Wine of the week

Hedges "CMS" Columbia Valley White 2006

The experience: The better elements of sauvignon blanc (54 percent) and chardonnay (44 percent) come through in this ripe, refreshing wine. (I'm not nearly savvy enough to identify what the 2 percent of marsanne -- which provides the third initial -- brings to the glass.) There are grapefruit, apricot and pear elements, depending on your palate, a soft mouthfeel and an especially sturdy, bracing, lengthy finish for a wine that retails for about $12.

The setting: OK, patio season is at some point going to commence for good. And when it does, this refreshing wine will be perfect for pre-dinner sipping, or pairing with all manner of shellfish.

The back story: Hedges' first customer in the mid-1980s was the Swedish government. Since then, the winery has expanded mightily but is still a family-owned-and-run operation, with six Hedges in prominent roles.