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Article written by Jack Priestley. 

Long sunny afternoons often have me thinking about whether there is a perfect summertime wine to enjoy? What would I most like to have in my glass that evening? Have I got a wine that I’m excited to pop open and to share?

At any time there is usually a handful of bottles on my wine rack, (or more often in the fridge) ready and waiting for an opportune moment to be drunk. But honestly, the real answer is that there’s never any one perfect wine for a situation, instead there are always loads of different wines and styles that work well with different situations. So a good policy for starters, is to avoid over-thinking about any bottle for a particular situation.

That said, it’s good to have some ‘wine rack essentials’ that are both personal favourites of yours and potential crowd pleasers for when the sun comes out.

For whites, my advice is that you’ll want something lighter that’s both crisp and refreshing. Something either fruit driven, or mineral in taste. Why not try an Italian Gavi (Il Gavi, Produttori del Gavi, 2021– £11.99) made from the Cortese grape, it’s light-bodied with fresh and fragrant aromas of passion fruit, pear and acacia. Or if you’d like to be adventurous seek out an Albariño from Uruguay, this sunshine filled grape has wonderful purity of flavour, peach, citrus and distinct mineral tones make this the ultimate summertime wine (Bodegas Garzon, Albariño, 2021 – £19.99).

Rosé is another obvious choice, it might be rather basic of me to recommend a Provence rosé (Chateau L’Escarelle, Provence Rosé, 2020 – £14.99) but the popularity of this delicate and fragrant wine style from the South of France seems to have no bounds. On a summers day, it’s hard to beat. Though if you explore other wine regions you can find a similar style, at often a very keen price. We stock Domaine Mont d’Hortes Grenache rosé, 2021 (£10.99) at M&B which provides much the same enjoyment at a far more modest price.

For those red lovers, why not try chilling down a bottle of a lighter style. From a recent trip to Greece I found the Liatiko grape variety works wonders here, it’s juicy, fruity, fragrant and ever-so drinkable (Lyrarakis, Liatiko Queen, Greece, 2021 – £13.99). Another favourite is the Italian variety Frappato (Cantine Paolini, Frappato, 2020 – £9.99) which works awfully well. This berry scented red is beautifully balanced, with lush red fruits brimming on the palate. The key is to avoid anything overly alcoholic or tannic. Just thirty to forty-five minutes in the fridge ought to do it. This’ll just add a touch of refreshment.

Happy wine drinking folks!

Jack