Times Drinks Editor James Viner explains why the following wines make the cut when it comes to celebrating the asparagus season.
Verdant Chilean high street choice
2017 Co-op Irresistible Leyda Valley Sauvignon Blanc, Chile
(£7.49, Co-op)
The quintessential house white: An upbeat South American carnival of a sauvignon blanc that smells of gooseberries, passion fruit and blackcurrant leaf and has a tang of guava and elderflower. It’s simply a delicious springtime tipple screaming for steamed or chargrilled asparagus (with or without goat’s cheese), sushi, seafood and tomato salads. I rarely swallow when I’m tasting, but did here. Impressive work from a big Chilean wine group. I could drink a lot of this! Beats any supermarket Chilean white you can find at this price. A very snappy wine. Alc 13%
Barrel-fermented white for spears with hollandaise 2015
Seresin Marlborough Chardonnay Reserve, New Zealand
(£17, The Wine Society, or £27.20, The NZ Wine Cellar)
This is a polished wine of impeccable balance: One sip and you’re on to a beauty. Combining a courtesan’s inveigling look with a close embrace of mineral acidity, the flavours run through grapefruit juice and zest, orchard/white stone fruit, oak spice, nougat, creamed-honey and grilled almond. Spot on for asparagus with a dollop of hollandaise, melted butter or poached eggs, and also just the ticket for scallops, roast chicken, crab and monkfish. Exceptional. This will provide an exciting ride over the next five years. Certified organic and biodynamically grown. A world-class steal at The Wine Society (where’s your getaway car?) Alc 13.5%
Follow James on Twitter: @QuixoticWine
We’ve been going crazy for asparagus, getting our fill before the short season comes to end. Check out this Bruce McMichael’s Kentish Asparagus recipe, and find out where to get your locally grown spears.
