Summer Loving Wines

With the summer heat in full swing most people would be reaching for a refreshing white or zesty rose. I think a lot of the wine critics focus on is sparkling wines around Christmas and then they forget about them for the rest of the year. The two sparkling wines below deserve to be drink all year round as they offer interest and elegant drinking at a small cost compared to their French counterparts.

Domaine Chandon ZD Blanc de Blancs 2008

Unlike most of the other wines in the Blanc de Blanc style, this wine does not receive any dosage so it is bone dry and zesty to say the least. I love the way the wine flows through my mouth as it seems alive and rambunctious in its frolicking nature. This is a full on 100% Chardonnay style sparkling wine with brilliant palate length and flavours of crushed flowers, lemon rind, sour apples and kids chalk sticks running wild. I would serve this to my guests as they arrive to kick off a fantastic party.

Alcohol: 12.5%

Price: $40

Rated: 93

Drink: now – 2018

Yarrabank Cuvee 2008

Compared to the above wine this is much richer and comforting. It is like being hugged by your grandma as it offers something warm and inviting. The flavours are along the nutty creamy end of the spectrum with notes of peach, struck quartz and smoked dried flowers latching themselves to my mouth. All these flavours sit on a long palate length and a mineral acid structure which finishes tight and torte. Love it!

Alcohol: 13%

Price: $35

Rated: 93

Drink: Now - 2017

SC Pannell Pinot Grigio 2012

Steve Pannell must drink, I mean taste, a lot of European wines as he has an innate ability to take Australian fruit and combine everything good about them into an elegant and European style like nothing else in Australia. This is the best Pinot Grigio that I have tried from Australia as it has all those lovely mouthwatering moments with nashi pear, crushed minerals and spice taking center stage. The flavours are bright and the palate weight is light and vibrant.

Alcohol: 13%

Price: $25

Rated: 88

Drink: Now or over the next few years

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Alta Vineyards For Elsie Pinot Rose 2012

This smells like the Adelaide Hills during summer. I could walk through a couple of markets with the aromas of strawberries and cherries’ wafting towards me and that is identical to this wine but you have to combine it with sweet Turkish delight dusted in sugar. The wine is light in weight but has a little added texture than most wines of this style. This wine would work beautifully with seared scallops in an Asian style sauce so sit down and get it on.

Alcohol: 12%

Price: Under $20

Rated: 87

Drink: Now to 2015