Wines that love

vine-ripened tomatoes

Cooking with wine is far from a newly discovered culinary technique.

Red wines have provided excellent braising liquids for stews and tasty Italian fare like osso buco.

White wines are often used in sauces and dressings, and provide a tasty ingredient in the broth used for steaming clams and mussels.

If you prepare pasta with butter and sage, reach for a herbaceous sauvignon blanc as a perfect pairing. Grill a steak and the cork is popped on a spicy zinfandel or a mouth-filling cabernet.

We know that a racy sangiovese is sure to complement lasagne al forno or a plate of ziti with hearty tomato ragu.

But what do you serve with sliced tomatoes and mozzarella, or a simple fresh-from-the-garden heirloom tomato salad?

We went in search of answers to tomato-and-wine pairing and discovered that two Napa guys, both named Dawson, were focusing on that very topic at recent public tastings.

Dan Dawson, proprietor of Napa's Back Room Wines, featured wine with heirloom tomatoes for one of his regular Friday afternoon/evening tastings. The following day, Jeff Dawson, founding director of gardens at Copia, hosted "Tomatoes and the Wines That Love Them" as part of Copia's Edible Gardens Festival 2006.

Copia has 3.5 acres of organic and biodynamically farmed gardens, with a substantial chunk dedicated to all manner of tomatoes. "In search of the perfect bite," Dawson felt it was important to prove to others -- via the tasting method -- what he and Copia staffers discovered quite accidentally. Their discovery was that lighter white wines fare better with lighter-colored tomatoes, such as yellow and green-striped heirlooms, while red whites fare much better when paired with red and purple heirlooms. The Copia tasting showed that an Amana orange tomato proved to be the transitional variety.

As a result of the tomato tasting, Dawson went on to experiment with other veggies. For example, white beans are best when paired with chardonnay, he said, black beans with zinfandel; yellow bell peppers with white wines, red bell peppers with red wines.

The first four wines addressed today are from the Back Room Wines tasting, the remaining two were tasted by Copia guests.

Setzer Grner Veltliner "Vesper" Austria 2004 ($19): This is the primary grape planted in Austria. The Wachau area has a very good reputation for its grner veltliner, as does the nearby Kamptal region -- which is but a stone's throw from the up-and-coming Weinviertel wine region, where this winery is located. Hans and Uli Setzer are the husband and wife team that run this 15 hectare estate. Their wines are on many of the top wine lists in Austria, not to mention being a house-estate for the Vienna Symphoniker Orchestra. This is a lovely wine, with aromas of white pepper and lentils, spritzy on the palate with crisp tropical fruit and tang on the finish. This is all the condiment you'll need for green zebra-striped tomatoes.

Boeckel Gewurztraminer Vin d'Alsace 2004 ($17): A pink-skinned grape variety that produces aromatic, full-bodied, deep golden-hued wines that are easily recognizable by their exotic tropical scents and flavors. Considered a specialty of Alsace, gewurztraminer probably originated in Italy's Alto Adige. Dawson is quite high on this wine, and rightfully so. It's a glorious Alsatian-styled gewurz, with an expected floral, spicy nose and ripe fruit that carries through from entry to finish. The spice on the finish amounts to that little bit of salt and pepper you apply to a vine-ripened tomato. Dawson's also on the money in that this gewurz prolongs the flavor of both wine and tomato.

Argiolas "Perdera" Isola Dei Nuraghi, Sardinia 2003 ($15): This easy-drinking red from Argiolas, one of the best wineries on the beautiful Isle of Sardinia, has lush fruit and staying power. It is medium intensity ruby red, typical of the traditional monica grape -- thought to be a long forgotten Spanish varietal planted here at the same time grenache grapes were brought to this large island off the west coast of Italy. Antonio Argiolas ferments this wine in glass-lined vats and then ages it 16 months in French oak. It has a nice cherry bouquet and is a well-balanced, juicy wine. It has silky tannins and cherry/blueberry flavors. It works well with the acid of tomatoes. I can see this value wine easily becoming a new favorite for pasta dishes, especially those made with fresh or cooked tomatoes.

Domaine Du Vissoux Beaujolais "Vielles Vignes" Cuve Traditionelle 2005 ($16): A true expression of Beaujolais gamay, this is the emblematic cuve from the estate -- fresh fruit in a concentrated wine expressed in ripe, fresh red fruit aromas and flavors. Pierre-Marie and Martine Chermette were among the first in their region to use sustainable agricultural practices and are renowned for putting a lot of passion into their wines. This Beaujolais boasts wild strawberries in both aroma and taste. It also changes the flavor of the tomato. While it was not my favorite of the tasting, it does pair well if you like your tomatoes dressed with a lush Beaujolais.

Chateau Ste. Michelle Horse Heaven Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2003 ($18): Horse Heaven Vineyard is located in the Horse Heaven Hills adjacent to the Columbia River in Paterson, Wash. Blended with 22 percent semillon for texture and weight, this sauvignon blanc was 70 percent barrel fermented for spice and texture in both new and older French oak. Aromas of citrus with sweet vanilla and floral notes lead to refreshing white grapefruit flavors. This fresh, vibrant wine punched up the flavor of the evergreen tomato and the citrus balanced the acid of the Amana orange, and proved not to work well with either red or purple heirlooms.

Valley View Winery Anna Maria Syrah Rogue Valley 2001 ($25): This deep, dark red Oregon syrah features ripe black cherry and pepper aromas and flavors. From jaw-droppingly beautiful Rogue Valley in southern Oregon, this silky syrah also tastes of ripe blueberries and has a nice tannin/fruit balance. The sweet flavors of cherry and blueberry, enhanced with peppery spice, proved to be quite good with the red Early Girl tomato, adding to the tomato's flavor. As for the Cherokee purple tomato, well, this was as close to the perfect bite we were going to get this day.