Wine

Sometimes nothing but a wine with gobs of flavor will do. Gnarly Head "Authentic" White ($10) is just such a concoction. Lovely floral scents, including honeysuckle, are just harbingers of the honeydew, peach, pineapple and other layers of lush fruit, with just enough backbone and a crisp, refreshing finish thanks to the stainless-steel (no oak) fermenting. The name comes from the old vines that bore the fruit, but the grapes' names are kept on the Q.T. Most any spicy dishes from Asia or south of the border will play well with this quaffer.

Available at Haskell's, NorthGate/Top Ten, Total Wine, Lakeville and Edina munis, Coborn's and more.

Bill Ward