Wine writers this week were in a romantic mood — they went on a European holiday to Spain, France and Italy. They used words like beguiling, heartbreak, soulful, beautiful, and intense. Like you, they are probably dreaming of better weather, longer daylight hours and long, luxurious meals al fresco.

The New York Times and Washington Post were both all about Spain this week. The Times lifted our spirits the most, since Eric Asimov and the tasting panel folks focused on a delicious, summery white wine called Rueda. As Asimov says, much of the time with white wines, it’s “pour, serve, drink and forget.” True enough — many white wines are perfectly refreshing and nice, but it is harder to find ones with complexity and memorable flavor (without being over-the-top).

“But what if a wine emerged that fulfilled its obligation to be refreshing and inexpensive, and yet had real character? If you have not already had the pleasure, allow me to introduce you to the Spanish wine Rueda,” Asimov says. This is a terrific article, rich with history about the country and the grapes from this region in the northwest of Spain. The Times tasting panel’s top 10 Ruedas “included nine bottles at $9 to $15,” so we’ll plan on grabbing a bunch of them the next time we take a ride to the good wine store.

Karen and Andrew of The Washington Post did a column on reds from Spain, which are really a slam-dunk. We have yet to meet anyone who has a problem with a decent Rioja; like the country’s people, its wines are extremely likable. Take this list with you on your next wine run, since winter’s last breath is here and it’s a good time to drink some spicy red.

Dottie and John at The Wall Street Journal got, in their own words, “pretty worked up” about Burgundy this week. They’ve commanded us to get to a wine shop ASAP and pick up a 2005 Burgundy. But “Because Burgundy is chopped up into small parcels of land and many producers, it’s impossible to know which you might see” at your local shop. Thankfully, they are serious France experts and they demystify this wine for anyone who feels they don’t know where to begin in the French realm. Nothing in their Dow Jones 2005 Burgundy Index goes beyond $60.

We’ll end our tour in Italy, with writeups in The L.A. Times on Dolcetto and Prosecco. S. Irene Virbila touts this Dolcetto d’Alba, made in Piedmont, which she says is “loaded with ripe, sweet fruit.” We agree with her — Dolcetto is pretty great with just about any food, or by itself.

Really, the same goes for Prosecco, times 10. We’ll drink it anytime, with anything. One Venice native quoted in the L.A. Times piece said, “It is like water for us; we start drinking Prosecco at 10:30 in the morning with a Pellegrino.” The article’s angle is that Prosecco is entering a new phase where it is showing “its serious side.” The wines are improving, and people sipping it at sidewalk cafes are thinking they are pretty hip.

What we liked best in the piece is this information about how the stuff’s made: “Prosecco is built differently than Champagne. Rather than getting its bubbles the way Champagne does, by secondary fermentation in the bottle, Prosecco gets them through the Charmat process,” where “the wine is refermented in large steel containers. This … allows wineries to process wines more or less continuously, rather than only once a year. As a result, you will rarely find vintage-dated Prosecco.” On the cusp of a new season, a bottle of this stuff seems just right. Cin cin!