To say that Irish palates aren't averse to a hefty whack of alcohol is about as fatuous as pointing out our obsession with the weather or the national talent for blasphemy. Ask any wine merchant to pick out a handful of year-round bestsellers and the chances are they will include a couple of powerfully intoxicating Australian reds, matched by some full-blooded, swarthy bottling from the south of Italy. We're inclined to fall for big bodies - muscle supporting heaps of flesh.
We're not alone. There's a whole, global swing in favour of heavy hitters. Grapes are being left to ripen longer on the vine, to produce wines with sweeter, more concentrated fruit - wines that are more consumer-friendly - and higher alcohol comes with the package. In a climate like ours, we can do with the warming properties these blockbusters impart. Most of the time. But not right now, with the shock arrival of what seems like a real summer.
This is white wine weather. Sounds straightforward, doesn't it? A simple colour change, and a matter of remembering to think ahead, to allow for cooling? The problem is that just as many white wines as reds seem to be caught up in the riper-fruit-higher-alcohol trend. Far too many, if you ask me. However well-made they may be, however flavoursome and luxuriously textured (alcohol is a factor in that elusive quality winemakers call "mouthfeel"), most are too damned heavy to be refreshing. Some wines carry a rather high level of alcohol better than others - just as some people carry a portly body with so much elegance that the pounds seem to fall away. Certain white grapes are good at getting away with it. Chenin Blanc, Marsanne and Viognier, for instance, often counter their rich, mouthfilling fruit with such lively acidity that their alcohol level can seem lower than it is. Figures aren't always precise, anyway, allowing for a few percentage points of latitude. They do give a rough indication, though, of the weight of the wine in the bottle. I've fixed my own upper threshold - the point beyond which white-table-wine pleasure ceases - at around 13.5 per cent alcohol by volume. Generally speaking, I'm happier with less. This has nothing to do with virtue or healthy living - or even hangovers. It's because a high alcohol content can often make a wine seem sweeter than it really is so that, after a mouthful or two, it tastes so cloying you don't want more. It can also cause a nasty alcohol "burn" in the finish. In a hearty red wine in the depths of winter, a sweet middle and a hot finish may not be such a bad thing. With white wine, it's a very different story, making for charmless heavyweights.
Even so, alcohol levels in white wines are creeping up relentlessly. In the small print on labels, 13 per cent is beginning to look average; 13.5 per cent and even higher not unusual. Over the past few weeks, I've tasted and, I'm sorry to say, been turned off by Klein Constantia Sauvignon Blanc (often rated as one of South Africa's best); Luna Napa Valley Pinot Grigio, a swanky Californian; and Huia Gewurztraminer from an admirable winery in New Zealand - all weighing in at a hefty 14 per cent.
Every one is a serious wine, crafted with care . . . but unmercifully alcoholic, leaving the poor palate overheated. My shorthand note for each is the same. CDM. Couldn't Drink Much.
With warmer weather already upon us, what wines have real refreshment value? What can we sip liberally enough to quench a moderate thirst without ending up comatose on a garden bench? Regions with cooler climates tend to produce lighter wines - so look first to Germany or northern Italy. But remember that some warmer countries have solved their heatwave drinking-problems over centuries, by fostering particular grapes or wine styles with lowish alcohol and plenty of racy acidity. Australia has Semillon, Riesling and Verdelho; Greece has Assyrtiko (starring in a recent Bottle of the Week); Portugal has Vinho Verde (fine if you can find a really good one), to mention but a few.
The white wines recommended below have an alcohol content of 12 per cent or less. They're all quite fruity, rather than austere, so you can serve them alone as summer refreshment if you haven't the energy to rustle up food. They'd make good white wine spritzers too (still lower alcohol, even more thirst-quenching). But be careful who you give them to - true wine purists will wince and demand their sparkling mineral water in a separate glass.
