THE RIGHT WINE FOR 10 SUPER SUMMER SITUATIONS

Summer has arrived for good, and you are planning the next nights out, swims, balcony parties, barbecues, get-togethers, etc.

We here at botilia put our minds together to find the right wines for 10 real-life situations you're sure to face this summer.

Here it goes: 

1. Afternoon wine on the balcony in the city while making vacation plans

The wait can be excruciating but vacation plans make it that much better. The days get closer! What will you do? Will you finally book somewhere? We know it can be tough. But there is no doubt about your wine. The Roditis Nature of Tetramythos Estate is a natural wine, light, dynamic, full of sea air and brio. Enjoy it on its own or with white cheeses such as manouri or anthotyro and fruit.

2. At the cottage, waiting for friends to arrive

Again with the wait. What time did they say they would come? Just uncork a Pinot Grigio Santa Margherita while you wait. Light, cool, always pleasant, it will greatly help the wait. Come on, where are they? And since you'll always have something to nibble on or plan to eat once they arrive (this is Greece...), combine it with oregano or thyme breadsticks and a nice geremezi or volaki tinos. Oh, here they come!

3. On the beach, with the correct, orthodox taper

What is it with Greek beaches and tapers? Anything can come out of them... From salad to melon and from meatballs to stuffed tomatoes. But what can you do, that's what Greek summer is. If you don't want to bother too much, the solution is a passepartout rosé wine. For every occasion and every weather. We recommend Driopi Rosé from the Tselepos Estate. All-around rosé that will cope with almost anything your taper throws at you. Regardless, even if you're not hungry, you'll have a great time with it on its own.

4. Returning from the beach while waiting for your turn to shower

Here the situation is critical. You want to enjoy your wine and the salt on you, but you don't want to lose your turn too. Our suggestion for the occasion is the Blanc Moschoudi Assyrtiko of the Papargyriou Winery from Corinthia. Acidity, fruity aromas and long duration in the mouth, will keep you alert in the most enjoyable way until your turn comes. Besides, it’s so nice that you might as well take your shower last...

5. Before the big night out

Here we go for bubbles. There is nothing more uplifting and breezier than a nice champagne. A well-chilled Taittinger Brut Reserve may well be the fuel for the long night ahead. No matter how you think about it, there is no better choice.

6. When the company is late getting ready

We don't shy away. We arm ourselves with patience and continue with bubbles. But maybe you should be going for something more sophisticated, special and interesting? Migma Petnat by Chloe Hatzivariti is definitely all of the above. A delightful sparkling wine with rich fruit, intense floral character and refreshing acidity. Try it with melon prosciutto and you'll remember us.

7. The night you stay in because yesterday you got home at noon

If there was a comfort wine, it would be a chardonnay, possibly with a touch of barrel. These evenings you want something juicy, with body and duration that will fill the void of the missed night out. If someone comes up with a better choice than Chardonnay El Enemigo, we'll admit it. Rich, complex, sophisticated, it's the perfect suggestion for the night you stay in commenting on the events of the previous night.

8. When you decide to cook for friends

Well, you've made up your mind. You will cook for them. Usually, the table will be monopolized by a single wine, so our suggestion is to at least choose one (or more) glasses of your favorite wine while you are cooking. A Riesling can be refreshing, complex, intense, and delightful. We highly recommend Villa Wolf Wachenheimer Belz Riesling 2014 which combines all the above and will surely make it hard to stop at the first glass.

9. When you realize you decided to make dinner for friends

And while you cook and melt over the oven, the pans or the grill, the others splash around in the sea or the pool. When you realize that, things are not easy. Before you start cursing, go for an extreme wine. Anything that comes in mind! Do you want petnat? Go for Petnat. Want some twisted (or less twisted) orange? Go for orange. We say (now because at that time we don't know how we will react) that we would go with a Vorias & Helios Orange Roditis of Markogiannis Estate. Why? Because we can! And because it's also very nice. If you cut 2-3 slices of bottarga on a slice of bread, it can be extravagant!

10. Cocooning at home

Things can go either way here. If it's yourself with your favorite wine, then you are free to choose anything you like. If it's with your significant other, then Sacha Lichine's Whispering Angel - Chateau d' Esclans is always a good, timeless choice. It is no coincidence that it is the most famous and perhaps the best rosé wine in the world.

We hope we helped.

Botilia's team