Wine of the Week

May 12, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Wine of the Week

2007 Quinta do Vallado Douro Vinho Tinto is a dry, red wine from the Douro Valley in Portugal, the traditional source for Port grapes, and is the new story in this gorgeous wine region to the north of Lisbon. Top Douro wines command high prices, but here’s a beauty that’s priced for the everyday table. The 2007 Vallado Douro is easy-drinking and delicious. Bursting with fruit, bright with the tastes of blueberry, cherries and plums, it is smooth going, as versatile a wine as a cru Beaujolais or a top-notch Chianti, say.

It’s perfect with pizza, a simple roast chicken or a grilled skirt steak. It’s a bottle to keep on hand for any occasion.

Region: Douro, Portugal

Price: About $20

Style: Elegant and smooth

What it goes with: pizza, roast chicken, grilled skirt steak

Tea-rrific brews

The English get lots of credit for tea, but we’d like to spread the love. Mariage Freres French teas just have a certain ... je ne sais quoi. Give yourself or a tea lover a gift tin ($19.50 for 100 grams). Try a traditional Earl Grey black tea, or go on a tea adventure with a red Nil Rouge Rooibos or green Vert Provence. For more varieties, head to porterouge.biz.

Three-grain chips

Plocky’s Three Grain Tortilla Chips might be good for their diabetic-friendly healthfulness, but the chips will make the whole crowd happy.

The rounds stand up to a variety of dips, and the whole-grain corn, cracked whole wheat and whole brown rice meld deliciously. The 7-ounce bag is available for about $3 at plockys.com and in natural-food stores nationwide.

Combined dispatches