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Weather in summer can get too hot for many things. Like tarring a roof, roasting an 8-kilogram turkey in the galley kitchen of a one-bedroom apartment or, if you're like me, getting up from the couch to do anything. It can also be too hot to be a wine snob. Cool, simple refreshment has its time in the wine world, much as it does in beerland. They should declare midsummer the anti-wine-snob season. I've got my nomination for the poster beverage, too: sauvignon blanc. It's the zesty, grassy, high-acid wine that connoisseurs love to lambaste.

Last February, New Zealand hosted the inaugural International Sauvignon Blanc Celebration, a conference devoted to that country's signature white grape. A keynote at that event, veteran British wine writer and broadcaster Oz Clarke, summed up the derision heaped on the noble vine by know-it-alls. "Sauvignon Blanc is the grape variety that wine snobs cannot bear," he said. (I wasn't there, but I'm quoting from a report in the magazine Drinks Business.) Contrasting the variety with New Zealand's increasingly popular red, pinot noir, he defended sauvignon blanc as more important to people with little wine knowledge, who can "revel in the sheer delight of this lovely, affordable drink."

Perhaps you were unaware of the scorn and count yourself, as I do, among sauvignon's supporters. Rest assured, it's out there. Philip White, a colourful columnist with InDaily in Adelaide, Australia, pulls no punches when it comes to the variety. "Few wine grapes have drawn such derision from this bitter pen," he recently wrote. "Lawn clippings, battery acid, cat p-ss – combinations of the three… I've pointed the whole damn arsenal at it."

Mike Steinberger, one of the sharpest and most literary pens in wine criticism, crushed the grape with a steamroller in a screed he wrote for Slate magazine 10 years ago. "Sure, they tend to have distinctive bouquets," he said of the many sauvignon blancs he sampled each year, "with heady aromas of grass, citrus, gooseberry, gunflint, and chalk – or some combination thereof. But this excitement is reserved for the nose; all the mouth gets is a limp, lemony liquid that grows progressively more boring with each sip."

Ouch. That has not been my experience, certainly not with the zesty "savvys" of New Zealand, the rounded whites of Bordeaux (typically a blend of sauvignon and sémillon) or many of the chalky Sancerres, Pouilly-Fumés and Quincys of the Loire Valley.

I have a theory. Sauvignon blanc lacks the weight of chardonnay and the acid-taming sugar of riesling, the two great connoisseur whites. It also lacks the precious obscurity of many trendy white grapes, like vermentino. And, yes, it can be too grassy or tangy for palates that gravitate instinctively to the smooth ripeness of big reds. I suspect many of these latter folk also turn their noses up at bitter vegetables like broccoli and kale the way some children (and so-called supertasters) do.

That vegetal character – though more amplified in overcropped, poorly made versions – played a role, I'm told by someone in the know, in the decision by New Zealand's wine-marketing body to revamp its motto in 2007. What had been "Riches of a Clean Green Land," with its lawn-clippings connotation, became "Pure Discovery."

But what is anathema to some can be catnip to others. "Sauvignon's greatest appeal lies in its slightly underripe citrus flavours in a world gone mad for ripeness and even overripeness," Clarke said at February's conference.

"Sauvignon blanc revels in the cool side, the green side."

I'd back him up on that defence, especially when the mercury rises.

Kim Crawford Small Parcels Spitfire Sauvignon Blanc 2015 (New Zealand)

SCORE: 92 PRICE: $24.95

The most recognized export brand from New Zealand produces more than just the flagship sauvignon blanc advertised on billboards and buses. This upper-end Spitfire from the 2015 vintage suggests not fire, but smoke and metal, as in gunflint. There's also plenty of seductive passion fruit and citrus for good measure. Imagine a white grapefruit shot from a cannon and you get part of the picture. Available at the above price in Ontario, $24.99 in British Columbia, various prices in Alberta, $25.99 in Manitoba, $25.55 in Quebec, $29.99 in New Brunswick, $27.79 in Nova Scotia.

Astrolabe Province Sauvignon Blanc 2015 (New Zealand)

SCORE: 91 PRICE: $22.95

Light-medium-bodied and ripe, with refreshing grapefruit, gooseberry, lemon zest and peppery spice characters along with a heady infusion of lemongrass. Poised and elegant. Available at the above price in Ontario, $23.65 in Quebec, $28.98 in Nova Scotia. The fine 2014 sells for $22.49 in British Columbia.

Domaine de la Commanderie Quincy 2014 (France)

SCORE: 91 PRICE: $19.95

There's marvellous tension between silky texture and tart acidity in this sauvignon blanc from the underappreciated Loire Valley appellation of Quincy (pronounced kan-see rather than as in Quincy Jones). The wine could almost pass for a typically bold New Zealand offering, with big grapefruit zest, orange and dry grass and hay aromatics. It's like a pleasant stroll through a sunny meadow (without the exercise). Available in Ontario.

Twomey Sauvignon Blanc 2014 (California)

SCORE: 90 PRICE: $44.95

On one hand, it's hard to explain the high price. On the other, it's not. The wine is made by the family behind Silver Oak Cellars, famous for oaky cult reds you'll find in so many Napa-obsessed collectors' cellars. A blend of fruit from Napa and Sonoma counties, it's smooth and silky, with nary an herbal trace. Fleshy apple and grapefruit flavours find balance in well-tuned acidity. Available at the above price in Ontario, various prices in Alberta.

Sutherland Sauvignon Blanc 2014 (South Africa)

SCORE: 89 PRICE: $14.95

Attractive texture here, with a relatively oily, fleshy midpalate (for sauvignon blanc, at least) that carries notes of melon, orange and lemon infused with dried hay. It's crisp and clean, though, with well-integrated acidity that doesn't bite. A bargain offering from value-oriented producer Thelema Mountain Vineyards. Available at the above price in Ontario, $17.63 in Newfoundland.

Casas del Bosque Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2015 (Chile)

SCORE: 89 PRICE: $14.95

Light and zingy, with fresh acidity that underscores the clean tropical, melon and citrus fruit. It's big on grass, too, though there's a subtle mellowness down below owing to partial fermentation in French-oak barrels (with 93 per cent fermented in cool stainless steel). All the fermented juice was left in brief contact with the spent yeast cells, or lees, for added texture. Good value. Available at the above price in Ontario, $15.99 in British Columbia, various prices in Alberta.

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