Author: Dirk Chan
As the summer heats up, whites become more and more popular. Here, i’ve selected seven of my current favourites at various price points. Any and all will impress your guests, its a stellar bunch. I’ve left some personal comments on each. Try one (or all) of them on your next gathering. Indulge!
Pictured left to right:
2015 Real Companhia Velha Evel Douro White (Douro, Portugal) – $21.99 – lovely florals with white fruits, an oily texture, full-bodied and persistent – try with a meaty fish.
2016 Château de Romance Blanc Sec (Bordeaux, France) – $25.99 – Majority Semillon with some Sauvignon Blanc (the complete inverse of what most white Bordeaux are), this is very fine indeed for the price point – dry, minerally, white flowers and brilliant waxy mouthfeel – try with a seafood bisque.
2016 G. D. Vajra Luigi Baudana Dragon Langhe Bianco (Piedmont, Italy) – $31.99 – so distinctive, very minerally and lots of savory herbs, sees time on lees – try with a mushroom risotto.
2016 Terras Gauda O Rosal (Rias Baixas, Spain) – $34.99 – beautiful finesse with this Albarino based white – stylish and fine concentration with notes of herbs, bay leaf and orange peel – fabulous with grilled seafood.
2016 Kechris Tear of the Pine Retsina (Macedonia, Greece) – $39.99 – so unusual with resin, grilled herbs and minerality, this is no ordinary retsina, one of the very best produced – try with a greek salad, or dolmades. Yum!
2010 Domaine Lucien Jacob Savigny-Vergelesses Premiere Cru (Burgundy – Cote de Beaune, France) – $49.99 – lots of yellow apples, a touch of vanilla, pineapple and assorted stone fruits. Very full-bodied and sophisticated Chardonnay – try with a stuff chicken dish with a corn salsa.
2015 Agricola Tiberio Trebbiano Fonte Canale (Abruzzi, Italy) – $84.99 – one of the most terroir driven, ‘speaks of the land’ whites of the year. You can put this in a blind white Burgundy tasting and no one would know its a Trebbiano (nearly 60 year old Trebbiano mind you). White flowers, anise, citrus peel and soil character overwhelm the palate with sensual seductiveness. Quite special and extremely limited.