A New Fave Summer White

The wine that started my appreciation of whites was a Sancerre that an investment banker friend pulled out from his cellar during a party at his posh Grammercy Park town house. For years after that I ignorantly joked that I really only liked white wines I couldn't afford. That's no longer the case, but my appreciation for whites with citrus notes that give way to clean acid and low residual sugar remains. Sancerre (and other Sauvignon Blancs in a similar style) remains a favorite white wine for me.

So it was wonderful to turn up in Spain a couple days ago to play FIB and get turned on to a new favorite (and affordable) white wine: Rueda. It's a regional name; the main grape used is Verdejo. The story is that this grape was traditionally used to make not very fashionable oxidized whites until Riscal started making a modern version a few decades ago. The result is lots of up front citrus (and even some wildflowers), good acidity and a finish just dry enough to keep my interest. A great sipper and perfect pairing with seafood.

Rueda from Spain. The Riscal is great, but a little pricey. There are many not so pricey examples out there. Worth looking for in the summer heat.

(I'm typing this in Portugal. Summer festival tour is nearly over for me, so expect more regular updates to start in the next week or two).