Wednesday, August 26, 1987AThe Battalion/Page 5 ~-~wellar owner offers philosophy about wine Bryan-made Chardonnay gets honors By Elisa Hutchins Reporter W 1986 Chardonnay wine pre- I^Bred at Windows of the World Restaurant in New York City this summer after winning best Char donnay in the Southwest in a re- giohal winetasting. H»ut even if your favorite libation is not wine, you might like to know Ht this award-winning Chardon- H comes from Messina Hof Wine ■ Pars in Bryan. ■IPaul Bonarrigo, owner and sixth ■Iteration winemaker, is a big part of the reason that, after ten years, ■ twelve different wines have won 46 international, national and statewide awards. This is a first for ■ of the 26 Texas wineries that are beginning to catch up in the race Hh Nappa and Sonoma valley vine yards in California. ^Biis attitude toward wine is re- ■IjC^Med and casual. According to Bo- ^ V nanigo, one doesn’t have to spend $100 on a bottle of wine or pretend to know what to do with the cork. ■Many wine experts promote a ■bbish appeal to people,” Bonar rigo says. “You don't have to know H vocabulary or be able to tell what Hie goes with chicken. It’s a pain in H neck. Our philosophy is that Hie is a wonderful drink and we Hnt you to feel comfortable with all of the varieties.” you go to Messina Hof, Bonar rigo and his wife Merrill will teach the basics of the wine world in about thirty minutes, after which anyone should be able to order in any res taurant without fear of embarrass ment. One of the first things one learns are the five senses of wine apprecia tion: • Visqality — the darker the color the older it is. A well-made white wine will be straw or yellow in color and be aged for no less than three months. Red wines are aged for two years. • Clarity — one should be able to hold a glass of wine up to the light and see through it. It should be clear with no floating particles. • Smell — the bouquet or distinc tive aroma. How does it smell? This is based on each individual’s opin ion. If one doesn’t like the smell, one should say so. • Taste — drink it. How does it taste? Too sweet? A dry wine may be preferable. Dry simply means hav- — ing no sweetness. Many think sweet wines are more alcoholic but they have much less alcohol content than dry wines. • Touch — there is a technique to tasting. It isn’t very glamorous, Bo narrigo says. Put some wine on the top of the tongue and slap the tongue on the roof of the mouth. One should be able to feel the aroma come through the nose. After learning the senses, Bona- riggo opens up a bottle of Chardon nay and begins wine-tasting. But before the tasting, the cork must come off. But once off, what does one do with it? “I was at a wine-tasting in Austin a while back and the waiter brought out the bottle, opened it, and gave the cork to a gentleman from San Angelo who told me he knew noth ing about wine,” Bonarrigo says. “The man took the cork and looked at it very closely. He then held it up in the air and showed everyone at the table the cork. Apparently they were not pleased with his actions, so he ate the cork.” The only reason one smells the cork is to make sure it is wet. If it is, then the bottle has been stored on its side, as it should be. After the cork is off, the Chardon nay is poured. It is a dry, simple wine and Bonarrigo says it can be served with fish, chicken, bread, cheese or anything else. Sauvignon Blanc also is a white wine. It is green in color and has a slight taste of green olive. It also has a smoky characteristic to it that “You don't have to know the vocabulary or be able to tell what wine goes with chicken. Our philosophy is that wine is a wonderful drink and we want you to feel comfortable with all of the varieties. ” — Paul Bonarrigo, owner of Messina Hof comes from an aging process in smoky-styled oak barrels. The wine is perfect with anything made of crab, Bonarrigo suggests, or turkey and dressing. Red wines such as Messina Hof’s Papa Paulo Porto have a tendency to be sweet. Port wine has a cherry, chocolate flavor that comes from the sweetness of the grape as the two- year aging process takes place. Port is fortified, meaning a dis tilled liquor is added to the wine dur ing aging. In this case, 195 proof brandy was added. It is anywhere from 18 percent to 21 percent alco hol with a sweetness level in excess of 2 percent. Because of the sweetness, Bonarrigo says it should be served as an after-dinner drink with choco late, ginger or Stilton (goat) cheese. “A perfect dessert for the hot summer months is the Texas Des sert,” Bonarrigo says, laughing. “First, take a half-gallon of Bluebell old-fashioned vanilla ice cream and half a bottle of port. Pour the wine over the ice cream and put it back in the freezer for a while and serve. And that’s it.” An interesting thing about port is that it has legs, Bonarrigo says. If one swirls the wine around in the g lass and watches it settle, it looks ke legs forming on the side of the glass. This is caused by the sweetness and the high alcohol content. Bonarrigo can talk about wine for hours, and his knowledge in this area is limitless. His family comes from the wine country of Messina, Italy, and together with his wife’s heritage from the vast vineyards of Germany, Messina Hof has grown to a good-sized business. Bonarrigo’s talent and understanding of the wine industry has placed Texas in the national spotlight of a profitable industry and is one that Bonarrigo says will only get bigger. ’n and s te ds assfii lions 2:r u hand ,d then' ith ihtf!‘ assistas.: fceivedi'i : for soul ng hf k' :rce gui(feli| poims.kj V'heels. 11 sponse sen re event' ■stems aitj who M ves mosi used, (t' : ce a nio! .ing onto progra® icareoi' nee is a® i or olds aital exp i throf dividual iplenw 1 jenavidf ,on has ; montli 1 15,000,& rvices! enavkte ; to I ,e peopl Devel