When the ancient Greeks arrived in Italy thousands of years ago, they found that wine was an important part of the culture. As the land and climate made the cultivation of grapes quite easy, they called this place Oenotria or “land of wine”.

During this warmest of times I would like to mention a few whites, two of which are new arrivals.

The late winemaker Giacomo Tachis has been called “the man behind Italian wine’s worldwide renaissance” and he is a true legend. On a consulting basis he helped build Santadi wines that have vineyards covering an impressive 1,235 acres on the island of Sardinia. Santadi Vermintino “Cala Silente” DOC 2015, that is made from 100 per cent Vermintino grapes, shows well the wonderful aromas and roundness of the palate that this grape can produce. It is straw-yellow with an intense bouquet of apples, peaches and citrus fruit. Its elegance and balance make it a very refreshing sip. $20.10.

By the time you have managed to say Castellari Bergaglio Gavi di Tassarolo “Fornaci” 2015, you well may be ready to try a taste. Between Piedmont and Liguria in the North, the land of Gavi shows its extraordinary beauty as time seems to turn slowly between old forests and neatly tended vineyards. It is here that the Cortese grape gives us one of Italy’s better known whites that they call Gavi.

I remember once asking my friend, and fine wine producer Pio Boffa (Pio Cesare Winery), if he would explain the difference between Gavi and Gavi di Gavi; the latter double-named I suspect thought of by many as being a step up. Pio’s one word reply, somewhat unprintable in a family newspaper, made it quite clear to me that the longer name was no guarantee of a finer wine. More of a marketing gimmick in his eyes.

The Fornaci Gavi is a graceful, stylish and far from commonplace wine with floral nuances of hawthorn and lily with notes of banana, citrus, hay and mint. It’s very clean finish makes it well worth $20.30, a very fair price tag for Gavi.

To be totally honest the grape called Trebbiano is more often associated with inexpensive wines, but here is what producer Tenuta Bellafonte in Umbria has to say: “This grape has undergone a rapid revival in the last ten years; it is a unique white variety that has always belonged to our territory and its agriculture. Evidence of its cultivation dates to the 1st century BC. Originating from the Spoleto area it is capable of producing wines of great expressivity, very different from the ones obtained from the other autochthonous varieties of central Italy.”

The Spoletino produces very aromatic wines with a strong character as well as always having a balanced acidity and great longevity. Indeed the Tenuta Bellafonte 2015 Trebbiano “Spoletino” 2015 is described by the winery as “Deep straw-yellow. The nose reveals fresh notes of citrus and broom, medicinal herbs and yellow fruits. A mineral hint opens to a taste of great rhythm, well balanced between sapidity and fruit flesh with a nice warm contrast. Very long finish.” $31.35.

I am taking a bit of a gamble on this last wine as we are out of stock as I write, but the container has arrived and I do hope that the wine will be in our stores before this goes to print. I refer to Masianco from the Masi Winery that is renowned for creating a red wine called Amarone. Their Masianco is a “Super Venetian” blend of 75 per cent Pinot Grigio and 25 per cent of an ancient variety called Verduzzo, the latter having been through the Appassimento technique. This is where grapes are placed on bamboo mats for about three months to partially dry out. The end result is more concentrated and intense flavours. You will find a nose of citrus fruit along with peaches and very attractive apricot, even hints of honey. I like to think of it as a “Super Pinot Grigio”. $20.90.

• This column is a paid for advertorial for Burrows Lightbourn Ltd. Michael Robinson is Director of Wine at Burrows Lightbourn Ltd. He can be contacted at mrobinson@bll.bm or 295-0176. Burrows Lightbourn has stores in Hamilton (Front Street East. 295-1554), Paget (Harbour Road, 236-0355) and St George (York Street, 297-0409). A selection of their wines, beers and spirits is available online at www.wineonline.bm