Reds for the Barbecue

The selection is global and in some cases takes you to lesser-known regions where even the best-rated wines are priced at sensible levels.

We begin in Italy but not in the trendy north, where labels from Chianti, Barolo and Brunello come easily to mind. Rather, we turn our attention south to the sun-drenched vineyards of Apulia.

The last decade has seen southern Italian winemakers transform what used to be clumsy, high-alcohol, pruny-style reds into something much more elegant with crisper fruit and better balance.

One such crusader is American Mark Shannon, whose old-vine Promessa Salento Rosso 2001 is soft, supple and as fun to sip as anything you'll find in the north. It's a blend of 70 per cent negroamaro grapes and 30 per cent primitivo, all grown on the Salento peninsula -- the heel of the so-called Italian boot.

The entry is sleek, round and smooth followed by pleasing blackberry jam and spicy peppery aromas and just a hint of cold meats in the finish. There are some characteristic dry tannins in the finish but nothing a little grilled flank steak wouldn't smooth out. This is a well-made, flavourful southern red at a fair price.

Michel Gassier is the force behind Château de Nages, a winery located in the somewhat obscure appellation of Côstières de Nîmes in the Languedoc region of southern France.

Gassier returned to the family business after an extended stay in the United States where he discovered there was more to wine than just shipping it out of the winery in tanker trucks -- something his father had been doing for decades.

Gassier instituted an estate-bottled program at de Nages and the results are helping to put Côstières de Nîmes back on the serious wine map.

Château de Nages Réserve du Château Rouge 2000, a 60/40 blend of grenache and syrah, opens with a delicious black raspberry-jam nose streaked with licorice. We like the balance of this soft, supple red packed with ripe black raspberry fruit and a spicy, savoury finish. Barbecued meats or poultry would be the ticket here.

Earlier this year "Export or die" was the message respected Chilean producer Eduardo Chadwick conveyed to wine professionals at the annual Wine and Spirits Education Trust lecture in Vintners Hall, London.

"We are a very small country with an average per capita income of $5,000. We either make it in the export market or we don't make it," said Chadwick, president and owner of the Aconcagua based Vina Errazuriz.

One of his best value labels in the B.C. market is the Errazuriz Cabernet Sauvignon Estate 2001. Enticing chocolate and cassis aromas shape the nose with just a touch of leather in the finish. The textures are rich, round and supple on entry with more cassis fruit in the aftertaste. It's a touch warm or alcoholic but this is stylish young cabernet -- a baby "Don Maximiano" (the winery's flagship red) at an attractive price.

Some 350 km to the south, Spanish wine icon Miguel

Torres continues to fine-tune his Chilean investment at Curicó, turning out an impressive line-up of fruity wines.

One of the best in the market is the Miguel Torres Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Digna 2001. The nose is mix of earth and ripe cassis aromas. Look for a juicy fruit entry with spicy cassis and licorice flavours. A well-balanced, medium-weight red with a smooth finish. Perfect for drinking now or storing in the cellar for another year or two.

Heading east over the Andes will take you into Argentina for today's bargain pick: La Chamiza Sangiovese-Bonarda 2001. The 50/50 blend of Mendoza fruit is lightly scented with black cherry and licorice with some spiced meat undertones. The texture is smooth; the fruit dry and savoury with earthy, smoky black cherry flavours. A classic barbecue red at a bargain price.

As a fourth-generation native of Lodi, California, winemaker Todd Ziemann was active in helping establish a Lodi AVA or approved viticultural area home to his Talus Shiraz 2000.

Ziemann ferments and ages his shiraz (80 per cent of which comes from the Lodi AVA) in stainless steel to maintain its fruity character. Expect a soft, round, red that is brimming with blackberry, mocha and roasted coffee flavours with some sweet vanilla in the finish. Think about serving grilled lamb chops alongside this terrific-value red.

WEEKEND WINE TASTING:

Barbecue Reds

Wine: Promessa Rosso Salento 2001, Apulia, Italy
Price: $13.95
UPC: 8026705601108
Score: 15/20
Comments: A well-made, flavourful southern red. Killer value.

Wine: Château de Nages Rouge 2000 Costières de Nîmes, Languedoc, France
Price: $17.95
UPC: 690604000072
Score: 15.5/20
Comments: Soft, supple red packed with black raspberry fruit and spice.

Wine: Errazuriz Cabernet Sauvignon Estate 2001, Valle de Aconcagua, Chile
Price: $13.95
UPC: 089046777312
Score: 14.5/20
Comments: A "baby" Don Maximiano at an attractive price.

Wine: Miguel Torres Cabernet Sauvignon Santa Digna 2001 Valle del Curicó, Chile
Price: $16.99
UPC: 8410113005267
Score: 15/20
Comments: Bags of spicy cassis and licorice flavours.

Wine: La Chamiza Sangiovese- Bonarda 2001, Mendoza, Argentina
Price: $6.95
UPC: 7798039590458
Score: 13.5/20
Comments: Smooth, dry, savoury, earthy, fruity flavours.

Wine: Talus Shiraz 2000, Lodi, California
Price: $12.98
UPC: 08822004775
Score: 14/20
Comments: Soft, round red with blackberry and mocha and roasted coffee.