With summer upon us, the tasting panel fired up the grill for this month's food and wine match-up. We targeted wines to accompany a spiced pork tenderloin, which is possibly the best white meat to hit the grill.

EVANS CAGLAGE/DMN; food styling by TINA DANZE/Special Contributor

Grilled pork tenderloin and grilled vegetables with white wine

Taking cues from The Cook's Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue (America's Test Kitchen, $35), we brined the tenderloins for one hour and applied a no-fuss dry rub of cumin, curry powder, chile powder, brown sugar and black pepper before grilling.

The pork was moist and fragrant on its own, but a dab of mango chutney on the plate – we used Silver Palate – turned it into an intriguing entree. The combo melds a variety of flavors (spicy, fruity, sweet and tangy) and even a little smoke from the coals. With a side of grilled veggies, you couldn't ask for an easier summer entertaining dish.

But the addition of the chutney radically changed how wines paired with the dish.

We sampled 15 wines under $17 in pursuit of the perfect complement. Reds dominated our shopping list – but, surprisingly, not the winner's circle. Although the spices in the dish weren't fiery, their complexity made finding a perfect red match more challenging; we found just two.

In contrast, four of the five whites we tried proved to be great pairings.

Here's what we learned from this month's pairing:

•All the winning wines had a rich, fruity sweetness – but never a sugary quality.

•There was an exciting interplay between the winning wines and the food; not only did the winners let the dish shine, but also the food's flavors altered our perception of the wine's character, enhancing the wine.

•White wines with an herbal component did not marry well with the spice in the pork and chutney.

•The best whites were fruity with a dry finish; this style cuts through all the flavors and cleanses the palate.

•For reds, look for a soft, fruity style with moderate acidity. Overly tannic, acidic or alcoholic wines fight with spice. Good red matches showed sweet fruit, and just enough structure to stand up to the spice.

Chef Blythe Beck felt strongly that more reds would have been compatible with the dish if the curry in the rub were balanced with more brown sugar. "Brown sugar mellows out the curry, which helps marry the food and the wines together."

Sommelier James Tidwell agreed, noting that the molasses in brown sugar meshes well with the caramelized notes in oaked red wines.

Tina Danze is a Dallas freelance writer.

THE MISSION: Find wines under $17 to pair with a spice-rubbed, grilled pork tenderloin

THE DISH

Charcoal-Grilled Pork Tenderloin, a brined pork tenderloin coated in a dry rub and grilled, accompanied by a dab of Silver Palate's bottled mango chutney. We teamed it with a side of grilled red peppers, red onions and zucchini.

THE TASTERS

Blythe Beck, executive chef, Hector's on Henderson

George Howald, Serendipity Wine Imports

Audree Miller, North Texas regional sales director, Glazer's Domaines & Estates

Paul Pinnell, sommelier and general manager of Nana in the Hilton Anatole

James Tidwell, certified wine educator and sommelier at Café on the Green, The Four Seasons Resort and Club in Las Colinas

Cathy Barber, Taste editor

Tina Danze, freelance writer

Our wine panel matches wine and food every month. Here are the other pairings we've put together. Why not bring the list to the store and plan a tasting of your own?

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Wine and cheese: Finding great matches is harder than it sounds, but we did it.

Wine chocolate and cheese: You can't go wrong with this Ménage à trois

Matching wine with brisket

Holiday wine tasting: An easy party menu

Wines for an intimate dinner