In Episode 51 of The Wineitupanotch Podcast, host Anshu Grover, a certified wine specialist, shares the wines she's been enjoying over the past two weeks. The episode, inspired by a TikTok video about what chefs eat in their free time, offers a peek into what a wine expert drinks in her personal time. Shoutouts are also given to a few noteworthy wineries that are from the Niagara wine region in Southwestern Ontario, Canada.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

[Anshu Grover]: 

Hello and welcome to The Wineitupanotch Podcast, a podcast where we talk about wine, life, and everything in between. My name is Anshu Grover, I am a Certified Specialist of Wine and your host, and I'm so thrilled as always that you've decided to join me today. Thank you for doing so.

Welcome to Episode 51 of The Wineitupanotch Podcast.

Today I'm going to talk to you about the wines that I have been drinking recently, and by recently, I mean in the last two weeks. The idea for this podcast episode was actually inspired by a TikTok that I saw recently where a chef was sharing what she eats on her time off, and she was sharing that, you know, she knows that people are always very interested to understand what a chef would eat when they have to feed themselves and it might surprise people. And I thought, well, that would be kind of a cool thing to let people into on the podcast….which is, what do I drink when I get to choose what I'm drinking.

Now, if you follow me on social media, specifically Instagram, you will see that I do display and share about the wines that I choose to drink on my own. It is something that I enjoy talking about and providing that information to the people that follow me. But I've only ever done it on that platform, and rarely have I ever talked about wines that I personally consume in my own time here on the podcast. I have, from time to time, shared wines that I like, I've brought on producers that I like, but I've never just really looked at a timeframe and said, “Hey, let me open the curtain, if you will, and share what I've been drinking”. So that's what I'm going to do.

But before I go there, I want to take a moment to acknowledge the 50th episode of The Wineitupanotch Podcast and what an achievement I felt that was. If you listen to that podcast episode, it was truly a meditation on the journey to get to Episode 50. In this podcast Episode, I'm not going to rehash any of that but I would like to thank everybody who has supported the journey and reached out and said they're proud of me, and congratulations for reaching the 50th milestone, and in particular, I would like to call out one person who I believe will hear this eventually and will hear what I'm about to say. And that person is my mom. 

If you know me personally, you might be confused at this because my mom actually passed away multiple years ago, and while I doubt very strongly that my birth mom is not listening (I do believe that she's also still supporting me!), when I say "Mom" today, I'm referencing my wonderful mother-in-law.

My mother-in-law has been absolutely incredibly supportive in my journey, and she always takes the time to reach out and let me know what she thinks of the work that I'm doing, the things that I'm saying, how I'm saying them, and what my impact is, and I do really appreciate it. And in particular, after the 50th episode, she sent me the most lovely message where she explained how she felt about what I had shared and watching my journey, and more importantly, just really told me that she was proud of me.

And you know what, that means a lot. So for my mother-in-law, this is a shout out to you. I really appreciate you as one of the avid listeners of this podcast. It means the world to me. I hope you will continue to listen and I hope that I will continue to make you proud with The Wineitupanotch Podcast. 

And to all my other listeners, as always, sending you lots of love too!

Now let's get into the business of this podcast episode. What have I, a wine expert, been drinking in the last two weeks?

As I'm recording this, it is the beginning of August in Toronto. This is a very hot and humid time in my city. It is definitely a time where you are trying to stay cool, either indoors or outdoors in the evening in the breeze.

But you know it's not a time for heavy red wines. So you're not going to find on my list any heavy red wines. Now, I love a good wine at any time of the year. I'm more than happy to drink all of the grape varietals no matter what the time or occasion. But sometimes during certain periods of time, I find myself more drawn to some things than others. And it feels like in these past two weeks, I have wanted things that are a little bit lighter in style and body. It probably has everything to do with the weather and the state of mind that I'm personally in.

