With the first glow of home-produced sunburn in the cheeks, the ghostly legs safely on the turn to cappuccino and the patio table hosed down with a swoosh of optimism, it's definitely time to start thinking about white wines. But not the usual suspects - the safe old stalwarts that have been under our noses for an eternity. Why not succumb to a little summer flirtation with one or two funky white grapes - just for the fun of trying something different?
So many people are now clamouring to make a public statement about how bored they are with Chardonnay that it's becoming . . . well, quite boring. In gardening terms (since it's that time of year), Chardonnay is the French marigold of wines. Pleasant enough, but desperately common. So let's pass swiftly on. Sauvignon Blanc is zippier, more summery, but also so ubiquitous that it's in severe danger of becoming the new Chardonnay: a petunia runner-up to the marigold. Where are the California poppies and nemesias of the grape world that'll brighten up the summer with a bit of panache? What's the bottled white equivalent of cool, trendy purple cerinthes or sensual, attention-seeking gazanias in the garden?
There's no shortage of away-from-the-mainstream possibilities. In fact, there are more than ever before, as wine-producing regions all over the globe swerve to avoid the overkill of the big international varietals. Suddenly, they're realising that grapes traditional to their area may be worth treasuring - because they make distinctively different wines. A lot of growers who didn't have the cash to tear up all their vines in the past 10 years or so, and replace them with Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc, are now rubbing their hoary hands with glee.
At a recent Oddbins press tasting in the Shelbourne Hotel, some unusual and deliciously impressive whites emerged as star turns in a line-up of about 120 wines. Several are recommended below. Others will have to wait for another time, but among them were an Austrian Grauburgunder (same grape as Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris), a couple of bizarre but handsome Greeks and an Italian grape I'd never heard of before, by the name of Falanghina.
Unless you have an Oddbins handy, it probably wouldn't be wise tell your local wine merchant you're after Falanghina. Maybe not just yet. It sounds more like an exotic sexual practice than a version of grape juice designed merely to titillate the tastebuds. Assyrtiko, the white Greek grape which is a tasty speciality of Santorini (see Bottle of the Week) isn't exactly easy to find on our wine shelves yet, either.
But a lot of other oddball, or at least mildly unusual, grapes are creeping into the market to such an extent that it's well worth asking for them by name, in both wine shops and restaurants. With our wine boom still gathering momentum, all the best retailers and restaurateurs are keen to show they're one step ahead, with something exciting and offbeat to offer. Who's going to settle for vin ordinaire when there's vin extraordinaire in the place down the road?
Have a bit of sport with some of the white grapes in the list that follows. After that, there are plenty of more Vs to try - Vermen tino, Vernaccia, Verdicchio, Viognier; then maybe Gruner Veltliner, Marsanne and Roussanne, not forgetting exquisite Riesling. I'm planning to submerge myself in as many of these fruity, sunny whites as I can lay my hands on over the next couple of months. Who knows - after all that, the moment may eventually come to enjoy a glass of dear old Chard?