There is no way I can start this post without sharing my elation that my hand is free to type. For those of you who are not in the know, I have been in a cast for exactly 78 days, as reminded to me by my doctor this morning. But now, my cast is gone, and from its hard powdery depths springs a hand that is dying for some sun, a splash in the sea and the ability to type at lightening speed without hearing “clunk” “clunk” every time my plaster thumb hit the space bar. Ahhh, life is officially good.

So getting back to today’s topic, our featured wines of the week consists of a big, bold Portuguese wine called Preta, in addition to a line of wines called “Sexy”. Portuguese winemaker, António Moita Macanita, along with English viticulturist, David Booth, have attempted to design a simple, yet provocative, red, white and rose that are intended to be light, easy drinking and compliment food.

The question though, as posed by Jamie Good of Wine Anorak, is, “Can a wine be sexy?” Jamie argues that these wines don’t necessarily show sex appeal, but more a “hint of seriousness”. If I’m reading Jamie correctly, this isn’t your run of the mill blond bombshell like Pamela Anderson, but instead, more of the demure, sensual and soft spoken type that you’d bring home to mom; essentially, Charlize Theron with glasses working the Dewey Decimal System.

Do you ever have those nights when you just want something simple? When anything other than opening a package of meat and putting it directly on the grill sounds too complicated and annoying. A few nights ago, we had this exact experience, debating whether ordering Chinese food wasn’t a bad option; but instead, we opted for a simple dinner of chili lime marinated grilled chicken with a tossed salad and a white monovarietal Portuguese wine made with Verdehlo. Simple. Good for watching the full moon. And ended up being one of the best no brainer meals we’ve had in awhile. Funny that!

The white grape varietal, Verdehlo, is primarily known for its elaboration in Madeira wines, but is rarely talked about as a table wine varietal. I, actually associated it with the Spanish Verdejo when we first looked at the bottle, quickly learning that I wasn’t even the ballpark. It does, however, go by two other names in the Douro, Gouvieo and Vidonia, and as Madeira outside of the Iberian Peninsula. It is said to have been cultivated in Portugal since the 1400’s, but with the outbreak of Phylloxera in the 1900’s, what was once a prominent grape in Portugal was destroyed and had to be later revived by the Madeira authorities in early 1970s. Nowadays, you can find these small, acidic, oval berries with a hard golden skin in the Douro Valley, Terra do Sado region and Western France where they make dry, fruity white table wines. New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia are also experimenting with this varietal in both blends and as a monovarietal wine.

The Domingos Soares Franco Coleccao Privada 2006 Verdehlo from Jose Maria da Fonseca was fabulous and really surprising. Although, we’ve both had our fair share …

2005 Twisted Oak Verdelho Silvaspoons - USA, California, Central Valley, Lodi (12/13/2006)Gorgeous flowery, grassy nose with hints of pear and peach. Really intoxication nose with great nuance and delicateness. Wow, going on the palate lives up to the nose with great racy acidity and rich fruit. Beautiful flavors of grass, lemon, lime and more. Wow, great wine, in a screw cap, even better!