The Australian Wine Club: Classy whites to thrill your friends this summer

With summer and festive feasts coming our way, these premium European wines offer the chance to treat your guests with something unique.

The Premium Euro Whites offer is this week’s deal from The Australian Wine Club.

Blending a love of wine with travel and culinary adventure creates a hobby that can never be fully sated. There’s always more to discover; new trends and tastes to experience; another exploration to plan.

Our latest deal of the week from The Australian Wine Club is offered with the spirit of the gourmet traveller in mind. We’re calling this mix our Premium Euro Whites offer, combining in one case three classic regional varieties – a Chablis, a Sancerre and a Spanish albarino – and an Italian gem you may not have encountered before.

With summer and festive feasts coming our way, these classy whites offer the chance to transport your senses and thrill your friends with something premium and unique.

They will all partner beautifully with your favourite seafood and salad dishes – you can literally smell and taste the summery, maritime charms of coastal Europe, from your table.

We doubt you’ll be disappointed. And as our winemaking mate in France, Jean-Marc Sauboua, often says: “Trying wines from other places is like travelling; it’s enlarging your experiences and knowledge. It’s a way of life.’’

We’ve provided more detailed tasting notes than usual this week to help explain the provenance of these special wines. Enjoy.

Domaine Dampt Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2022

Chablis, part of Burgundy, is renowned for fresh crisp unoaked chardonnays, with distinct mineral and saline characters that pair brilliantly with seafood. You won’t get that Chablis taste – I think of seashells – anywhere else in the world. Almost all Chablis wineries avoid or limit ageing their wines in oak to preserve the delicate flavours of the grapes – a style of winemaking that has led to Chablis being described as the world’s purest form of chardonnay. Buttery characters can be imparted if the wines pass through malolactic fermentation. The cool continental climate – more like Champagne than the southern parts of Burgundy – locks in high levels of acidity, giving Chablis a super crisp finish. Domaine Dampt is run by three brothers, Eric, Emmanuel and Herve, who are second-generation winemakers.

Aromas of white flowers, peach and citrus lift from the glass, along with nougat, almond and honey characters. Lemon curd and grapefruit flavours run through the palate, with creamy notes and that classic steely minerality coursing through to a lingering finish. Plenty of finesse. Excellent value here. 12.5% alc; RRP $55 a bottle.

SPECIALS $49.99 a bottle in any dozen; $31.99 a bottle in Premium Euro Whites dozen.

Domaine Michel Thomas Sancerre 2023

For many, the Sancerre district, in the Loire Valley in north-central France, produces the world’s greatest expression of sauvignon blanc. While we’re well acquainted with Marlborough savvy here in Australia, Sancerre’s wines tends to be more subtle, not being as loud on the tropical notes. Our wine club has been selling Michel Thomas wines for 20 years, developing a loyal following among those in the know. The family-run estate in the commune of Sury-en-Vaux produces wines with a nice balance between ripeness and crisp acidity.

In this 2023, scents of citrus, freshly cut grass and garden herbs mingle with honey and gooseberry as the wine sits in the glass. Concentrated lemon and oyster shell flavours wash across the mouth with flinty minerality and salinity providing a crisp edge. Classy. Roll out fish, chips, salad and summer. 12.5% alc; RRP $52 a bottle.

SPECIALS $46.99 a bottle in any dozen; $31.99 a bottle in Premium Euro Whites dozen.

Pazo Cilleiro Albarino Rias Baixas 2023

The best albariño bring you bright aromas of citrus and stonefruit, a crisp palate with a touch of weight and ocean freshness. The green hills of Rías Baixas, in northwest Spain, arguably produces the world’s best albarino, with its mosaic of tiny vineyards influenced by the Atlantic weather patterns. Winemaker Pazo Cilleiro, known as the father of modern albarino in Spain, has produced a classic example here: nectarines, peaches and mandarin aromas waft with white blossoms and sea spray, leading to a fresh palate laden with citrus and stone fruit flavours and salty minerality. Intense, elegant and fresh, with low alcohol. Perfect for lazy lunches. 11% alc; RRP $38 a bottle.

SPECIALS $28.99 a bottle in any dozen; $31.99 a bottle in Premium Euro Whites dozen.

Antonio Federici Bianco Roma 2023

This Italian gem is made from malvasia puntinata, the most important native white grape of Lazio, just south of Rome, where the family-run Antonio Federici cellar is based. Their small volume of wine is mainly sold in Rome restaurants but our wine club colleagues in Europe were trusted to sell their wines during the Covid shutdown. The relationship continues today, enabling us to introduce you to this dazzler. You’ll be greeted with ripe apricot, peach and honey aromas, with hints of blossom. Lovely concentration of flavour on the palate, driven by citrus and stone fruit flavours and a line of minerality running to a mouth-watering citrus, crisp finish. A terrific summer wine, with or without food. 12.5% alc; RRP $34 a bottle.

SPECIALS $23.99 a bottle in any dozen; $31.99 a bottle in Premium Euro Whites dozen.

EURO WHITE DOZEN: Three bottles of each wine above for $31.99 a bottle. SAVE $153.

Order online or phone [phone] Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm AEST. Deals are available only while stocks last. The Australian Wine Club is a commercial partnership with Laithwaites Wine, LIQP770016550