Ahhhh summer, brilliant blue skies, summer thunderstorms that bathe the earth, and wine.  Wondefully chilled refreshing white wine.  What could be more perfect on a steamy summer evening than a light meal of fish, salad and fresh fruit with crispy, cool Italian white wine? Add in a bevy of friends to share the wine with, or a single special person, and life doesn’t get much better.

Italy is primarily known for its full, food friendly red wines.  But it should come as no surprise that a region that has produced wine for thousands of years has plenty of white wines as well.  The majority of Italy’s most popular whites are produced in the northernmost regions of Italy, but white wine is produced from Sicily to the foothills of the Alps.  The whites of Italy lean towards crisp, acidic and food friendly.

Some of the most popular:

• Arneis–from Piedmont.  A medium dry wine with hints of stone fruits and pear.  This is a great wine either for sipping solo on the patio before dinner or to pair with fruit, salads and soft cheeses.  I love this with sliced strawberries layered with goat cheese.
• Asti–poor Asti.  It has received an undeservedly nasty reputation from the import of lower quality spumantes.  Lighter and fruitier than Champagne and summer perfection when paired with peach juice in a bellini as an aperitivo.
• Chardonnay–what may the most commonly grown grape on the planet.  Italian Chardonnays are definitely more French in style than California.  They are almost always unoaked and not treated with malolactic fermentation.  This makes them leaner and crispier than a typically California Chardonnay and lets the fruit predominate.
• Gavi–another Piedmont favorite, and beginning to grow in popularity in the US.  A wine best enjoyed young and an ideal accompaniment to fish dishes.  It usually has a minerally quality and hints of grapefruit and has an acidity that cries for food.  Figs and Gavi are gorgeous together.
• Orvieto–made from Trebbiano and Grechetto grapes in Umbria, in central Italy souh of Tuscany.  It has a heft that many Italian whites do not have and is permitted to have a multitude of grapes blended into it, beyond the two primary.  A “white meat” wine for chicken and fish, it will overpower dishes that do not have a lot of protein or fat.
• Pinot Grigio–still the current “it” white from Italy.  Produced in Veneto and about as food friendly, and “solo drinkable” as a wine can be.  A great way to begin a summer evening and pair with virtually every kind of seafood, salad and fruit.

One pointer:  most people chill their whites too much and you miss a lot of the flavor and nuance this way.  You should aim for about 50 F for your whites, from room temperature about 30 minutes in the fridge should put it just about where it should be.