Susy Atkins picks three Italian beauties for the summer

Angela’s tempting Sicilian recipes today have inspired me to select feast-friendly Italian wines to match. By which I mean relatively inexpensive, readily available labels in crowd-pleasing, summery styles.

The arancini are best with a crisp, citrusy white. I tipped the 2018 northern and central Italian whites in a recent column – last year’s warm, long summer injected extra juicy ripeness into the likes of gavi and soave, so make hay with these wines, or pick a Sicilian white like the grillo I’ve chosen.

A good rosé also partners arancini well, so long as it’s dry and youthful. There’s quite a lack of decent Italian pinks on the high street shelves, but I’ve found a star buy from M&S. A rosado from Spain’s Rioja or Navarra regions would do almost as well. The rosé will be a versatile partner for the pizza as well, if pink’s your thing in August (and quite right, too).

At a push, it can take on the pasta alla Norma, teasing out the capers’ tang. But I prefer a light red here, the sort of fresh and soft youngster that can be chilled in warm weather. Avoid a heavily tannic or oaky wine here – the soft aubergines are easily overwhelmed. Happily, several Italian red styles suit, including bardolino, dolcetto, simple chianti and the summery northern Italian marzemino.

To finish your feast, chill a golden, honeyed dessert wine for the cannoli. I’m opening up the borders here, because although Italy’s sweet passito di pantelleria and vin santo are both good choices, a finely balanced Bordeaux sauternes or barsac is probably best of all.