For lunchtime dining, I like to keep lots of pantry staples on hand: artichoke hearts, marinated red peppers, capers; crusty loaves of bread and dry grains. Cans of beans and tinned fish can make salads, tartines, or pastas come together in less than ten minutes. Brightened up with lemon, chopped herbs, and tangy cheeses, your improvised lunch will be begging for a sip of wine.
     Choosing a good lunch wine doesn’t require a certification in sommellerie, though there are a few factors that can guide you. I tend to reach for options that are low to light in alcohol. Noon does not feel like the time for hefty reds, nor my most precious bottles. Most of the time I’m lunching solo, so I gravitate to bottles I don’t mind tasting and corking to revisit for that evening’s apéritif.
     We’ve put together a sampler of great lunch wines, light and frizzante selections like Moretto’s Pignoletto from Emilia-Romagna, reds that are peppery and bright like Thivin’s Brouilly or the deliriously easy to sip Bardolino “Le Fontane” from Corte Gardoni. In the way of whites and rosés, we’re channeling a seaside vacation: Carricante from Sicilian husband-and-wife duo at Vigneti Vecchio, Punta Crena’s rare Mataòssu from the Italian Riviera, and a fragrant, floral rosé from Puglia. And of course, we’d be remiss not to include the queen of lunch wines: Alain Pascal’s perpetually satisfying Gros ‘Noré Bandol rosé.
     With these wines we invite you to take a new lease on lunch: no shoveling food at your desk, or skipping meals in the name of productivity. Instead, let’s partake in a decidedly old-world approach; a mid-day meal that deserves its own occasion. A break in the day to raise a glass simply because we can.