Fast, comfy ride for a 5'0 woman?

[Eden]

Looking at her list of important things, if I were you I'd probably see if she's interested in a flat bar roadie first. While that type of bike may not in the end be the best for long distance touring it would really fit the 5 more important items on your wife's list. Maybe a Jamis Coda, or a Trek 7.5FX wsd. If she starts to ride more and really becomes interested in long distance touring then look for a better/more expensive bike.

A CX bike, which would also probably be a good fit to the list, will unfortunately likely be a difficult fit for someone who is 5 feet tall. If she's got a long reach/torso she might be able to find a cross bike that fits, but most of us are who this tall (I am...) have a hard time. Remember that because the sizes are measured by seat tube, and cross bikes have a higher bottom bracket the smallest sizes usually have a top tube as long as the next larger sized road bike. So a person who rides a 44cm road bike will usually not fit a 43 or 44cm cross bike.

btw - I definitely think you should drop any problems with bigger name bikes - note the *least* most important thing to your wife was having a unique bike.... find something that she wants and likes not you....