This coming January, the very best American wine will descend on our humble town for a two-day extravaganza and I can only sum up my feelings with two words: acute jealousy.

Jealousy that I won’t be trying and tasting and judging the hundreds of amazing wines. That difficult job is reserved for the incredibly talented (and merited) wine professionals as they try more than 500 wines in the third annual American Fine Wine competition.

On January 17 and 18, 20 local and nationally-respected wine superstars, including Charlie Arturaola, Fred Barger, Tylor Field and Jenny Benzie will face down two days of intense wine judging as they attempt to find the best American wines.

This particular competition is different from some of the other wine competitions because they’re classified as “fine” wines which means the judges don’t have to ruin their palate by spending days immersed in “cheap ” or “crap” wine. (That’s my editorial comments, btw). There’s a minimum price point for wines to compete, which varies from $15 for a Sauvignon Blanc up to $34 for a Cabernet Sauvignon. There’s really no other competition like this one in the country. It will be held at the Florida Culinary Institute. The competition is the brainchild of Shari Gherman and Monty and Sara Preiser.

Sadly, this part of the event is closed to the public, open only to sponsors, judges and the press (yippee for me, I can observe!). But you can experience the results of the competition with very best wine on March 13 at a Gala dinner that benefits the Quantum House at St. Mary’s Hospital, the American Red Cross and the Florida Culinary Institute Scholarship Program. In the first two years, the competition raised more than $240,000 for charity. The Gala dinner will be prepared by some of the area’s best chefs and will include a live and silent auction. Being auctioned off is work by live performance artist Michael Israel as well as winning wine signed by the winemaker. Cost for the dinner is $175 per person. They will go on sale in January and can be purchased online at www.AmericanFineWineCompetition.com or by calling (561) 504 VINE. Holiday presents anyone?

Dry and I did have a chance to try some of last year’s winning wines at a VIP/Press party earlier this month. It was a wonderful experience, and each wine we tried was obviously stellar. Here are a few of our favorites:

2006 Brochelle Vineyards Syrah
We heard from another wine-lover that this wine was the best being poured, so we wisely procured a taste early in the evening. It sang. It had aromas of dark cherries, dark luscious fruits and a bit of spice. On the palate, it was big, bold, balanced with intense but soft tannins, It was extremely well-balanced and great without food, which means it would be even better with! I immediately started calling local places but couldn’t find it anywhere. It’s a small-production vineyard, but maybe if we all start making local demands…

2006 Cosentino “The Franc”
It had a lighter ruby color and smelled strongly of black fruits and cherries. It retails for only $12.95 and was easy, fun, smooth and just a touch spicy. I personally love Cabernet Francs simply unblended and this was no exception.

2005 Cosentino 20th Anniversary “The Poet”
This Cabernet-based meritage is mellow, has a great use of oak and very soft tannins. It was very food-friendly and very, very soft. Dry thought it smelled of men’s cologne, but I thought it smelled a bit floral. Under any circumstance, it was a great aroma with a soft, round taste. It retails for $75 and is sadly not carried locally.