Summer is here, which means I am on the prowl for delicious, easy-drinking, sit-in-the-backyard-on-a-sunny-afternoon-and-oops-the-bottle-is-somehow-empty — not to mention affordable — white wines for summer. Here are a couple of goodies from recent Vintages releases.
Parras Evidência White 2020
Yummy yummy yummy I got Dão wine in my tummy! At this wine’s price point, I was keeping my expectations very low, but was totally blown away by its drinkability.
👁️ It is so pale it almost looks like water in the glass.
👃 On the nose it smells of subtle citrus and flinty minerality.
👄 On the palate, the first sensation is zippy acidity dancing on your tongue. This is because the grapes are grown at high altitudes (between 400 and 700 metres), lending the wine a lovely crispness. It’s medium-bodied with good weight on the palate to balance out the acidity. This wine is bursting with flavours of peach, orange blossom and steely apricot (which I think would make a great band name).
🍽️ Very versatile food wine – perfect for fish, shellfish, pork and chicken dishes, or even a cheese board. Also very easy to drink on its own. We may or may not have polished off the bottle in an evening.
🍇 This delicious blend of encruzado, malvasia fina and bical (indigenous Portuguese grape varieties) was fermented in stainless steel. This perfect-for-summer white wine hails from the Dão, one of Portugal’s oldest wine regions. It’s a great place to find wines with great quality/price ratios.
💲 Speaking of which, did I mention that this wine is only $12.95? $12.95!!
Only 2,653 bottles left in all of Ontario, so don’t dilly dally. Get a couple or (let’s face it) a case today! Check availability at an LCBO near you by clicking here.
Brigaldara Soave 2020
I bought this wine when it was first released, and after tasting it, I rushed to the LCBO to buy more.
👁️ Medium straw yellow.
👃 Lemon zest and peach perfume on the nose.
👄 Light and fresh, it conjures up green apple, peach, honeydew melon and citrus on the palate, with notes of grassiness and chamomile. This wine is medium bodied, bone dry, and boasts some slightly spicy acidity.
🍇 All Soave wines are made from garganega grapes grown in the Veneto region. Back in 2017, I attended a Soave wine tasting in Verona and remember thinking that they were all delicious. This is yet another appellation offering excellent bang for buck.
🍽️ This wine is the perfect complement to creamy dishes or fatty fish like salmon. If you want to go with a geographical pairing, the Veneto region’s traditional dishes are fish-based (think pasta in anchovy sauce, or squid-ink risotto). Or go with a geographical pairing, like But generally food friendly, as most Italian white wines are!
💲 This beautiful, food-friendly wine could be yours for the very low price of $14.95.
Hurry though. Only 2,211 bottles left in Vintages across Ontario. Click here to check stocks near you.
What’s your favourite white wine for summer 2022? Leave your latest discoveries in the Comments below!
Happy wining!