This brilliant biodynamic estate is based in the Wachau on the “wrong” side of the Danube, but this wine hails from vineyards in neighbouring Kremstal. It’s an incredible Riesling: intense, focused and minerally with remarkable texture, density and concentration. Honey, white flowers and a stony undertow, with spice, creamy lees and a finish that lasts for minutes. The wine will develop for at least another decade in bottle.
Food Match: Fish
2012 Tesco Finest Tingelup Riesling, Western Australia
( £9.99, 12.4%, Tesco )This isn’t quite the amazing bargain it once was, but it’s still one of the best whites on Tesco’s books, a stylish, finely crafted white from Howard Park. It’s fresh and minerally, with haunting lime-juice and citrus peel flavours and a dry, stony aftertaste. On past perfermance, it will develop well in bottle, too.
2012 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling, Clare Valley, South Australia
( £23, 12.5%, Liberty Wines )Polish Hill is always the tightest and most restrained of Jeffrey Grosset’s wines and that’s the case here, but this excellent dry Riesling seems a little more open than usual. It’s floral and delicate with lovely, minerally acidiity and notes of lime and green apple. Long and complex.
2011 Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio, Friuli Colli Orientali
( £12, 13%, Liberty Wines )Just to prove that I don’t always have it in for Pinot Grigio, this one from Friuli is deliciously drinkable. It’s spicy and intense, with notes of pears and citrus fruit, with a nice undertone of fresh fennel and a zesty bite on the back palate.
2011 Coeur des Anges, Vin de France
( £9.99, 12.5%, Laithwaites )The palest of rosés made from the Sauvignon Gris grape in the south-west of France. The wine is delicate and fragrant, with a touch of green pepper and summer fruits and plenty of crunchy, food-friendly acidity.
2010 Verget, Terroir de Pouilly, Les Combes Vieilles Vignes, Pouilly-Fuissé, Burgundy
( £20, 13%, Oddbins )Comparatively developed for a 2010, but this still has attractive aromas of white flowers and acacia honey, with fresh acidity and good concentration. I’d just like to see a little more zip in its step.
2011 The Society's Verdicchio Dei Castelli di Jesi, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, Marche
( £6.25, 12.5%, The Wine Society )Good value Italian drinking from the Wine Society, made without oak to allow the variety to express itself, this is fresh and zesty with some weight and texture, notes of aniseed and spice and a breezy, zesty finish.
2011 The Society's White Burgundy, Mâcon-Villages, Burgundy
( £7.50, 12.5%, The Wine Society )Hugely quaffable white Burgundy from the southernn end of the region, made without oak but with some lees contact to fatten it out. Peach and pear flavours are underpinned by some carbon dioxide and a lift of acidity.
2009 Château Marsyas, Békaa Valley
( £££, 14.2%, Contact the winery for details )An impressive Lebanese blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, which benefits from the consultancy of Bordeaux’s celebrated Stéphane Derononcourt. The high altitude of the vines (900 metres) is reflected in the freshness of the wine, which has notes of honey and cinnamon, a twist of orange peel and a long, well-balanced aftertaste.
2010 Errazuriz, Max Reserva Chardonnay, Casablanca Valley
( £12.49, 13.5%, Berry Bros & Rudd, The Leamington Wine Company )A comparatively old-fashioned, worked style of Chardonnay, with lots of sweet peach and coconut flavours, but plenty of fresh acidity to keep the whole barrage ballon up in the air. Mealy and slightly sweet, with bags of fruit.
2011 Abadal, Picapoll, Pla de Bages
( £10, 13%, Martinez Wines )Sourced from the Pla de Bages appellation in Catalonia, this is made from the same grape as Picpoul de Pinet, but is somehow weightier and spicier than many French examples. Pear and apple with an undertone of peach, Mediterranean herbs and crunchy, zesty acidity.
2010 Domaine Brocard, Saint Céline, Chablis 1er Cru Mont de Milieu, Burgundy
( £16.99, 12.5%, Sainsbury's )It’s worth paying a little extra to secure a bottle of this special Premier Cru from Domaines Brocard, as it has even more weight and concentration. There’s great texture here, with notes of citrus fruit and fresh cream and a stony, chalky finish. Fantastic value and a brilliant expression of a very good Chablis vintage.