We aren’t just another wine club - we provide our club members with everyday wines along with a daily blog full of great wine information. Our articles are full of wine news, pairing suggestions, restaurant reviews, and party tips designed to help wine buyers ranging from complete novices to experienced drinkers looking for the next best bottle. Sure, we want you to purchase a membership to The South Beach Wine Club, but we also want you to stop by every day to see what's on our minds. And once you're here, we hope you comment on what you read.

The club is designed for those who like to enjoy wine every day and those who know that wine helps make a party great - no matter what size! But who has time to make that extra trip after work to the wine store, trolling through endless bottles of wine? You should spend your time enjoying the wine, so we pick great bottles at great prices for you. No more guess work!

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While vacationing with Laurie’s family in the Bahamas, seafood has been a staple on the dinner table. Grouper, salmon, lobster, and conch have all made regular appearances. On islands like these, where almost everything is imported, the wine prices are outrageous – especially for those bottles with recognizable producer names and varietals. One bottle that I have been recommending (with great success) is Viognier. “Exotic” seems to be the word everyone is using to describe this wine. And not for nothing, but it’s looking like this varietal is going to help the family branch out from their regular white: Chardonnay.

Ranging from pale straw to light golden, Viognier’s exotic profile starts with the heady aromatics – honeysuckle, apricot, orange, and spice. The perfumed aroma is not just a tease, as it leads into generous gobs of melon, apricot, and peach on the palate. With its big fruit and relatively low acidity, Viognier pleases most fans of big, buttery, tropical California Chardonnay. Not unlike Gewurztraminer, Viognier tends to be fleshy and viscous in body. And even though it’s shy in the acidity department, the strength of its fruit helps the flavors linger.

Viognier is native to France’s Rhone Valley, where it is the only grape grown in the tiny appellation of Condrieu. Examples from Condrieu tend to be extremely expensive. Fortunately, however, Viognier is an ancient grape enjoying a growing modern escape from obscurity, thanks to plantings in the South of France, California, and Australia. As new vineyards start to bear fruit, prices should drop and more bottlings will appear each vintage.

Viognier is not especially crisp, but still quite nice when paired with simple chicken dishes, pasta with a creamy sauce, heftier fish (like salmon and Chilean sea bass), lobster, and even pork and ham. For those who just like the wine’s generous fruit-basket of flavors and aromas, Viognier is a great sipping wine to enjoy simply by itself.

If you are interested in trying a bottle or two of Viognier, you should be able to find it at your local wine shop. You may even find that producers are blending it with other white wines – sometimes even red wine too! But before we get ahead of ourselves, allow me to suggest some producers you may be able to find in your area. These bottles show good characteristic of Viognier, but won’t break the bank:

• Bridgman Viognier Yakima Valley
• Sobon Estate Viognier Amador County
• Bonterra Vineyards Viognier Mendocino North Coast

While on a mini vacation to Naples, Florida I brought along two great Sauvignon Blancs to see how they would stand up to one another. Local restaurants in Naples are known for having fresh seafood, prepared in many different delicious ways. Why go to chain restaurants when you can try the specialties of a local restaurant. If you’re planning a trip to Naples, check out www.NaplesOriginals.com to find a great local place.

But I digress – Sauvignon Blanc is the wine to have with freshly prepared seafood. Sure, a Chardonnay could also be enjoyable, but I find it can get a little heavy, bogging down flavors on the palate. A fresh, crisp Sauvignon Blanc will not only bring out the flavor of seafood, it will refresh the palate after every sip. In particular, Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region of New Zealand is perfect with any seafood dish that comes with a lemon on the side. These wines continue to win award after award, and can be purchased for around $15. Here are my thoughts on the two bottles:

Villa Maria 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Private Selection
Bursting with fresh passion fruit and gooseberry, the nose also offers bright citrus, fresh cut grass, and hints of earth. The palate is very well balanced with intense lime and grapefruit and lively acidity. After the ripe fruit, this refreshing wine ends with a clean, crisp finish. Perfect with any shellfish and white, flaky fish – grouper in particular.

Nobilo 2008 Sauvignon Blanc
This bottle has the distinct Marlborough bouquet of cut grass, melon, and flint. The palate is full of juicy grapefruit, ripe passion fruit, and hints of lemon and peach which is all balanced by zesty acidity. The finish is long and fulfilling. A fantastic pair with shrimp, clams and mussels – especially when there’s butter and garlic involved. This bottle also goes very well with grilled snapper.

Both of these bottles will stay on my roster for a long time. One isn’t necessarily better than the other, and I know I can depend upon both producers to continually put out fresh, juicy Sauvignon Blanc. And what’s better is that both bottles are usually priced under $15. I hate paying too much money for a bottle of light white wine, and I love that I can go to Publix and purchase both for $12.99.