Phil Sexton’s Yarra Valley winery is one of the most innovative in the region. It’s got a lot of tourist appeal, but it’s wines are deadly serious, too. This is a typically elegant, refined red, with fine-grained tannins, subtle pepper spice and plush raspberry and blueberry flavours and a minerally, refreshing finish.
Price Range: £10-£20
2010 Seméli Reserve, Nemea
( £10.95, 14%, The Wine Society )It’s not the easiest grape in the world to love (those tannins can be a little firm, like a Greek version of the Portuguese Baga grape) but Agiorgitiko is that country’s best variety. This is a very fruity example, but it’s still got backbone and acidity behind the chalky red cherry and pomegranate flavours. Make sure you eat this with robust food or cheese.
2013 Le Grand Cros, L'Esprit de Provence, Côtes de Provence, Provence
( £11.49, 13.5%, Noel Young Wines )A pale coloured Provençal blend of Syrah and Grenache that’s just the thing for summer, this has more weight and concentration than many examples of an increasingly popular style. Raspberry fruit, bright acidity and a whiff of Mediterranean herbs all add to the sense of balance here.
2013 Attis, Albariño, Rías Baixas
( £14.49, 12.5%, www.ralphswinecafe.com )Made in a pithy style, this tasty Albariño comes from the Val do Salnés sub-region. Pear, quince and white pepper notes are deftly combined on the palate, supporting good texture and concentration. Tangy and refreshing on the finish, with notes of lemon peel and oyster shell.
NV LS Cherlin, Brut, Champagne
( £18, 12.5%, 31 Dover )A broad, fruity, easy drinking fizz that’s great value at under £20, this combines malty, strawberry fruit flavours with a frothy mousse and chalky minerality. It looks the part, too.
2012 Cullerot, Celler del Roure, Valencia
( £12.99, 13%, Davis Bell McCraith, Tivoli Wines )A highly unusual (possibly unique?) blend of Macabeo, Verdil, Pedro Ximénez and Chardonnay from Valencia of all places, this stylishly packaged, leesy white was made with very little suplhur, but it’s cleaner and fresher than many “natural” wines. Ageing takes place in clay amphorae, rather than oak and the result is all about fruit: apple, pear and a hint of stone fruit with subtle spices.
2010 McGuigan, No 3471 The Shortlist Cabernet Sauvignon, Coonawarra, South Australia
( £15, 13%, Tesco Wine Online )Grassy, elegant and perfumed, this is a lighter style of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, showing notes of graphite, mint and green pepper and refreshing acidity supported by fine tannins. Not a wine to keep, but enjoyable to drink over the next couple of years.
2011 Mas Cal Demoura, L'Infidèle, Languedoc-Roussillon
( £19.90, 14%, Cambridge Wine Merchants, I'Anson Wines )A blend of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Carignan and Cinsault from one of the best terroirs in the Languedoc region of southern France, this is a very stylish wine with a minty edge to it. Smooth, subtle and complex, with refined tannins, sweet blackberry and bramble fruit, subtle oak and refreshing acidity. Balanced, nuanced winemaking.
2012 McGuigan, No 1081 The Shortlist Riesling, Eden Valley, South Australia
( £15, 11.5%, Tesco Wine Online )Lime blossom-scented, toasty Eden Valley Riesling showing some enticing bottle development. Like the rest of The Shortlist range, this provides excellent value for money. Tangy and long on the palate, it’s a very pure, almost transparent expression of the grape.
2011 Domaines Schlumberger, Riesling Les Princes Abbés, Alsace
( £13.99, 12.5%, Majestic )It’s a pleasure to drink an Alsace Riesling made in a dry style like this one. Stony, minerally and unoaked, this is tangy and transparent with appealing bottle development but enough concentration to age for another four to eight years. Great with food.
2007 McGuigan, Semillon Bin 9000, Hunter Valley, New South Wales
( £14, 11%, Tesco Fine Wine )The sort of wine that seems to win medals in its sleep, this Semillon is something of a wine nerd’s white. It’s well priced, especially given its quality, and will age beautifully in bottle, too. Smoky, leesy, waxy and toasty with underlying citrus fruit ping, no apparent oak and a lovely lighthness of touch.
2013 Pazo Barrantes, Albariño, Rías Baixas
( £18.49, 13% )Owned by the same family that makes Marqués de Murrieta in Rioja (they were originally from Galicia). It’s a white pepper scented, bone dry style with plenty of texture and weight on the tongue, showing notes of stone fruit and pear and a crunchy, stony finish.