Wine of the week

Wine of the week

What: 2009 Les Halos de Jupiter Vacqueyras

Info: For Les Halos de Jupiter’s Philippe Cambie, “Grenache is the king of all grapes and the natural leader of all Rhone varietals.” The southern Rhone rising-star enologist makes wines for a number of famed estates, but Les Halos de Jupiter is his own project.

His Vacqueyras is a blend of 83 percent Grenache old vines and 17 percent Syrah from 35-year-old vines. With its intensely inky color, lush body and notes of wild herbs, deep dark fruit and spice, the 2009 shows why Vacqueyras can be such a beguiling wine — a close relative of Chateauneuf and Gigondas, which he also makes.

Cambie doesn’t make much of the Vacqueyras, but right now some of it can be found at local wine shops. Grab a bottle and take it to any picnic or barbecue.

Region: Southern Rhone

Price: About $25

Style: Lush and full-bodied

What it goes with: Charcuterie, cheese, barbecue, burgers, chicken fricassee

Cheeses and yogurt

For summer snacking, consider a tasty feta flecked with green olives and bell peppers or an olive-oil-herb string cheese, just two of California’s Karoun Dairies Mediterranean-styled cheeses.

Their yogurt? Tangy, thick and dip-perfect. Prices vary; suggested retail prices for the cheeses, $4.99; for the yogurt, $2.99.

Check a store locator at karouncheese.com.

Combined dispatches