The summer is upon us at last and we live in hope that the sun will actually shine. So the search for lighter, more refreshing styles of wine begins.
The choices are endless but zesty, aromatic, refreshing whites , juicy fruit driven roses and chilled light reds are what you need.
For whites light, steely, refreshing Chablis is a good choice in the summer and works well with fish and chicken dishes. Alternatively the crisp, zesty fruit driven Sauvignon Blancs’s from the Loire or New Zealand are good with goats cheese, salads and vegetable risotto’s. Albarino from Rias Baixas in Spain and is lively and fresh with a lovely round palate the perfect partner for seafood, tapas cheese and ideal as an aperitif. Gruner Veltliner from Austria is crisp and revitalizing and the perfect partner with lighter summer dishes such as salads and vegetarian dishes.as does Torrontes the native white grape of Argentina.

Wines for Summer Drinking
Roses are a joy to drink in the summer and work surprisingly well with food  The favoured style would be dry  from France. Provence, Coisteres de Nimes or Anjou or Spain produce some fantastic Grenache based roses which are, light, crisp and refreshing rather than the Californian ones which tend to be sweeter. They are lovely on their own, ideal for picnics and barbeques, seafood cheese lighter meats and salads.
Finally let us not forget red wines all together a light red from Loire such as a slightly chilled crunchy Cabernet Franc from Chinon or Saumur Champigny can be delicious with robuster fish dishes and meat. Pinot Noir from Burgundy if you want a treat or Pinot Noir from Chile and New Zealand can be fantastic value for money and not too heavy. Beaujolais is good served slightly chilled and the Beaujolais Crus such as Brouilly and Fleurie while being a little more expensive work well with fish or meat dishes.