Before I get going, I want to share that I'm not going to necessarily be sharing the exact bottles that I'm drinking. If you want to see that, you can always follow me on Instagram. I tend to feature many of the wines that I'm drinking there, either on my main page as a post or in my stories. But I'm going to talk a little bit more generally about the styles of wine that I prefer in this type of weather, and I will give some honorable mentions to some producers that are local because I love to give a local shout out if I find a really great wine that's made locally and I can support a local producer.

So first and foremost on my list in this type of weather are sparkling wines. I have definitely been consuming my fair share of sparkling wines! I love sparkling wines in the summer, I think they suit the weather beautifully, but they're also really great to pair with the foods that we tend to eat in these hotter months, things like salads or seafood based dishes pair very, very well with sparkling wines. Equally, food off the barbecue that's a little richer can also pair well with a sparkling wine because the acidity and the bubbles in the sparkling wine will cut very nicely through any fat or heaviness that's in the meat of a barbecue dish, generally speaking. So sparkling wines have been a feature in my wine menu! 

This is where I will do a little pause and do a shout out to a local producer that I recently discovered. They're called Ridge Point Wines and they are located in the Lincoln area of Niagara. Niagara itself as a region is about two hours away from Toronto, and then within Niagara there are little townships and areas that are producing wines. And so Lincoln, also known as Vineland, is one area where you can find some really great producers, and Ridgepoint is located there. And they have a Glera-based sparkling wine that is a nod to Prosecco that is made in Italy.

They cannot call this wine "Prosecco" because they're not making the wine in the region of Prosecco in Italy, but they are making it from the same grape and using the same production method. And I chanced upon this - I was in the area and stopped in for a tasting because I wanted to sort of experience what Ridgepoint was about, and I ended up really, really enjoying that sparkling wine. It's light, refreshing, very well priced, and if you're able to get your hands on it, if you're a listener that is local to Ontario and you can get your hands on The Ridge Point Bellisima Sparkling Wine is what it's called, I would highly recommend it.

The next style of wine that I've been consuming a lot of in the last little while is Pinot Noir. If you know me, you'll know that I am a huge fan of Pinot Noir. I love, love, love Pinot Noir. I love wines from Burgundy, which are Pinot Noir based. You would know that if you've been listening to the podcast and following the Diving into Burgundy series.

However, in this instance, I am saying Pinot Noir not because I love it, but because I think it's perfect for hotter times of the year. Pinot Noir tends to be a lighter grape, and when it comes from certain climates, particularly cooler climates, and it's made in a high quality way with a focus on good, precise wine making, it is a wine that is lighter in the mouth and lighter on the palate. You can put a slight chill on it, and that makes it refreshing even. It doesn't have a very strong high tannic profile, which keeps it from being too heavy in the mouth. It is dry. It is fruity, which is always very welcome in this weather, and it tends to pair well with the food of this weather as well.

Next on the list, I have enjoyed a beautiful Pinot Grigio from the Valdadige region of Italy. Now, Pinot Grigio is a grape that many people know and are drawn to and would think of, I think, in the summer. What I like here is that the wine that I've been trying from the Valdadige is actually by the producer, Albino Armani.

If you go back to Episode 41 of The Wineitupanotch Podcast, you will hear an interview that I did with Albino Armani. I think they are a fantastic producer, they have a great focus on quality and this particular Pinot Grigio is light, fruity and a sophisticated expression of Pinot Grigio.

Keeping on the theme of white wines, I have also been enjoying Chenin Blanc from South Africa.

I love Chenin Blanc because it is a grape that delivers a lot of precision and can be made in a very high quality way if you're choosing the right producers. It's got great acidity, which is wonderful in this hot weather, and again, can pair very nicely with some of the dishes that we find ourselves eating in these months that can be a little bit warmer. But it also does very well just as a sipper on its own. Now you know, I'm a proponent of always having your wine with food, but sometimes you just want to have a glass of wine on the patio, you know, on the evenings where you've got some time and the weather's really beautiful, and I find Chenin Blanc to be perfect for those kinds of scenarios. It's cerebral, it gets you thinking when it's made well, and it is also quite clean and neat and crisp, as I mentioned. So perfect for a hot summer night.

