Picture this: A sunny summer Sunday morning on an outdoor patio, a slight breeze created by the large ceiling fans from the lanai, ready to enjoy your eggs benedict and home fries. Do you pop open your favorite Cabernet Sauvignon? I think not. The other side of this pastoral picture is the muggy sweatiness of a Florida summer, and a heavy red just makes you sweat all the more. Plus it’s early in the day. To better be productive, it’s nice to tone down the alcohol (as well as the tannin). So when I’m asked, “What’s your favorite brunch wine?” I usually shock the questioner with “Moscato d’Asti!”

Do I drink Moscato every day? No. I am not part of that current demographic wave, but I’m a wine lover, and I understand that context is also important. Though I love a deep, dark, brooding red, I also like to feel comfortable. No matter how much seersucker you wear at a charming midday repast, you will feel the heat! And don’t we want to be productive? That’s where the lower alcohol of Moscato d’Asti comes in, usually between 5% and 7%. Moscato d’Astis also have that charming fizz, called frizzante. Not the full jacuzzi bubbles of spumante, frizzante is a delicate bubbling, like the few bubbles that struggle through the fresh-squeezed orange juice in your mimosa.

Perhaps this is also the source of my love for Moscato d’Asti at brunch:  It’s almost a pre-mixed mimosa or Bellini. Most Moscatos have a fragrance that jumps out of your glass with pear and peach blossom, bordering on honeysuckle, backed up by sweetly ripe fruit on the palate. That hint of bubble, and the Italian tendency to allow just a hint of acidity to their Moscatos, stops the experience from being cloyingly sweet, keeping it cool and refreshing.

For years my “go to” brunch wine was a winey concoction or “mimosa bar,” with one bubbly, most often a prosecco, and an array of fruit juices including the “big three” that make up mimosas, Bellinis and poinsettias. I would then add passion fruit or guava or pomegranate juices. Having more than a few choices means you open up the potential for interesting recombinations. I still do this occasionally, but it requires a little more preparation than just opening up one bottle of Moscato d’Asti. Now I’ve found the perfect amalgamation, which is my current top choice for brunch wine: Froot.

Yes, I’m spelling it correctly, “Froot.” This wine is aptly named as both versions provide a fresh fruit quality to their frizzy Moscato base. Froot Peach is like biting into a fresh Georgia peach! The Froot Strawberry smells like a basket of Farmers’ Market strawberries, but has a background of the honeysuckle and citrus blossom we associate with Moscato d’Asti. It’s like a garden party erupting out of your flute, though I often serve them in bigger glasses to better enjoy the aromas. What’s even better about these two Italian Froot wines is their cost at $8 per bottle. Very affordable and with great fruit flavors, so how can you miss? For your next Sunday brunch on the patio, open up some well-chilled refreshment and hearken back to the garden parties of yesteryear where no one seemed to sweat underneath their parasols. A little coolness this time of year is a weekly Sunday miracle! 

Daniel Eddy

Gainesville wine consultant for ABC Fine Wines & Spirits. Follow me on Twitter @abcwinedane.

Wine Pairing Examiner for Examiner.com