The right wine to sip for summer conversation

It is now officially summer. That means you will, in the grand Saskatchewan tradition, end up sitting outside in the sun, talking to friends. And likely you’ll have a drink or two, or three.

Allow me, a drinker certifiably in the sere and yellow, to offer you an observation. In general alcohol and sun really don’t mix all that well. Mostly this is a function of the choice of booze – any spirit on the rocks or coolers and you are asking for trouble. Specifically, you are asking for a splitting headache sometime around eight hours after commencing drinking and sunning. I’ve never had any real trouble with beer, but beer slows consumption due to calories and sheer volume.

So then: how does one enjoy a wee drinkiepoo in the afternoon on the deck? Easy. Stick to booze low in congeners – the source of many a headache – and low in alcohol. A pretty good rule of thumb is that the more transparent the booze, the fewer the congeners. Low in alcohol means you dilute the spirit of choice to about five parts or more of water to one of booze.

Or you can do the obvious and open a bottle of adult lemonade. Vinho Verde was invented by the Portuguese who spend a lot of time drinking and talking in hot sunshine. It is about nine percent alcohol. It is crisp. It is tart. It is slightly carbonated. It is the perfect summer day drink.

Gazela is available everywhere. The colour is a very light yellow. The bubbles will help you notice a bouquet of citrus with a slightly floral aroma. This is a simple, versatile and very attractive wine built specifically for conversation, salads, shrimp and Adirondack chairs.

Gazela Vinho Verde NV $12 ****

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