Amuse-bouche. The name says it all: a spoonful of diversion to charm your mouth. Whereas wine is our dining companion, engaged in a dialogue with the flavors and textures of different courses, an amuse-bouche does its little dance between acts and exits.

Well, two foodies from Brooklyn have come up with a heckuva amuse for your freakin’ bouche. Like so many great concepts, it’s pretty simple: wine sorbet. It’s all in the execution – and the line from Wine Cellar Sorbets is consistently excellent.

Forget popsicles – these are not cloyingly sweet, nor chunky-icy like a granita. They are pull-the-spoon-from your-lips-slow smooth, and each one manages to be quite distinct. With wines from Cali, New York and Spain as their main ingredients, they’ve done a minimum of amount of doctoring, preserving the character of the source varietals. Their Cabernet Sauvignon Sorbet retains that grape’s deep soul, while their Sake Sorbet is brave yet elegant. Champagne, check. Pinot noir, check – there’s nine so far, and you’ll probably want to try every one.

Plus, they’re all natural! Dairy and fat free! And…gluten free! (The Brooklyn guys have their shoulders hunched and their palms up – C’mon, what’s not ta like?) The booze factor? – with only trace amounts, they’re considered non-alcoholic, but our guess is you’ll get a psychosomatic buzz, kind of like smoking oregano. This is infinitely nicer.

They scream ‘summer get-together’, but have a friend or two around regardless, because there’s statistically low odds on not finishing a pint. All the bouche present will be très amusée!

winecellarsorbets.com