On hot summer days – we’re due a run of them soon, surely – there’s almost nothing I enjoy more than a glass of chilled Mosel Riesling. This own-label bottling from Peter Mertes is something of a bargain: crisp, perfumed and refreshing with a hint of sweetness, flavours of lime, peach and fresh grapes and a stony, mouth-watering finish. Appealingly light-bodied.
Price Range: £5-£10
2022 Taste the Difference Côtes du Rhône White, Rhône Valley
( £9, 12.5%, Sainbury's )Who needs to age a white wine in oak when it has as much flavour as this southern Rhône blend of Grenache Blanc, 20% Viognier, 12% Roussanne and 10% Marsanne? Honeysuckle, jasmine and ginger aromas segue into a palate that’s light, zesty and refreshing, with peach, lemongrass and wild mountain herb flavours and a bright, appealingly tangy finish.
2021 M&S Found Saperavi, Kakheti
( £10, 13%, Marks & Spencer )If Saperavi were French, it would be one of the world’s most famous red grapes. Instead, Georgia’s premium variety remains something of a secret to most UK wine drinkers. This tasty, toothsome example, sold under Marks & Spencer’s very good Found range, comes from the premium region of Kakheti, where the limestone soils always seem to give the wines a chalky frisson. Plum and damson fruit flavours are supported by protein-friendly tannins and racy acidity.
NV Taste the Difference Cava, Catalonia
( £7.50 until May 14, 11.5%, Sainsbury's )Just the thing if you’re looking for a party fizz – especially at the reduced price until May 14th – this is a Cava made from traditional local grapes, rather than interlopers like Chardonnay. Blending 40% Xarel-lo with 30% each of Macabeo and Parellada, this is a bargain bubbly from Castillo de Perelada, with lots of zip, notes of cream and petrichor, citrus and yellow apple flavours and a hint of sweetness.
2022 Casa Ferreirinha Planalto White Reserva, Douro Valley
( £8.99, 12.5%, Majestic )The Douro Valley may be better known for Port and red table wines, but its whites can offer tremendous quality and value for money too. This brilliant, unoaked blend is a cuvée of seven different local grapes – Arinto, Codega, Godello, Malvasía Fina, Moscatel, Rabigato and Viosinho – from cooler, higher altitude sites. Spicy, pithy and intense, it’s a bright, tangy, seafood friendly number with citrus, lime, white pepper and fennel flavours and a lingering finish. Outstanding value.
2022 The Society's Chinon, The Loire Valley
( £9.99, 13%, The Wine Society )Partly inspired by a line in Peter Pharos’ latest column, I’ve decided to feature a Chinon as my wine of the week. The Loire Valley is one of those under-rated French regions that consistently delivers great value for money, especially for Cabernet Franc and Chenin Blanc lovers. This is a gloriously scented, leafy, unwooded example of the former grape from Famille Bougrier, with crunchy acidity, raspberry and black cherry flavours and top notes of graphite and green herbs. Appealingly juicy.
2020 Tesco Finest Peumo Carmenère, Peumo, Cachapoal Valley
( £8.50, 14%, Tesco )Something of a bargain within the Tesco range, this is a plush, engagingly scented Carmenère from Peumo, considered one of the best regions for the grape in Chile. Judiciously blend with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, it’s appealingly unwooded, with flavours of rocket, dark chocolate and green pepper, supple tannins and enough acidity to freshen the finish.
2021 Pepe Mendoza Mares de Luz Monastrell/Giró, Alicante
( £9.95, 14%, The Wine Society )Pepe Mendoza is Alicante’s most celebrated winemaker, well known for the quality of his reds and whites as well as their outstanding value for money. This lightly wooded cuvée marries equal amounts of Monastrell and the rare Giró grape and is a charming, enticing delight. Aromas of rose petal and Turkish Delight segue into a palate that’s savoury and spicy, all white pepper, thyme and summer berries and a nip of tannin.
2021 Taste The Difference Chardonnay, Trentino
( £9.25, 12.5%, Sainsbury's )There are so many native grapes in Italy that it’s easy to forget that the place makes really smart Chardonnay too. This example from Alpine Trentino is bright, fruity, tangy and refreshing, with a touch of the appealing bitterness that you often find in the country’s whites, citrus, pear and clementine fruit, lots of vibrant acidity and a faint hint of vanilla spice.
2022 Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, Marche
( £7, 13.5%, The Co-op )Basic Italian white wines can be pretty neutral. Indeed, you could argue that blandness is a huge part of Pinot Grigio’s success. But it doesn’t have to be that way. This stylish cuvée of Verdicchio – one of the country’s most characterful white grapes – with 15% Malvasia tastes every bit as good as it looks. Pear, citrus peel and aniseed flavours are supported by lip-smacking acidity, a hint of jasmine and a stony, mineral-etched finish. An incredible bargain.
2022 Paul Mas Réserve Languedoc Blanc, Languedoc-Roussillon
( £9.99, 13%, Waitrose )Jean-Claude Mas is making some of the best wines in the south of France right now and is next to unbeatable for value under £10. This brilliant white blend is a more or less equal cuvée of Vermentino, Marsanne and Grenache Blanc with a splash of Viognier for extra perfume. Lightly but stylishly wooded, it has jasmine and rose petal aromas and a palate that combines flavours of peach, pear and citrus and a twist of Mediterranean herbs.
2022 Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Discovery Collection Fronton, Fronton
( £9, 13% , Sainsbury's )I’m regularly impressed by the Discovery Collection label at Sainsbury’s, as it offers unusual wines at decent prices. This is an unoaked south-west French blend of local Négrette with more widely planted Malbec. Youthful, sappy and refreshing, it has lovely bramble and black cherry fruit flavours, spicy, savoury tannins and the underlying concentration and structure to stand up to the smokiness of a summer barbecue.