Summer drinking encourages a lighter touch, favouring freshness and finesse over the more opulent styles that sustain us across the cooler months. And while seasons shape us – quality, balance and beauty remain timeless. Here, five summer bottles to put on your radar.

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2021, Clare Valley

The Australian riesling by which all others are measured, Jeffrey Grosset’s achingly pure and laser etched wine is as thrilling as it is delicious. The wine hums with vibrant lime juice and zest characters, backed up with fine white floral aromatics and a finish of uncommon length and focus.

$75; grosset.com.au

Deep Woods ‘Single Vineyard’ Chardonnay 2020, Margaret River

Made in tiny quantities from a low-yielding vineyard towards the southern end of Margaret River, this intricately detailed, finely layered wine is a study in complexity and composure. It offers up white nectarines and beeswax, some crushed oyster shell and jasmine on the nose and drives across the palate with sustained energy and high tensile acidity.

$50; deepwoods.wine

Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé 2020, Provence

This is the Rosé that fuelled a million Provençal dreams. The palest pink colour, flecks of orange too, it’s a beautifully fresh wine built on a fine, but sturdy, framework, redolent with peaches, dry cherries, blood oranges and faint wisps of exotic spice.
The world’s greatest Rosé.

$80; domainetempier.com

Domaine Dujac Clos de la Roche 2018, Burgundy

The beauty of Burgundy delivered in a sleek, sinewy package. Violet laden florals, dark forest berries abundant on a gloriously silky and supple palate and a fine, minerally seam running through the wine and wrapping around a taut tannin finish. A typically energetic and assured wine from Dujac.

$660; dujac.com

Vietti ‘Castiglione’ 2017, Barolo

Some may question drinking Barolo over summer, but they’re wrong. Any time is right for a wine like this. It’s both widescreen and close-up at once, expansive dark fruits and fine leather growing in the glass, while an intricate weave of tight tannins bring the wine to a pinpoint taper. Glorious.

$450; vietti.com