Minerally white wine from where?

Posted by Peter Koff MW on 22nd Aug 2018

As you know by now, I am an unashamed, unapologetic lover of minerally, focused, racy super crisp, essentially unoaked white wines. My go-to wines are all too often Chablis, Champagne, and Muscadet when I want to spend a little less. There are many more including dry Chenin Blanc from the Loire, Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire and dry Rieslings from Germany and Alsace amongst others.

For those of you parsing my words I can see you saying; “OK, we’re onto you! Your preference is clearly for cool climate, generally old world wines. Is there no white wine in the new world or in warmer climates that will do it for you?” Dear readers, I want to tell you; “YES!” There are gorgeous, minerally, piercing, razor edged wines made in baking hot climates. And, even more exciting, while some of the grape varieties are the same, many are not. So, a world of gripping white wines awaits us from very warm parts of the world. I will mention a few below, perhaps some of the most obvious, but by no means the gamut. There is a world waiting to be discovered!

Let’s start with the Mediterranean, specifically a region that has an embarrassment of riches; Sicily in Italy. Sicily has not one but at least five of these grapes that thrive in the region and produce the kinds of wine I love. In no particular order, we have Grillo, Catarratto, Inzolia, Carricante and Grecanico. While Sicily can be very warm, the growing area of Etna is cooler and some beautiful whites are crafted here too. Further, many of the wines tend to be unoaked blends, which are even more interesting to me. Coupled with the bountiful fare of Sicily, particularly seafood and shellfish, not to mention marinated antipasti and vegetables, the thought makes our mouths water. These gems will also pair well with white meats. If you want red wine, Sicily has those too; Nero d’Avola, and blends of Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio from Etna, to mention just a couple.

Italy has more! Vermentino is another grape suited to warm temperatures and more than capable of delivering mineral-basted white wines. Probably the most famous of these is Vermentino di Gallura on the island of Sardinia. You can find them here. But what a treat to drink them there!

Staying with Vermentino takes me to France, this time to Provence. “But Peter”, you say. “Isn’t Provence famous for rose wine? Isn’t rose all that they do? Do they even have white wine grapes and wine there?” It is true, of all large regions, Provence is probably the most dedicated to rose production. Provence produces 80% - 85% rose, 10% - 15% red wine and only 5% white wine. I love Provence rose, those beautiful wines just kissed with the faintest pink tinge. The world is waking up though and those super pale roses are being copied in other regions. But, much as I appreciate Provence rose, particularly in the dog days of summer, it is the white wine of Provence that takes me over the top. Specifically, white wine made from Rolle, aka Vermentino! For me, Provence’s best wine just happens to be white!

We all dream of summers on a Greek Island. Wouldn’t it be great if Greece had some of these crisp, steely, white wines? Well you’re in luck. One of my favorites is Assyrtiko, of which the most famous examples hail from the Island of Santorini. The best have grip, focus and a briny character. Their volcanic, often wind swept growing place, makes for wines of great character.

What about Spain? Spain too has varieties that satisfy my quest for these wine styles. The Albarino grape, produced most famously in the Rias Baixas region, is another fine example. Hints of apricot on the nose almost belie the bracing grip that follows. Portugal too makes beautiful wine from the same grape variety, usually blended with others in the Minho, Vinho Verde region. Many of these wines have an additional crispness to them as a result of a small amount of carbon dioxide in the wine lending it a slight spritz. Just what we want on a lazy summer’s day!

But it is not only the Mediterranean that produces these, unfortunately lesser known, minerally wines. The Australians make linear, piercing, bone dry Rieslings in the Clare and Eden Valleys amongst other places. South Africa produces a growing range of superlative white wines from the increasingly assertive Swartland region. The Swartland has seen something of a revolution over the last decade or so, home now to some of South Africa’s most passionate, dedicated and skilled wine makers, working with a veritable treasure trove of old vine white wine grapes, dominated at this stage by Chenin Blanc.

Oh yes, we live in truly great wine times! I have barely scratched the surface of the vinous treasures awaiting you beyond what you consume now. Look for some of these names and try them. Their relative obscurity means that, very often, they are also great values.

Want to try a Chenin Blanc from a warm, though not baking, region.

Click on the bottle below.