Wines of the week: August 31

There are occasions when you don’t want a wine with too much flavour. Those bold Sauvignon Blancs or buttery Chardonnays can be overpowering at the table. This is where Italian whites come into their own – they tend to be clean and dry with bracing citric acidity. They’re food wines, essential in cooking and to drink with dishes such as risotto, roast chicken and fi sh cooked in olive oil. Although there is a fi ne line between clean and boring, in the hands of the right producer, Italian whites can walk the tightrope of restraint without falling into the lake of blandness.

Tesco Finest Fiano, 2011, £6.99

Fiano, a grape variety, makes some wonderful but pricey wines near Naples. This one is from Sicily and I can smell those famous floral lemons. There’s a lot of acidity and it initially seems a little mean until you partner it with food at which point all sorts of lovely peachy flavours appear.

Tesco Finest Gavi, 2011, £7.99

Poor Gavi has suffered at the hands of those who supply wine to cheap trattorias. This is how it’s meant to taste with a tang of grapefruit peel and a sprinkling of spice.

Soave Classico, Montresor, 2011, £8.59: www.evines.co.uk 

Another much-maligned Italian restaurant staple, Soave from the Classico region near Venice can be superb. This one is racy, dry and simple with a distinct taste of almonds and a light spritz.

Falanghina del Sannio, Guardiolo Falanghina, 2011, £6.75: www.thewinesociety

Compared to the others this is positively Sophia Loren-like in its voluptuousness, and like the actress this one is from Campania; here are fl oral notes and aniseed on the nose and then lots of cinnamon, lemons and oranges as you swallow.