This month I continue to encourage you to "Drink for yourself". There's never been a better time to drink adventurously. The range of wines available — whether measured by grape variety, region, producer or style — has never been greater than it is today, nor the general quality higher.

Once again, this month I'm focussing on a couple of wines made from little known but delicious grape varieties and from "hidden" regions. With summer coming on I've picked a couple of wines which are perfect for hot weather drinking.

What makes a great summer white? For me, the wine should be light (that is low in alcohol), fresh (ideally this means a wine from the previous vintage – a 2001 this year – or at worst one from the preceding year), refreshing (it should have forward fruit balanced by full but not agressive acidity and no evident oak), and inexpensive. At the cottage I visit every year, we call these "kitchen whites" since we tend to go through a few bottles every evening while preparing dinner. Here are two wines that fit these criteria perfectly.

Pierre Boniface Apremont '01: A lot of great summer wines come from vineyards in or on the edge of mountainous regions. The wines of Savoie in the foothills of the French Alps are perfect examples. Many of you have been introduced to these wines through the wonderful Altesse "Cuvée Buster" of Franck Peillot but altesse is bit too rich for perfect porch sipping. What Savoyards drink in the summer are wines from the jacquere grape: the best of these come from the neighboring villages of Apremont and Abymes (both named for 13th century event in which the side of a mountain literally exploded and extinguished the towns leaving them with a rocky limestone-rich soil). These wines are very hard to find in France let alone the US: very little is made and this is almost entirely consumed in the Savoie by locals and summer tourists. Dr I managed to track one top example through a Virginia importer for PJs. The Boniface has a delicious white flower and apple aroma, a light spritz (reminiscent of a vinho verde), lemony acidity perfectly balanced by a point of sweetness, and a mountain-wine finish that transport you to the Alps. Great on its own or with grilled fish, chicken and pork. Buy more than one: the first bottle will be gone before you're comfortable in your deck chair.

Cuevas de Castilla "Con Class" Rueda '01: Made on a central Spanish plateau at an elevation of about 2000 feet, the wines of Rueda are the best values in Spanish whites today and "Con Class" competes for the worst name and the best buy in Rueda. The characteristic Rueda grape is verdejo, traditionally blended with viura (also found in Rioja and, as macabeo, in Catalonia) and more recently with sauvignon blanc. In fact, verdejo tastes like a Spanish cousin to sauvignon blanc: it has a similar bright grapefruity acidity but instead of the herbaceous grassy quality characteristic of many sauvignons adds hints of pear and apple which blending with viura reinforces. "Con Class" has a spicy citrusy nose with a hint of passionfruit, a light crisp lemon-pear attack with a point of spritz, and a squeaky clean finish harmonizing the fruit and acidity perfectly. A wine that, on its own is not a sipper but a quaffer, and that is perfect with summer seafood and vegetable dishes.