Winesday

Peter: White wine, well balanced. Neither too sweet nor too dry. Not going to guess the grape. Would go well with a classic shrimp remoulade from Arnaud's or turtle soup from Mandinas.

Rene: Green tinted, lip smacking wine with tropical fruit flavors and high acidity. This wine is a a picnic wine-which to me is exactly what I want to be drinking all summer long. I'd swing by Big Fisherman for some boiled shrimp or crawfish, convince a friend to get some oysters, and grab a sandwich with prosciutto, pesto, and melting mozzarella from a place like Tartine. I'd head to the Fly, open the wine, take off my shoes, graze, and watch the river move past.

Joe the Wine Guy: 2010 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, a shining example of a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Ripe peach, passionfruit, mango, juicy citrus, fennel and pastis greet you. The palate is rich and succulent with a zest citrus and apple-sherbet acidity that leads to a crisp finish. You can find it at Le Foret, Galatoire's, Muriels, The Ritz-Carlton, and International House Hotel. It retails for $25.

OffBeat Eats

The September issue of OffBeat Magazine is now available, and because it's "The Food Issue" there is a triple dose of Blackened Out articles for you to enjoy.

• Rene goes behind the scenes at Saints training camp to see how Pigeon Caterers satisfies the hunger of the world champions.
• Peter decides that his B.A. and J.D. are not enough, so he enrolls in St. James Cheese School.
• And finally for our Dining Out column, we take a look at Tartine, a little bit of Paris in the Riverbend.

We hope you enjoy.