By Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Our favorite meals on hot summer days are of the no-cooking variety: plates of prosciutto and other cured meats, cheeses, and slices of ripe melon or figs to nibble on while lounging at poolside with a good book. So our cravings naturally turn to Italian wines, especially whites.

"Since most Italian white wines are of the lighter, crisper, more refreshing persuasion, there are tons to choose from," says David Lynch, award-winning sommelier, wine journalist and co-author with Joseph Bastianich of "Vino Italiano: The Regional Wines of Italy" (Clarkson Potter, 2002), the definitive guide to Italian wines.

Lynch's own favorite summer dish is panzanella, an Italian bread-and-tomato salad accented with red onions, red wine vinegar and coarse salt. "My favorite coastal Italian wine is probably Vermentino, which is very herbaceous and refreshing, especially with this dish," he says. Lynch is a fan of Santadi "Cala Silente" Vermentino di Sardegna ($19).

If you enjoy sparkling wine, summer is a great time to pick up some Italian prosecco. "The prosecco playing field is remarkably level in terms of price," Lynch says. "All of your basic non-vintage bruts are around the same price, and since they're not expensive to begin with, it makes the trial and error of discovering your favorites relatively painless." Among brands he recommends are Ruggeri and Nino Franco ("especially the 'Rustico' ").

Fabio Trabocchi, chef of Maestro at the Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, counts himself lucky to have a sommelier at the restaurant whose taste in wine he shares. Sommelier Vincent Feraud buys his own wine for home by the case and splits it with Trabocchi.

"The house white wine I'm serving here at Maestro [ Funtanin Roero Arneis,$13] is what I drink at home, too," Feraud told us. "My wife, Giulia, is from Padova, near Venice, and makes a wonderful pasta with whole clams and tomatoes that we eat with it. A piece of tuna marinated in soy sauce and cooked on the barbecue is also a perfect accompaniment.

"Best of all, it is inexpensive, and when I buy it by the case for Fabio and myself, it's only about $8 a bottle," he says. "If you don't finish it, just put the cork back in, because it is even fine the next day."

At home, Trabocchi adds, "I like to serve this Arneis with a whole sea bass dressed up with olive oil, tomato, garlic, shallots and a little of the wine, and baked. It is the simplest way to cook it, and it makes a moist and enjoyable family feast.

"I don't worry about turning on the oven: I sit outside on the deck and wait," he says. "But you could also serve it with a crudo [Italian-style raw fish] or shucked oysters instead."

When you're a celebrated chef like Trabocchi, Sundays at home on the deck might feature grilled calamari or pasta with grilled lobster. With such meals, he'll reach for one of two favorite crisp whites: Monte Schiavo Verdicchio Classico Superiore "Pallio di San Floriano" ($18) or De Angelis "Lacrima Christi del Vesuvio" Bianco ($17).

About as much cooking as we like to do on a lazy summer day is throwing a steak on the grill. No problem; Lynch has the ideal wine for that, too. "I don't necessarily go lighter with my steak reds in the summer, but I definitely go colder -- even beyond cellar temp," Lynch says. "Serve reds out of the fridge, around 45 degrees, and the heat of the alcohol and tannin are tamped down. The aromatics suffer a bit, but with a big cabernet, zin or malbec, it's not so much about the aromas." Besides, if you're drinking outdoors, your wine will warm soon enough to cellar temperature -- around 55 degrees -- if not higher.

Lynch is keen on aglianico, our own go-to wine with spicy sausage pizza, with his grilled steak or hamburger. "I love the charred edges of aglianico -- the meaty, tarry flavors that are typical of the grape," he says. "Go with Aglianico del Vulture from Basilicata or [Aglianico-based] Taurasi from Campania." He recommends Terredora, Feudi di San Gregorio or Salvatore Molettieri Taurasi.

If you're looking for the pure flavor of sangiovese, Lynch recommends sticking with Chianti Classico over more expensive Riservas, as the latter's flavors are too often obscured by the addition of cabernet sauvignon or merlot, "which just steps all over the grape."

" Isole e Olena Chianti Classico[$20] is a perfect example of what Chianti Classico is supposed to be," Lynch says. "It's a light red that will not be overwhelmed by a steak."

We enjoy prosecco or even rosé champagne with our cured meats. But when it comes to prosciutto, Lynch insists that for him it's "Tocai Friulano all the way: It's the ultimate prosciutto white." He recommends several favorites, including Schiopetto, Livio Felluga and, of course, Bastianich Tocai Friulano ($20), made by his "Vino Italiano" co-author.

Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, the award-winning authors of "What to Drink With What You Eat," can be reached through their Web site,http://www.becomingachef.com, or atfood@washpost.com.