How to make the most of what’s in season this month and the wines to match.
This month we’re almost spoilt for choice when it comes to British fruit and veg coming into season. We’ll see the arrival of the first of the summer soft fruits and berries and those living near the coast or with access to good fish mongers can enjoy the sweet flavours of new-season seafood.
Where we would we be without garlic? And I say that with all due respect to those who cannot countenance its pungent charms. A worldwide smash, it’s so vital to so many cuisines and early summer is a great time to harvest it. So, where to start with this almost ubiquitous bulb? Simple. Go big or go home! Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. It sounds a bit drastic, but the garlic in this dish is soft and sweet, its power tempered by roasting to an unctuous creaminess that’s mashed into the gravy. The wine could be a bold and/or oaky chardonnay, white Rioja with its savoury notes, ripe southern Hemisphere cinsault, a weightier rosé like those from Basilicata in southern Italy or Tavel from the Rhône. Intriguingly, a dry nutty oloroso sherry is spot on here too.
Hands up who has never left a pick-your-own pinkly stained from mouth to toe from the strawberries that never made it to the punnet? British strawberries are glorious in June – a sweet, juicy symbol of summer. Classic strawberries and cream are covered here, to which I’d add the frothy charms of the sweet fizz of Blanquette from Limoux and the summer-perfect grapiness of a foaming Moscato d’Asti or Clairette de Die. Rosé Champagne is an indulgent celebrity marriage too, perhaps eaten by the stalk as seductively as you can! For an alcohol-free treat the LA Brewery Sparkling English Blush Kombucha is deliciously apt, being made from seasonal summer fruits. Finally, off the wall a bit, try strawberries with mild creamy Dolcelatte or Gorgonzola cheese with apple slices, walnuts, celery leaves, salt and cracked black pepper (the latter always delightfully eye opening) and pour a glass of any of the above.
June is a month when lobsters are starting to show at their best around UK shores. The sweet flesh is a luxurious treat, but is well worth it. Simply boiled or steamed and served with clarified butter they are a good match for a fruity riesling. Peachy, fragrant viognier or northern Rhône white featuring marsanne or roussanne grapes can have a starring role too if the butter is flecked with tarragon and lemon zest. A bit of luxury in the form of fuller-bodied Champagne is a treat. Pile on the opulence with a cheesy, creamy thermidor sauce and those viogniers and Rhônes still apply, but you could treat yourself to a fine white Burgundy for even more luxury. For a seafood cocktail, whether the lobster is solo or with other shellfish in the tangy, rich sauce ,wines made from vermentino are good, especially Corsican, and Loire sauvignon blancs have zing that will not blanche in the face of the sauce.
Sweet, juicy homegrown fruit are now starting to come into their own and, tomatoes still warm from the sun-drenched vine, are a scented pleasure redolent of summer. Simply served with mozzarella, basil, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and seasoning, they make a simple dish to enjoy alongside the Italian whites mentioned above. Or try albariño from Spain, and increasingly from elsewhere too, which has enough juicy freshness to take on tomatoes’ innate acidity. Something a little off-dry works too, with riesling stepping up to the plate again with a smidge of residual sugar. Gewürztraminer is a surprisingly pleasing match for fresh or lightly cooked tomato dishes’ sweet and tangy balance. A fragrant tomato curry (look for Simon Hopkinson’s recipe) is a gorgeous marriage. For red, light to medium-bodied wines are the way forward if the toms are not cooked down and concentrated. Italians unsurprisingly are out in the lead with stuffed tomatoes with some French stars tucking in on their shoulder, while rosés should finish on the podium, too.
