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Sunshine, meet fine wine



Summertime is the best time to enjoy a chilled glass to beat the heat, preferably with a good book and a full picnic basket. For that reason, we’ve gathered 24 white wines for you to try. These are familiar faces and fascinating finds that will fare well with fun times and flavoursome feasts. Whether you seek familiarity or are the adventurous sort, we’ve got you covered with the best wines for chilling out.

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Chardonnay: A canvas for great moments

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The most popular white grape in the world, Chardonnay has a neutral character that’s heavily influenced by how it’s grown in the vineyard and manipulated in the cellar. Cool-climate examples from eastern France or northern Italy offer a lighter body, with orchard fruit flavours of red apples and quince layered over a stony minerality. These kinds of Chardonnays pair well with garden salads and cucumber sandwiches. A Chardonnay grown in a warmer climate like California or South Africa will be full-bodied, with tropical fruit flavours like pineapple, and signs of oak ageing that show themselves as hints of vanilla and butter. These unctuous wines make a fine accompaniment to savoury poultry dishes and hearty sides like potato salad.


Pinot Gris: No grey skies with these wines

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A native to northeastern France, Pinot Gris is a flexible variety that ripens early and grows in abundance. Wines made from it come in many styles to enjoy, typically showing flavours of citrus and tart tree fruit accented by floral aromas. The grape fares best in cool-climate, high-elevation areas and produces both light-bodied (Pinot Grigio) and medium-to-full-bodied (Pinot Gris) examples. These pretty wines, which range from lean and extra-dry to textured and lightly sweet, can pair with many dishes. Light-bodied examples will go great with lemon-pepper cod or salty potato chips. Try off-dry styles with spicy jackfruit tacos or fresh-fruit tarts.


Sauvignon Blanc: Summer flowers and fresh herbs in a glass

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Herbaceous and aromatic, Sauvignon Blanc shows more typicity than the other wines featured thus far. Full-bodied examples are uncommon, barrel ageing is rare, and the grape is only used for sweet wines when blended with Sémillon to make the botrytized wines of Sauternes. Sauvignon Blanc is characterized by its abundance of pyrazines: aroma compounds that give the wines a savoury, redolent character reminiscent of gooseberries, green bell peppers, and freshly cut grass. Native to western France, it thrives in high-elevation, cool-climate areas like New Zealand and Ontario. These pungent, flavourful wines make great partners for vegetarian fare and heavily seasoned dishes such as roasted asparagus, chana dal, or crunchy veggies with baba ghanouj.


Alternatives for the adventurous

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You’re probably already familiar with the three grape varieties listed above, but maybe you want something new. For those who know what they enjoy and want to broaden their horizons, here’s some quick sips of other wines for you to try.

GRÜNER VELTLINER: The signature wine of Austria, Grüner Veltliner comes in a multitude of styles that showcase its lean profile, mouth-watering acidity, and herbaceous flavours of asparagus and white pepper.
ASSYRTIKO: Greece’s most popular white wine sports a medium-bodied texture accented by flavours of passion fruit and lime peel over a briny minerality. It’s always welcome next to a tomato-and-feta salad.
PECORINO: Quickly becoming a favourite of North American consumers, the eastern Italian Pecorino is adored for mixing elegant aromas of jasmine and acacia with crisp citric flavours.
VIOGNIER: Native to the Rhône Valley, this elegant wine shows a perfumed bouquet of honeysuckle and rose petal with hints of tangerine. Its delicate nature makes for a great pairing with spinach quiche.
VERDICCHIO: Found in the Marche region of central Italy, Verdicchio produces lively wines with brisk acidity and good structure, showing grapefruit flavour and a saline minerality.
VINHO VERDE: Not a grape variety but rather a style of wine produced in northern Portugal, Vinho Verde (literally “green wine”) is best consumed young and fresh, when its flavours of honeydew and yellow apple are at their peak.
PICPOUL: An ancient French grape that’s gaining traction in the modern market, Picpoul produces wines with electrifying acidity, making them ideal companions for all kinds of fruits de mer.
THE RHÔNE BLEND: Masters of blending, winemakers in the Rhône Valley mix the white grapes Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier and Grenache Blanc to craft wines with a weighted, tea-like character. These wines display flavours of yellow pear and peach skin, with a hint of chamomile.
WHITE MALBEC: Fun fact: If you remove the skins from crushed red grapes, you won’t get red wine! The pigment comes from the skins and not the grape juice itself. This style of Malbec is becoming increasingly popular in Argentina for its flavours of peach and white cherry.


Chill out

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Chilling wine not only helps your wine-drinking experience on a scorcher of a day, but it also elevates many dishes that are ideal for enjoying in the sunshine. Remember to bring an ice bucket for the bottle and instead of diluting the wine with ice cubes, use stemmed glassware so your hands don’t take the wine’s cool.

Not sure how chilled your wine should be?

15°: Full-bodied & Rich / Oak-aged Chardonnay, Rhône white blends, white Malbec
12°: Aromatic & Flavourful / Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Grüner Veltliner, Pecorino, Assyrtiko
10°: Light & Crisp / Pinot Grigio, Vinho Verde, Picpoul, Verdicchio, steel-tank Chardonnay
8°: Sparkling and dessert wines


Must-have summer accessories




Keep your white wines and other summery sips chilled in our stylish puffer cooler bag ($12.95) and serve them up in colourful, 19.5-oz. plastic glasses that will bring sunny-day vibes to all your get-togethers (4-pack, $19.95). Find them at your local LCBO store or LCBO.com.

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Pick up the Summer issue of Food & Drink to discover more wine and drink ideas in the Summer Blockbusters story, plus lots more inspiration and recipes for outdoor dining and entertaining. In stores and on LCBO.com now.


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