The Sun Does Shine
Anthony Ray Hinton
This is an account of a Black Alabama man condemned by racist assumptions and discredited evidence who preserves his humanity until the legal system finally releases him.
The varietal
Chenin Blanc · Swartland, South Africa
Dry-farmed Swartland Chenin is the center of gravity because its old bush vines endure heat and drought without losing freshness; Sauvignon Blanc would make the light too breezy, while oaked Chardonnay would soften the memoir’s moral edge.
Ask for Dry, high-acid Chenin Blanc from sun-exposed vineyards — think Swartland Chenin or dry Vouvray
Chenin can gather quince, wax, and honey under fierce sunlight while retaining an uncompromising acid spine, giving the pairing both the title’s light and the memoir’s resistance to imposed bitterness.
Accessible
~$17
A.A. Badenhorst Family Wines Secateurs Chenin Blanc
Swartland WO, South Africa · Chenin Blanc · 2023–2024
Yellow apple, quince, lemon peel, light beeswax, and a dry saline finish carried by brisk acidity.
Terroir mirror
Dry-farmed bush vines on Swartland’s sun-baked granite turn punishing exposure into fresh fruit, making sunlight a material source of endurance rather than a decorative reference.
Refined
~$45
Raats Family Wines Old Vine Chenin Blanc
Stellenbosch WO, South Africa · Chenin Blanc · 2021–2023
Pear, quince, chamomile, wet stone, and restrained oak form a broad center enclosed by precise acidity.
Metaphor
Its generous, waxy middle is held inside a severe acid line, translating Hinton’s expansive inner life within the fixed geometry of a death-row cell.
Prestige
~$58
Domaine Huet Vouvray Le Mont Sec
Vouvray AOC, France · Chenin Blanc · 2020–2023
Flint, green quince, citrus oil, lanolin, and a suggestion of honey unfold slowly across a long, emphatically dry finish.
Prose texture
Le Mont’s austere flinty opening and gradual release of quince and honey follow Hinton’s plain-spoken sentences, which accumulate spiritual force instead of announcing it.
P.S. If your wine shop doesn't have these specific wines, just ask them for a Dry, high-acid Chenin Blanc from sun-exposed vineyards — think Swartland Chenin or dry Vouvray.
- Temperature
- 48–52°F
- Glass
- Medium-sized tulip-shaped white-wine glass
- Decant
- Serve the Secateurs directly; give the Raats and Huet 20–30 minutes in a narrow decanter or open bottle.
- Alongside
- Alabama-style fried chicken with pepper vinegar, ideally at a book-club supper.