$10 a Bottle (and No Apologies)

When a crowd gathers around the backyard barbecue, you can be fairly certain that they’re less interested in admiring your fabulous cellar than in letting the good times roll.

This seems to present a dilemma for the wine-loving host: You want to pour something good, yet there is an undeniable pang in watching the last drops of a ’97 Brunello di Montalcino lubricate the howls of laughter at the latest lawyer joke.

I’ve been there. So have you. Let’s not go back.

There’s plenty of good stuff around at reasonable prices, especially now. The general quality of wine has never been higher--that’s never, as in the entire history of civilization. And fierce competition currently favors the buyer, especially for wines costing $10 a bottle or less. Serving good wine doesn’t have to cost a lot of money, nor deplete the household cellar of its best bottles.

There’s something so summertime, so very good life, about sipping a dry rose around the grill. Its color complements both the sunset and the glowing coals. The smoke-tinged air sets off a rose’s red-fruit aromas, and its tart, dry flavor is refreshing as the day’s heat fades--all the more if the bottles come from a tub full of crushed ice.

The 2001 Lawson’s Dry Hills Pinot (Marlborough, New Zealand, about $8.50), with its bracing watermelony flavor, is a good example. The 2001 Chateau Routas “Rouviere” (Coteaux Varois, France, $8) is a fuller bodied yet perfectly dry rose with real red-berry flavor. The 2001 Toad Hollow “Eye of the Toad” Dry Pinot Noir Rose (Sonoma County, $8) is also delicious: essence of Pinot grapes and less than 12% alcohol.

The trusty ice tub might also yield a crisp white or two as the first platter of grilled prawns and aioli starts making the rounds. The 2000 Fox Run Dry Riesling (Finger Lakes, New York, $9) balances luscious peach and honeysuckle fruit and knife-edge acidity. The 2001 Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc (Casablanca Valley, Chile, $9) has a clean perfume of ripe Sauvignon grapes with zesty flavor. The 2001 Echelon Pinot Grigio (Central Coast, $10) offers a summery whiff of orange blossoms and lush yet snappy grape flavor. It is deeper and richer than an Italian Pinot Grigio, thanks to California sun and a Viognier in the blend.

Of course, for most of us grilling is all about delicious reds, especially Zinfandel, Shiraz and Sangiovese: full-bodied wines that gleam with the deep red echo of mesquite coals. Inexpensive versions tend not to reflect particular vineyards or winemakers. They’re more often blended from grapes or bulk wine purchased on the open market. But guess what? The open market these days is flooded with terrific juice, and a lot of these wines are excellent.

An outstanding example is the 2000 Mont Pellier Syrah (California, $5). Grapes, folks--ripe, delicious red grapes with just enough smoky-leathery tone to signal their variety. What’s not to like? A better-defined, mostly Shiraz wine is Penfolds “Rawson’s Retreat” Shiraz-Cabernet (Australia, $7.50).

Bonny Doon offers two grill-worthy reds at good prices. The 2000 Domaine des Blageurs Syrah (Pays d’Oc, France, $8) is a mouthful of bold, peppery flavor and palate-cleansing tannin. And the 2000 Ca’ del Solo “Big House Red” (California, $8) is a fortuitous melange of more than half a dozen red grape varieties blended for easy grill-side quaffing. The 2000 Francis Coppola Rosso (California, $8) is another outstanding blend. This is a true California vino tavolo rosso, an honest table wine intended to make food taste better and conversation flow. Its fruity Sangiovese and Zinfandel give it special affinity with fire-cooked meats.

Ah, Zinfandel--the essential California grill wine. These days you can spend $50 or more for a bottle of single-vineyard Zin. Ravenswood made its reputation with such bottlings, yet also has the grace to offer the scrumptious Vintner’s Blend (California, $8). It’s full-bodied and smooth with lively berry flavors. If your guests don’t gulp this down, they don’t like vino. The 1999 Montevina Zinfandel (Sierra Foothills, $8) offers a similar value: tasty, old-style Zin with notes of black pepper and chocolate and pleasantly raspy tannin.

And when the crowd thins, go ahead and pull a special bottle. Last week six of us finished a party with my next-to-last bottle of 1996 d’Arenberg Shiraz “The Dead Arm” (McLaren Vale, South Australia). It was amazingly concentrated, with layer upon layer of rich, spicy fruit, a beautiful wine that helped make the first full moon of summer ’02 a memorable occasion.