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And so we come to my final choice I am going to be honest here, I had intended to be a bit different and review a good example of Beaujolais to show that a lightly chilled bottle of light red can be as refreshing as any white. But maybe it was me, maybe it was the bottle, but it disappointed. Morgon Domaine des Souchons (2002) should have been a great example of how Beaujolais can work in the summer and provide a wonderful refreshing alternative to white to have with a salad and some cold meats on a balmy summer evening in the garden. But it was not to be. The lovely light red fruit of raspberries and hints of strawberry were there, the lack of tannin kept things nice and light and the inherent acidity was perfect, but then it all went wrong. The alcohol. After every mouthful it was as if I had taken a shot of vodka. It came at you like a sly right hook and it just ruined what had gone before. It was a complete surprise as the alcohol level was not particularly high (13%), but it just was not integrated into the wine. So, I feel, we shall have to return to this thorny area of French wine sometime in the future otherwise we will be doing it a grave disservice.

But I cannot let you go without a third recommendation to round things off. Albert Mann Muscat (2004) from Alsace is by no means the least just because it is the last. A wonderful aromatic, sweet, ripe citrus mouthful with lovely acidity to balance it. Well made Muscat is a joy, probably because the flavours are so unexpected and refreshing…

I hope I have given you some ideas to tempt you We don’t know how long this weather will last and we have to make the most of it, don’t we?

All of the above wines can be purchased Oddbins and range in price from £8-£10.50

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