For the last two wines on my list, we are heading back to Italy - first to Northwestern Italy, and then more to Central Italy.

In terms of Northwestern Italy, a wine that I've really been enjoying is Langhe Nebbiolo. Langhe Nebbiolo is an appellation that is located in the northwestern part of Italy. It is in the same area, more or less, where Barolo and Barbaresco come from and it's made from the same grape, i.e. Nebbiolo. But the appellation itself has different rules than Barolo and Barbaresco so the wines themselves tend to be quite different in my view. They're much lighter, they're fresher, they're fruitier, they're more welcoming and easy drinking, and they're intended for early drinking. So I think they go quite well with the type of weather that we experience in the summer where it's hot and you know, you don't really want something that is too, too heavy. 

Now these wines still have structure because Nebbiolo is quite a structured grape, but they're just a little bit more ethereal. They've got a lighter quality, and for that reason I think they go well with summer nights. 

And the last wine on the list is Chianti Classico. Now Chianti Classico IS a heavier wine. It's made from the Sangiovese grape. It's made in Tuscany. But I'm going to harken back to the fact that it's made somewhere that tends to be quite warm in the growing season. It is enjoyed there with the food of the area in these warmer temperatures, and I think that it does fine on a warmer night. It's not a wine I would necessarily put a chill on per se, but I think when you're looking for something that's got a little more structure or heaviness to it - you are perhaps having a barbecue or having Italian inspired food and it has a little bit more depth and richness to it - I think a Chianti Classico can go very well with that type of food.

It gives you the structure, it's got the balance, it's got the tannins that will hold up well to richer dishes. And if it's aged, it's got some beautiful complexity. But it's still higher on the acid profile. It tends to be a little bit lighter in its profile, and so that gives an overall feeling of lightness as you're drinking it, as compared to some other grape varietals from some other parts of the world, which can be quite a bit heavier and more demanding when it comes to consuming them. And for me, that can just be too much sometimes.

And I've just looked down at my notes and realized that I was not at the end of my list. ! One last wine style that I would share that I have been enjoying is dry Riesling.

Ah, Riesling!! Who does not love a good Riesling? I mean, maybe you don't, but I certainly do and I think most wine experts love a good Riesling too.

I find myself really drawn to Riesling in the summer because of its acidity and its crispness. The profile of the grape itself, sort of the aromatic notes that it gives off automatically are just so welcoming in the summertime, and I love it with my food, whether it be heavier Indian food that I tend to eat or lighter dishes like chicken or even fish based dishes. I really like a dry Riesling.

Let me take a pause here one more time to give a shout out to a local producer whose wine I've been enjoying and that producer is called Leaning Post Wines. They are also located in Niagara and they make fantastic Rieslings. If you're able to get your hands on it, I would definitely suggest you try.

And there you have it! That is what I have been enjoying in the last two weeks. We went through several wines. Let's go through them again. So - sparkling wines, Pinot Noir, Pinot Grigio, Chenin Blanc, Nebbiolo (Langhe Nebbiolo to be precise), Chianti Classico and dry Riesling. Seven different wine styles.

This is not a hard or fast list. There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to wine, so take from it what you will and leave whatever doesn't resonate with you. You should always choose what you like to drink, when you like to drink it.

Now let me take a moment to pause and underscore what I think is a very important point. We should always drink in moderation. So while I went through seven different wines, rest assured I did not drink whole bottles. I've been drinking glasses and samples of these wines and enjoying them, and I want to encourage you to drink responsibly regardless of the weather, regardless of the occasion, it's always important to drink your wine with good food, good people, and with moderation in mind.

And with that, I will bring this episode of The Wineitupanotch Podcast to a close. I hope you've enjoyed it and maybe gotten some new ideas for what you might want to try with the remaining months of warmth that we have left in the Northern Hemisphere, or if you're in the Southern Hemisphere, the warm months that are coming your way soon.

And I look forward to speaking with you again in Episode 52. Until then, wishing you lots of peace, love, light, and of course, good wine.

Cheers!