[Rain Howard Hodgkin (1984-9), in the Tate]
I am trying to put a positive spin on the constant rain and low temperatures. If we didn't have dark clouds and rain, we wouldn't have wonderful paintings like this, or the very green and wet Lake District, or the smell of damp grass and leaves. So rather than being in denial and drinking warming reds and full-bodied whites, this is a moment to embrace the idea of coolness and wetness, and to match your wine to the weather.
This is why I'm drinking a light, fresh, aromatic white wine from the area to the south of Lake Garda in Italy. It's Lugana 2011 from Tenuta Roveglia and costs £8.22 from Asda (it's also available here), and while that might seem a lot for a Northern Italian white wine, it knocks most Pinot Grigios into a cocked hat. It's pale in colour as befits a cool climate wine, and is refreshingly clean, fresh, and pretty, and has a slight spritz.
It also has a delicate floral character that suggests meadows, mountains, and lakes - so much so that you could easily find yourself twirling around like Julie Andrews, pretending you are in a flower-strewn meadow, singing 'The Hills Are Alive'. (But still wishing it would stop raining so you sit outside with your glass of early summer wine.)
