We might just be at the beginning of summer, but talks of private as well as major public barbecue events are rife. While beer is the regular drink of choice, wine lovers do have a few options also. Barbecue (or barbeque) is a method and apparatus for cooking meat or poultry with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of charcoal. Barbecue has numerous regional variations in many parts of the world. Scientists have traced the word all the way back to the Taino people of the Caribbean – yes, this worldwide pastime began right here. Our famous variation is “Jerk”.

Wine and barbecue pairing can be a little challenging because of the smoke and the range of sauces that the chef might choose to use. My research informs me that there are a range of styles of barbecue that exist and depending on the style, the wine choice will change.

Styles and techniques of BBQ

Most American devotees agree that there are six styles of barbecue. The big ones are eastern North Carolina, Lexington (North Carolina), South Carolina, Memphis, Kansas City and Texas. The sauces and meat preferences vary a great deal. I found with the little research conducted locally that most persons spoke more of technique: smoking ,baking, braising, grilling and the ‘new’ untraditional method called slow cooking – slow cooking is untraditional in that it involves no smoking.

Zin – Wine of choice for BBQ

Zinfandel, sometimes referred to as Zin, is the number one wine of choice for barbecue. People seem to like the fact that they stand up to the flavours at the barbecue, they like the fruitiness and jammy flavours of the wine. Zinfandel is a variety of red grape planted in California. DNA testing revealed that it is genetically equivalent to the Croatian grape Crljenak Ka_telanski, and also the Primitivo variety traditionally grown in Italy.

Zinfandel is a versatile grape that produces a range of wines including a robust red wine, although a semi-sweet rosé (blush-style) wine called White Zinfandel has six times the sales of the red wine in the United States. The taste of the red wine depends on the ripeness of the grapes from which it is made. Red berry fruits like raspberry predominate in wines from cooler areas, whereas blackberry, anise and pepper notes are more common in wines made in warmer areas and in wines made from the earlier-ripening Primitivo clone.

We have both styles available to us here in Jamaica as the majority of wine importers do have a Zinfandel wine on the market. Some of these brands include Dancing Bull, Ravenswood, Rodney Strong, Delicato and Cline.

As we are typically having barbecue on a hot summer day, we might want to try something that will provide a cooling effect, which you can have in a larger quantity – you might want to try Sangria.

Happy Father’s Day! – Do get a bottle of Zinfandel for Dad this weekend.

Chris Reckord – Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. He and his wife Kerri-Anne are part-owners of Jamaica’s only Wine Bar – Bin26 Wine Bar in Devon House, Kingston. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter.com/DeVineWines