“The first duty of any wine is to refresh,” says the inimitable wine critic Jancis Robinson MW. In light of skyrocketing temperatures and a recent spate of balmy summer evenings, we’re hardly in a position to disagree.
However, not all wine styles have an equal ability to refresh your palate when the thermometer hits 35°C. While it is perfectly true that certain reds – Beaujolais, for instance – benefit from being served chilled, they can never rival the mouthwatering satisfaction that comes from a chilled glass of fizz, or a salmon-pink rosé.
All good white and rosé wines should offer ample acidity on the mid-palate; it is this cut of acidity that makes them so refreshing to drink in warm weather. If they have bubbles, then so much the better.
Thus, red wines have been omitted from this guide to summer drinking. Chianti, Rioja and Chilean shiraz all have their place – just not in sweat-inducing heat! Otherwise, there are (almost) scant rules governing the enjoyment of summer wine.
If you’re planning a summer BBQ, remember that you should never waste fine, or old, wine with charcoal-grilled foods. Smoky, full-flavoured and marinated red meat needs fruit-driven, punchy wines with plenty of acid. Spicy sauces, meanwhile, have destroyed many a disciple of Bacchus in their time – off-dry lighter whites are a safer bet.
The following is hardly an exclusive list of summer tipples, but it contains more than a few delicious bottles. Get cracking.
Sparkling
Klein Constantia Méthode Cap Classique 2017
£20 at DrinksDirect.com
Criminally underpriced – but how great for us! – this South African sparkler is world-class. Ripe fruit, mouthwatering acidity and soft bubbles leap out of your glass.
What a beautiful imitation of Champagne!
Hambledon Première Cuvée
£50 at Amazon.co.uk
A superlative bottle of English sparkling wine from Hambledon estate, based in Hampshire.
Critics are famously often duped by Hambledon at blind tastings (where the bottle is hidden), believing this autolytic and rich wine to be top Champagne. After tasting a bottle, I can see why.
Taittinger NV
£37 at Amazon.co.uk
Inimitably refreshing and always well-made, Taittinger has mastered the art of producing excellent non-vintage Champagne, year in, year out.
Expect a mouthful of citrus, white flowers and melon, allied to lovely ripe acidity.
Billecart-Salmon Sous Bois NV
£69 at The Whiskey Exchange
For a special occasion, Billecart-Salmon’s superlative label Sous Bois really hits the spot. The wines are aged in oak barrels, imbuing this Champagne with a deep richness and concentration. Brioche, vanilla, coffee and apricots all leap out of the glass.
Save this one until your guests have left.
Rosé
Piquepoul Rosé Les Vignobles Foncalieu 2021
£13 at Frazier’s Wine Merchants
Although Provence continues to hog all the limelight, its neighbour the Languedoc is also a dab hand at producing aromatic, pale rosé.
This example from Foncalieu is excellent: fruit-driven and beautifully perfumed, it is also very affordable.
Gavoty Cuvee Clarendon 2021
£20 at Jeroboams
According to Jeroboams’s wine director, Peter Mitchell MW: “this is one of the best rosés I’ve ever tasted.” Mitchell should know – he’s imbibed more good wine than you can shake a stick at.
It’s certainly deeply aromatic, with notes of strawberry, lime and melon on the mid-palate.
White
Sauvignon Terre Magre DOC 2020 – Piera Martellozzo
£14 at winesnvines
When it comes to summer salads, especially tomato-based ones, sauvignon blanc is the standout wine choice for cutting across the acidity with aplomb.
This example from northern Italy has good freshness, lovely aromas of grapefruit, and a mineral, floral palate.
Cicinis Sauvignon Blanc 2018
£35 at Harvey Nichols
This is a very classy sauvignon blanc from the hills of Friuli Venezia Giulia. Ripe and decadently pungent, it offers aromas of pineapple, citrus and guava. The palate is long and complex, with just a hint of lemongrass on the finish.
Divine with seafood. Or simply by itself.
Mont Rubi Xarel-lo, Penedes
£17 at Jeroboams
Who would have thought it: Cava’s signature grape also produces wonderful still white wine.
More left field than the ubiquitous pinot grigio, it offers stone fruit, lemon and apple on the palate, supported by lovely ripe acidity. A veritable steal at under £20.
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