Home > Articles > In the Dog Days of Summer, Enjoy Easy-Drinking French Wines

In the Dog Days of Summer, Enjoy Easy-Drinking French Wines

Choose styles low in alcohol, high in acid

by Wine Taster
published: 01 Jul 2009       | Comments

The French are famous for hitting the beaches during summertime. How do they stay cool? By sipping on utterly quaffable French wines.

Even if we can't vacation like our European friends, we can drink like them. Take some cues from their hot-weather preferences: in the summer, when you want something refreshing, select wines that are lower in alcohol and higher in acid.

Think about the foods you crave this time of year. Lighter-style French wines will pair wonderfully with lighter seafood dishes, as opposed to heavier, roasted meats. Oysters and Muscadet, for instance, make a beautiful marriage. Here are a few favorites to try:

• Food-friendly rosé (pronounced ro-ZAY). These are neither red nor white, though they arguably have more in common with the latter. Also known as blush wines, rosés traditionally get their pink color from the juice staying in contact with the grape skins for just a few hours after being crushed (as opposed to red wines that leave the juice and skins together for up to several weeks). Grenache is a popular grape for making rosé around the world. Drink rosés as an aperitif or with your meal. Provence, the most famous region for this style of wine, makes versions that are dry and fruity.


• Wines from the Loire Valley. You can trust that wines from this region will be very easy to drink. The majority are white wines with a refreshing level of acidity. The valley boasts a number of wines that are suitable for summer. Try Vouvray (always made from the grape Chenin Blanc) with fish or Chinon (usually made from the grape Cabernet Franc) with poultry. Sancerre (usually made from the grape Sauvignon Blanc, and made in a very lean, crisp and mineral-driven style) is a nice complement to asparagus.


• Sparkling wine is always a crowd pleaser, no matter the season. It's relatively low in alcohol and pleasantly fizzy. France's Champagne appellation is made up of five districts, each devoted to producing sparkling wine from the Chardonnay, Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier grape. On hot days, chill your a little more than usual. If you're looking for a bit more of a value (Champagne can be expensive) there are many other regions in France that make high quality bubbly. If you see the words "Crémant de" on the bottle before the name of a region (i.e. Crémant d'Alsace) then this is a wine made in the high quality methods of Champagne, but with grapes that are more common to the specific region where it is made.

French wines can invoke serious thought. But in the summer, when you just want to relax, take a break from your inner wine geek to enjoy a simple glass of what pleases you most.