With the heat of summer in full gear I thought I would talk about a couple of things I have had recently that I think you may want to try. The first is a wine from Italy (Sicily) called Insolia. This is a grape that, although it is also grown in Tuscany, is most recognized in the hills of Sicily. This golden yellow-colored wine has a brilliant nose of pears, melon and floral notes. I had it with some grilled flounder stuffed with a crabmeat stuffing that was a little spicy and the wine really matched very well. It has a very citrus and mineral flavor quality about it and the acidity held up perfectly to the bit of cayenne in the stuffing mixture. Not a very expensive wine at $12.99, it is certainly a wine that you could easily overlook, but should be looking for…

  I also had a very interesting beer not too long ago that I really have taken a liking to… one of the Dogfish Head beers. The Raison D’ Etre is a little too much beer to be a slam down after mowing the lawn, or as an everyday quaffing kind of beer, but I had it at a tailgate party with perfectly smoked baby-back ribs and it was great. I put a six-pack in the fridge to sip on one every so often or to have with dinner…beer with food, who woulda thunk!!

Ken Amendola, Wine Supervisor, North Florida

Follow me on Twitter @abcwinekena