The Best of the Summer Wines, Part 2: Picnics
“Summer Breeze makes me feel fine…” Especially with a glass of wine. In Part 2 of our wine recommendations for Summer ‘24, Audley Senior Advisor and wine connoisseur Annie Coleman offers her picks of must-try picnic wines.
Read Part 1 for Annie’s BBQ wine recommendations here.
Picnics
Waitrose Loved & Found Aglianico Rosata from Puglia. I prefer my rosés pale in colour and usually from the Provence region. However, Waitrose has an elegant rosé with a great mouthfeel that, surprisingly, comes from Puglia. Delicate floral scents but grippy tannins, with structure, freshness, and – above all – great value.
Waitrose £8.99
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Île-de-Beauté Rose 2023. Keeping with Italy and also made in the Provencal rosé style is Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Il de Beauty Rosé 2023 from Corsica. With grapes I’ve never tried before including Nielluccia and Sciacarellu plus Syrah, Grenache and Cinsault, this blended wine packs a lot of flavour. Six months on the yeasty lees adds texture to the palate with crisp red berry fruit, peach and a bit of spice. This is typically £10.50 but is currently on offer for £8.00, so grab it while you can.
Sainsbury’s £10.50
For the traditionalists wanting a true Provencal rosé and who are willing to spend a bit more, Château des Sarrins Rosé Grand Cuvée Cote de Provence is wonderfully pale, with rose bloom, fleshy peach on the nose and palate, and a vanilla-and-almond after-taste. Surprising depth and concentrated flavours for such a pale wine.
Wanderlust Wines £20.00
Tesco Stellenrust Manor Barrel Ferment Chenic Blanc 2022. For those wanting a white burgundy-style wine but without having to pay the price, try this Chenin Blanc. Made from old South African vines, with a tiny amount of oak which is imperceptible on the palate. A worthy alternative to a burgundy.
Tesco £15.00
While not a grape I enjoy, I felt I had to include a sauvignon blanc as it’s so popular. De Martin Organic Sauvignon Blanc from Maipo is a bone-dry Chilean Sauvignon Blanc with fresh aromas of ripe citrus, peach, and passion fruit. A crisp, dry palate with a lingering finish.
Waitrose £10.99
Another good white wine for foodies is white Rioja. Bargordi Blanco 2023 is a dry wine made from both Grenache and Sauvignon Blanc. Freshness and zing without sharpness, great depth of ripe citrus flavours, and lovely floral aromas. I’m not a fan of organic wines but make an exception for this. It’s delicious and great value.
Tanners Wine £11.60
As Lilly Bollinger of the Bollinger family said: "I drink Champagne when I'm happy and when I'm sad. Sometimes I drink it when I'm alone. When I have company, I consider it obligatory.” So, a perfect wine for a picnic. I’m a lover of champagne, Gosset being one of my favourites. But Cremant is a great and less expensive alternative. Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Cremant de Loire is made the same way as champagne and has a lovely ripe, nutty, brioche flavour, gained from spending two years on the lees. Rich on the palate, but with a zesty apple freshness which reminds me of Gosset. A great champagne alternative.
Sainsbury’s £12.00
Bride Valley Blanc de Blanc 2018. Sparkling wine from the vineyard originally created by the sadly departed, but much loved Stephen Spurrier (do watch the film Bottle Shock with Alan Rickman playing the role of Stephen, based on a true event). Stephen considered this Bride Valley’s signature wine and a true reflection of the vineyard, nestled along the coast between Bridport and Dorchester. Now under new ownership, the tradition of fine wine making is continued and the vintage from the high quality harvest of 2018 is fabulous. Such an elegant nose: citrus and creamy with brioche notes, green apple, and stone fruit. This also boasts a luxurious mouthfeel with sherbet acidity. I must confess a vested interest here, as I work in the vineyard as a farmhand one day a week to enhance my knowledge of wine making. Regardless, it’s a gorgeous sparkling wine.
Bride Valley Vineyard Bride Valley Blanc de Blanc 2018 £38.00
Chapel Down Sparkling Rosé Brut. This sparkling wine must be mentioned, as it recently received the accolade of being included in the Decanter World Wine Awards’ 2024 Best in Show selection. Fresh and crisp, made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meuniere, Pinot Blanc, and Point Nori, with notes of red current, citrus, and wild strawberry, it’s wonderful for any and every occasion. Pink prettiness in the glass with lovely acidity, combined with ripeness and soft sherbet charm. A perfect drink on a sunny day, which is on offer at both Waitrose and Sainsbury’s. A must-buy.
Waitrose £24.99/Sainsbury’s £27.50
Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Beaujolais Supérieur 2022. Alternatively, try Gamay. This enjoyable Beaujolais really overdelivers for the price. From 30-to-50-year-old vines, with no oak, the fruit purity shines through on the palate. Appealing floral aromas of cherry, raspberry, strawberries, and violets. Lovely depth of ripe red berries and black cherry on the palate, the fruit balanced well by fresh acidity and wrapped in soft, rounded tannins. A lovely match for tapas-style food on a summer's day.
Sainsbury's £12.00
Wherever you are this summer, enjoy your wine. As Louis Pasteur said, “A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.” Happy philosophising…
Day-colored wine, night-colored wine,
wine with purple feet or wine with topaz blood,
wine, starry child of earth,
wine, smooth as a golden sword, soft as lascivious velvet,
wine, spiral-seashelled and full of wonder, amorous, marine;
never has one goblet contained you, one song, one person,
you are choral, gregarious,
at the least, you must be shared.
— Pablo Neruda, Ode to Wine
By Annie Coleman, Senior Advisor at Audley.