Germany is well known for the outâ€" standing _ Beerenauslese _ and Trockenbeerenauslese wines. Such wines are natural, sweet wines which have been produced from grapes that have been left on the vines long after the regular harvest, and are picked when completely shrivelled up, just like a dry raisin. Such wines â€" considered the best dessert wines â€" are very expensive and often hard to come by unless one visits Vintages regularly. There are, however, two German wines in the regular listings In the Douro Region of Portugal, growing vines has been always part of the history, but it was probably not until the sixteenth century that the sweeter wines came into their own. Today Port is a favorite dessert wine for many and is used for chefs around the world in fine restaurants. Although there are some countries that have imitated ports, only Portugal produces, in my opinion, the real thing. Almost all Port wines we can buy in our regular stores are on the sweet side â€" an excellent choice for dessert wines. There is one exception, however, that of the white port which is very dry and unsuitable to accompany sweet dishes. A Real port from Portugal sells for between $11.00 and $14.00 per bottle. Don‘t overlook port as a wine that will go exceptionally well when added into the foods itself, such as sauces and gravies. Some call it Liquid Gold, others call the fine sweet dessert wines simply heavenly. In last week‘s column, I promised to take a look at dessert wines, especially some affordable alternatives. The decline of the popularity of dessert wines can be attributed in part to the fact that we have very little opportunity to drink them. Some of the producers must share in the blame by turning out some very sweet, inferior wines that are often overpriced. The success of our own dessert wines â€" the Ontario ice wine â€" has been well documented and few have not had the chance to try a bottle or two, in spite of the relatively high cost. In today‘s column, I would, therefore, like to take a look at some other available dessert wines that could be used instead of a forty dollar bottle of ice wine. Some inexpensive alternatives to ice wine LISTEN TO OUR "QuoOoTE" TODAY IT MIGHT HELP YOU ON YOUR waAyY that are sweet enough to be used as dessert wines, although far from an Eiswein or Beerenauslese, the Bereich Bingen Auslese from Schmitt, at about $8.75 and the Erben Spaetlese (Late Harvest) that sells for $11.65. One of the greatest dessert wines comes from France, the Sauterne. Rare indeed, we have no regular listing and only very few from time to time at Vintages. If you ever find one and it sells for under thirty dollars... buy it. Not OVER 120 OFFâ€"PRICE STORES, WAREHOUSE OUTLETS, SPECIALTY SHOPS SERVICES INCLUDING: SEARS CLEARANCE CENTRE * HY ZEL‘S DRUG WAREHOUSE 4* WINNERS Get the Best of Everything for Next to Nothing at our Midâ€"Winter Sidewalk Sale. Fashions, accessories, gifts, electronics and more. The greatest values are all on sale at Dixie Value Mall. The best of everything for next to nothing! And that‘s not all. During our spectacular Midâ€"Winter Sidewalk Sale, you can bag the biggest bargains with your FREE Dixie Value Mall Shopping Bag, as heavy in body as a German wine, they are very typical and usually remarkably good. The Italian Sperone Marsala All‘ Uovo is incredibly sweet and has a sugar rating of 24. For less than $10.00, a Marsala is a good wine to cook with, but not so great to drink on its own. My final wine recommendation is that of the Greek Samos, a very sweet Muscat wine that could be considered a poor man‘s ice wine as it sells probably Sunday, Feb. 21 â€" Sunday, Feb. 28 for less than $10.00. A Samos is a vinâ€" tage listing only â€" not very great to cook with â€" but pretty decent to sip a small glass or two from time to time. EBERSPAECHER available while supplies last at our Information Centre. One bag per customer. Dixie Road (Exit 136) and the Q.E.W. in Mississauga. Mondayâ€"Friday: 10 AMâ€"9 PM: Saturday: 9:30 AMâ€"6 PM; Sunday: 12 NOONâ€"5 PM. For more information, please call 278â€"7492. My final suggestion is not that of a wine today, but that of my free Phone Info line which will be available to you by March 3rd. Simply by phoning 845â€" 5585 and then 5200, I will be giving you a weekly suggestion of wine and from time to time even a recipe in which wine is used. Write the number down and call me ‘< every week. Even if there‘s not enough € space in the paper to carry my column at S times, let‘s stay in touch. 8 N