cherry cordial, and teasingly scented with whiffs of cigar. All in all a rather decadent, delightfully dark and sinfully delicious wine.

Finally, here are a couple of special-occasion wines from two of Walla Walla's most important wineries: Eric Dunham's 2005 Lewis Estate Vineyard "Shirley Mays" Chardonnay ($35) might be dessert, it's so decadently soft and buttery. Thickly flavored with caramel, traces of pineapple and loads of rich tropical fruit, it's big, delicious, distinctive and appealing.

The Woodward Canyon 2003 Artist Series #12 Cabernet Sauvignon ($44) is the best in recent memory, showing tight, compact flavors of cassis, black cherry and berry in a wrap of baby fat. This muscular cab shows the influence of winemaker Kevin Mott, who came on board in 2003 and is off to a very good start.

Don't miss these

• The Auction of Washington Wines is just ahead, Aug. 17-19. New this year will be a Napa-style barrel auction offering custom blends from Beresan, Col Solare, DeLille Cellars, Leonetti Cellar, Matthews Estate and Pepper Bridge. The theme of the main auction is "Life is a Cabaret," and surely the most sought-after lot will be Quilceda Creek's "Perfection Collection," a pair of six-liter bottles of cabernets that were awarded perfect scores by Robert Parker's influential Wine Advocate. Also up for grabs are such prizes as a 2006 BMW Z4 3.0i roadster, a Viking Outdoor Cooking Center and a trip to Australia for two. Information can be found at www.auctionofwashingtonwines.org; or phone 206-667-9463.

• There are plenty of opportunities to taste new wines, but very few times can you walk the vineyards with a winemaker, learn how grapes are analyzed and wines are blended, or participate in tastings of older vintages. A new event — "Going Vertical!" — will offer all this and more, as the Yakima Valley vintners host a wide variety of seminars and vineyard tours this Labor Day weekend.

Many Yakima Valley tasting rooms will pour multiple vintages of their wines. The special vineyard tours and seminars are sized for intimate groups and priced separately. For details, check online at www.wineyakimavalley.org/events.

Finding the wines

Unless noted, all Wine Adviser recommendations are currently available, though vintages may sometimes differ. All wine shops and most groceries have a wine specialist on staff. Show them this column, and if they do not have the wine in stock, they can order it for you from the local distributor.

Paul Gregutt: wine@seattletimes.com