Future Days White 2023

A no-rules white blend of 40% Pinot Gris, 30% Riesling, 15% Arneis and 15% Chardonnay from the King Valley in Victoria's high country, made lo-fi with low preservative levels. Light-bodied and juicy with sun-kissed peaches, crisp apples, melon and a squeeze of lime over a mineral undertow — tropical-hearted, refreshing drinking rather than a contemplation piece.

Konpira Maru began as two mates talking over a beer at the pub. Sam and Al had worked in wine retail, production and education first. Their home base is the Whitlands vineyard high above the King Valley, bought in 2016 and farmed organically on red soil. The stated mission is to make mid-week wines great again, the kind you can open with spaghetti on a Wednesday.

Future Days is the label where that idea runs loosest. The tag line is wine from the back paddock, not the boardroom. It backs small family farms and keeps the methods simple. The Arneis is a Piedmont grape that spent decades out of favour. Here it gets a seat beside three better-known names.

Screw cap, cold, no ceremony. Open it when people drop in unannounced, or for a quiet one on the couch.