 Ray Isle (@islewine on Twitter) is Food & Wine's executive wine editor. We trust his every cork pop and decant – and the man can sniff out a bargain to boot. Take it away, Ray. Whenever autumn hits - leaves start falling, the light takes on that crepuscular cast earlier and earlier in the afternoon - I always start opening more Chenin Blanc. It’s an underrated grape, largely forgotten by casual wine buyers amid seas of Chardonnay, but its apple-inflected fruit and earthy notes seem perfect to me for the foods of autumn. In other words, it’s a perfect wine for mushroom risotto, roasted butternut or acorn squash, pork chops with apples, turkey, even (though the stuff is set to jump the shark any day now) kale. Chenin originates in France’s Loire Valley, where it’s the grape of the great wines of Vouvray and Savennières. It also has made a home for itself in South Africa, and there’s a small coterie of California wineries that specializes in it. It can be crisp and vivid or full-bodied and lush depending on where and how it’s grown, but in general it always manages to provide an appealing balance between fruity and savory flavors. Here are five good examples to check out, now that November is upon us. 2011 Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc-Viognier ($14) 2011 L’Ecole 41 Chenin Blanc ($15) 2010 Marc Brédif Vouvray ($20) 2011 Domaine du Closel La Jalousie Savennières ($23) More from Food & Wine: F&W Staff Favorite Fall Recipes © 2011 American Express Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved. 
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Does anyone know a good non-alcoholic wine?
Sparkling Muscatel, Idaho's finest. Would you like to smell the cap?
great, wine comments. bring on the snooty. I worked at a french restaurant, and it was true when I said my moderate knowledge of the industry was about 95% greater than the average clientele. I used to tell them what to taste, and they would taste it. The power of suggestion is strong.
Don't promote alcoholism. There's no reason to drink wine, ever.
Keep your ignoramus musings to yourself. If you don't like it why you posting douche?
Maybe you should have a glass and relax a little ... sheesh ...
If your taste buds are dead, you do not know what you are missing.
Oh yeah, that Jesus fella was quite a drunk?
Don't promote snarkyness. There's no reason to post on the internet, ever.
Thunderbird is the word. .44 twice is the price.
Relax, it's just grape juice.
Completely forgot about Dry Creek Vineyard Chenin Blanc from Healdsburg, CA. Hello- you call yourself one who is on top of the wine industry? One of the longest running Chenins from the US- best ever. I hope the wines posted were not getting a kick back... If you want to master Thanksgiving, Dry Creek Chenin is it. Google it!
East coast bias. For that matter Sauvignon Blanc. Any good wine from the Sonoma, Alexander, Russian River Valley, or Napa Valley can best these selections. Dude's a shill.
Always make sure to sniff the cork. It's the only way to know a fine wine.
Cork sniffing? Really? Who taught you that myth? If we were out in public and you did that, I would have to remove myself from the table. Whether or not the wine is corked can only really be confirmed by taste, Oh, and just because you don't like it does not mean it is a bad wine.
What you wrote was so mean, yet so true. I had a good laugh, even though I did feel guilty for laughing as long as I did. Perhaps Mr. McHammerpants becomes excited anytime wine in not poured from a box and topped off with ice cubes.
To this day I still get a kick out of folks getting all rowdy about cork sniffing and cork huffing. LOL!
Hilarious how seriously they took that comment. Esp when a post by Jdizzle McHammerpants, amazing name to post under! was obv sarcastic. Maybe they only recently stopped putting their Cab in the fridge.
I stick the cork in my mouth when they present it, give it a good taste and make a discerning, 'ooh yes, that is excellent' just to see the response.
LOL! Too funny!
If the wine is EXTREMELY bad, you can smell it on the cork.
Of course, if it were that bad, you'd be able to smell it as the wine steward poured it into the glasses also.....
J: People sniffer the cork to see if the wine is "corked". When the cork spoils due to fungus it has a particular off smell.
Ummm....Strong is the trivia force with these two.
True dat!
Is that like Ketracel White?
That would be earl grey.
I commend you. Either for knowing what it was or looking it up. Either one works for me.
I knew what it was. I'm a dork.
Apparently we both are. Cheers!