Heatwave wine – how to sip and not sweat!

wine in hotter months

Everyone else finding this Labour Day  weekend heatwave intense? It definitely affects my wine choices for evenings. It was still 107 degrees at 6pm yesterday in West Hollywood!

Below are my three favourite options for wine quaffing during a heatwave!!

Sour beer and white port tonics – I also highly recommend! 

All of the these wine styles are light, refreshing, slightly effervescent And  tend to be lower in alcohol. 

Just make sure to serve all versions of these wines SUPER CHILLED

1. Vinho Verde – a well loved crisp and sometimes Spritely spritz style from Portugal. Think Granny Smith apples mixed with melon and lemon zest. Often lower than 10% alc and often great value.

Broadbent Vinho Vverde is $10 (£12*) and available in @wholefoods as well as lots of independent wine stores. I picked mine up @almorwines .

However a ridiculous steal is the 

Espiral Vinho Verde from @traderjoes for $5 (£7.99*) and 9% alcohol… the perfect thirst quencher for these sweltering times.

2.  Young, slightly spritzed Gruner Veltliner from Austria.

I love all styles of Gruner from the racy and lean as well as the elegantly Oaked and age worthy examples. However this weather calls for simple, youthful versions of this grape which exude pure Flavours of apple, ripe pear and an underlying spritz. If the bottle has a crown cap ( what you see on a beer) – this is a good clue that you will be rewarded with gentle bubbly deliciousness inside!

My fave bottle for a group gathering has been:

Getrank Gruner Veltliner – $12.99 – $14.99 (£8.99*) Amazing value for this fun Gruner which  comes in a litre bottle. The perfect party format!

Available in LA at @melandrose 

But also at various importers online:

West Coast: Wine Exchange, @solanocellars, @martinwinecellar 

3. Txakoli or Chacoli – another slightly sparkling, very dry white wine with high acid and low alcohol produced in the Spanish provinces of the Basque Country, Cantabria and northern Burgos. 

There are plenty of examples on @wine_com if you are want white and Rose options. 

For this heatwave though I recommend 

Bodega Ulacia Txakolina – super tropical, zippy and zesty. It’s around $20 (£12*).

Cheers Guys – to sipping not sweating! Happy Labour Day!

*approximate cost from UK retailers