The Italian trade publication Wine Meridian has published an interview with Telemaco Calandrino, wine director at La Gioia Collection. According to him, today's restaurant guests are more knowledgeable and more curious than before, and are moving toward a way of drinking that says: drink a little less, but make it something good.
What they reach for is fresh, lighter wine. And rather than a full bottle, they prefer flexible formats that are easy to try: wine by the glass and half bottles (375ml, half the usual size). The role expected of the sommelier is changing too, he says, from a teacher handing down the right answer to a guide who tells a story.
"Guests are more knowledgeable and more curious than they used to be. They want to drink less, but better." (Telemaco Calandrino, from his interview with Wine Meridian)
Source: Wine Meridian (9 June 2026)
The Swirl View
We feel this shift every day in our conversations with customers. Japan's summer in particular is hot and humid, and the higher the temperature climbs, the more people choose a well-chilled, lighter white over a heavy red. This is a season that calls for wines you can relax into from the very first glass.
Here are the four bottles Swirl is recommending this season. Each carries the character of its Italian home, yet all are easy on the wallet for everyday drinking and easy to start with, one glass at a time.
Inzolia (Sicily) is an indigenous variety long loved in western Sicily. With light aromas of citrus and white flowers, it is perfect as an aperitif on a hot day. Balbino (a Vermentino from Tuscany) charms with a sea-breeze minerality and a faint salinity. A popular regular at Swirl, it pairs beautifully with seafood and antipasti. Grimani's Pinot Grigio (Veneto) is light, fresh, and the kind of all-rounder that pleases whoever you share it with. And Doppio Passo offers clear, sun-ripened fruit, a bottle that is simply a joy in summer. Chill it well and pour without ceremony.
The 'by the glass, lighter' change happening in restaurants translates straight to the home table. You do not have to finish a whole bottle: just pour a favorite, one glass at a time. That may well be the way we drink through the summers ahead.
What is the white you most want to drink right now? Crisp and dry, or something rounder and fuller? Tell us, and we will use it as a reference when choosing the next bottle to bring in.
Four picks for this summer
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