Our Big Fat Greek Dinner--with California Wine

I've commented on the versatility of sauvignon blanc before, but never expected that it would go with a great grilled Greek dinner.

The warm LA temperatures have not been conducive to cooking indoors, so our grill has been getting quite a workout. And our arteries can only take so much red meat and sausage. So when I found a recipe for grilled shrimp with chickpeas and pitas, I grabbed it. Shrimp brushed with oil and seasoned with a simple mix of salt, pepper, and oregano were threaded onto skewers and popped on the grill next to some pitas brushed with butter or olive oil. 4 minutes later (!) we had dinner, combined with some flash-heated chickpeas mashed with garlic, lemon juice, and parsley. Throw together a Greek salad, and you're all set.

With it: sauvignon blanc, of course. We had the 2005 Preston of Dry Creek Valley Sauvignon Blanc ($11.95, Chronicle Wine Cellar; available from other merchants for under $20). This delicious, medium-bodied sauvignon blanc had rich aromas of juicy melon, rich fig, and warm hay. As the wine flowed over your tongue, flavors of melon continued and there were notes of citrus and cream that made the wine both lively and round. As the flavors fade, the wine remains crisp. Like all Preston wines, this was made with organic grapes, and it represented very good QPR.