Bring On The Summer

Vancouver will experience an amazing 16 hours, 15 minutes and one second of daylight and maybe even sunshine today and your job is to grab some of it.

There are many ways to celebrate the solstice -- including dancing around Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England -- but the most practical for British Columbians is to hit the patio and enjoy every last minute of light we receive today. In short, it is summer and it's time to shift your wine selection to something lighter, fresher and brighter and this is the weekend to start. It will be October before you know it, so let those big, heavy, reds go for the next 90 days and reach for something bright and refreshing.

Vancouverites don't need much of a cue to put on their shorts and flip flops. Just a sliver of sunshine after February will do it. By June when the clouds subside and the weather is warmer, the al fresco concept of eating and drinking outdoors is equally hard to resist and it's the fresh, aromatic flavours of wine country we reach for. Both red and white fit the bill, even rosé, as long as the structure is a little leaner than all those rich, tannic reds we drink all winter.

The question is what to drink this summer, especially if you want to look as if you frequent the trendy patios of Provence or the outdoor piazzas of Florence, or Paris. It's no secret the summer sipper should be lighter and fresher. It should leap (at least a bit) from the glass. Stylistically, the whites need to be tangy and awash in acidity (almost a little bit electric if you like), as if someone squeezed a lemon into your glass. Don't mistake freshness and lightness for white wines only. Rosé and lighter reds are making serious inroads into the summer wine scene and yes, men are sipping them too.

If there is a common thread among summer sippers, its lower alcohol, more fruit and a vibrancy of fruit. On cooler, marginal sites where the fruit barely ripens, freshness is valued over alcohol and power. Some of the coolest sites that are fast becoming the appellations of summer include: Marlborough, New Zealand; Casablanca, Leyda, San Antonio and Limari Chile; Monterey, Sonoma Coast and Mendocino Counties in California; Walker Bay and Durbanville Hills in South Africa, Spain's Rueda and Bierzo regions, the Mosel and Saar Valleys in Germany, Adelaide Hills in Australia, Argentina's Cafayate Valley and closer to home, sites in the mid and northern Okanagan Valley.

The first and only duty of a summer wine is to be more gulp-able. Often they can be a touch watery at the edge, perhaps with a small bit of CO2 or fizz. Should they be red, there should be little or no dry tannins in the finish and that's about it. Food can also play a big part in which wines you will reach for. For example nothing says party on dude more than pork, as in barbecue ribs or pulled-pork sandwiches. Add a slaw or a salad and you are ready to investigate the versatility of riesling be it from Germany, Australia or the Okanagan.

If grilled chicken is a big part of your summer diet you are in luck. It is easy to prepare and you can sauce it a dozen ways to tweak the wine match. We suggest sauvignon blanc as a worthy match be it from the Loire, New Zealand, or coastal Chilean or South Africa. Ditto that match with Argentine torrontés or Spanish Rueda.

As for those "I-only-drink-red-wine," guests. You can explore the likes of tempranillo, grenache, barbera, bonarda, gamay and in some cases pinot noir. All work with most anything you can grill on a barbecue.

Finally, the best summer wine tip I can share with you is to lightly chill your reds and don't serve those whites too cold and enjoy the long days.