Summer White Wines for Picnics & BBQs

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The British summertime may be notoriously short-lived and the weather famously unreliable, but when the sun does shine on the UK it feels as though the entire country heads outdoors to make the most of the occasion.

Should the warm, sunny weather happen to combine with a weekend or public holiday, the nations slips en-masse into party mode, with impromptu barbecues and picnics taking place the length and breadth of the country.

Good weather, good company, good food and good wine combine to make even the simplest of occasions feel special, but whether you’re heading to the country for some fresh air and tasty food, or gathering friends and family for a back garden BBQ, if you’re serving sub-standard wine the event could end up being more drab than fab.

The unpredictable nature of the weather in the UK means that it pays to be prepared in advance. Having a few carefully chosen bottles of white wine in the cupboard means that you’ll be ready to host family and friends should the sun decide to put his hat on without giving advance notice. Last-minute dashes to the supermarket to fight for the best white wine deals with hundreds of other people with the same idea can take the fun out of your day in the sun, so stock up early and avoid the crowds.

Whilst it’s perfectly possible to enjoy red wine on a warm day, white or rose wine tends to combine better with light finger foods and white wine tends to be lighter and more quaffable than its red counterparts. Summer picnics and barbecues seem to lend themselves perfectly to sipping on a nice glass of white wine and nothing says summer more than the great outdoors and a glass of something sparkling.

Given the cold, rainy weather that has been part and parcel of recent British ‘summers’, the fact that the sun is shining at all should be cause for celebration, making sunny summer days the perfect excuse to break open the bubbly.

There are some great deals on Champagnes for those who really want to mark the occasion in style and your wine merchant should be able to advise on good value bottles that go beyond the obvious brand names. Those who like their Champagne super-dry might want to try Ayala Brut Nature NV, which costs around £26. There is a growing trend for super-dry Champagnes and, whilst not to everyone’s taste, this is an excellent example of a very dry Champagne that works exceptionally well with seafood. So why not throw another shrimp on the barbie and raise a toast?

If you’re planning a romantic summer picnic, strawberries and Champagne are the ultimate treat and so simple it’s virtually impossible to go wrong. Bring along a picnic blanket and some tasty nibbles such as stuffed olives, favourite cheeses and savoury biscuits and then finish the meal with the Champers and strawberries. When enjoyed in the great outdoors and washed down with Champagne, strawberries taste sublimely summery and are wonderfully romantic.

Of course, Champagne is not the only sparkling wine and budget-conscious hosts might want to consider looking outside the Champagne region of France for good quality bubbles that won’t break the bank. Sticking with France itself, Crémant sparkling white wines are those that are produced outside the famous wine-producing region but still subject to rigorous quality controls on order to bear the ‘Crémant’ name.

Cremants and Spanish Cavas can make great picnic and barbecue wines, but perhaps the most summery of all the Sparklers is Prosecco, from Italy. Combine with peach juice to make a ‘Bellini’, the perfect summer party drink.

Aside from sparkling wines, the key to summer success is to look for wines that are easy drinking, fresh, fruity and full of zip and zing. Don’t worry too much about ‘food pairing’, but do consider which white wines tend to work well, as a rule, with the type of food you are serving. Bold, fruity white wine such as Reisling and Gewurtztraminer are good with spicy barbecue sauces, whilst Sauvignon Blancs and Semillons work well with grilled vegetables and seafood.

Whilst food pairing is one aspect of choosing the wine for your summer gathering, the most important factor of all is ensuring that the wine is in plentiful supply. Nothing kills a party like the booze supply running dry, so make sure you’re well-stocked and advise guests to bring a bottle. The warm sunshine, flowing white wine and tasty food will soon have your guests in party mode.