Peaches and wine

I don't know why so many peaches taste like Play-Doh nowadays, but if you happen to score any good ones this summer, I'd suggest setting a few aside and trying something a little different.

Different, that is, if you have never been to an authentic Italian-American street festival, or feast. If you have been to one, then surely you have come across the little plastic cups filled with sliced peaches and cheap red wine.

I've been enjoying these wine-soaked peaches since way before alcohol could legally pass my lips. I'm still eating (and drinking) them, so long as there are peaches around worth soaking.

Some people like to remove the skin on their peaches, others leave it on. I like it either way, and so what you've got here is a little bit of both.

As for which wine to pour, most any type you enjoy will do. This time I decided on a not-so-cheapo vino, an '08 Nebbiolo. All you do, by the way, is pour the wine over the peaches and allow them to sit for awhile. Then put a few slices into a small glass and pour some of the wine over them. You eat the peaches, you drink the wine. How simple is that?

Many people soak the peaches for half an hour and have at it, but I let them sit at least a couple hours, sometimes a lot longer, depending on their ripeness and, of course, the mood I happen to be in. This peach slice (along with its friends) soaked overnight in the fridge. And both it and the wine tasted swell.