Saint Péray tends to get overlooked as a source of excellent northern Rhône whites, lost in the shadow of more famous (and expensive) Hermitage and Condrieu. But this pure Marsanne from one of the region’s best known names is delicious: aromatic and floral, with notes of wild herbs and honeysuckle, a touch of oak, hints of fennel and aniseed and a long, stylish, refreshing finish.
Score Range: 91-95
2013 Domaine Les Yeuses, Syrah, Les Epices, IGP Pays d'Oc, Languedoc
( £7.99, 13.5%, Majestic )Is this the best value red in the high street at the moment? It’s certainly the best value Syrah in my view. Yesterday, it was presented with the “Best Red of Show” gong at the Languedoc Roussillon Top 100 Awards in London beating lots of more expensive wines. Wild thyme and rosemary notes, blackberry and bramble fruit, smooth tannins and enough perfume to keep your nostrils twitching for half an hour, this finishes with an intense, savoury flourish.
2014 Maquina & Tabla Blanco, Rueda
( £15.95, 13.5%, Lea & Sandeman )One of an excellent line-up of regional delights from an exciting new Spanish venture, this tastes as good as it looks. Made from biodynamically farmed, old vine Verdejo, it’s a savoury, textured white with subtle oak, tangy acidity and just a hint of oak framing the pear and citrus fruit flavours. Almost Burgundian in terms of weight, concentration and complexity, this is a remarkable Verdejo.
2014 Domaine de la Noblaie Le Temps des Cerises, Chinon, Loire Valley
( £8.95, 13%, The Wine Society )Is Loire Cabernet Franc finally getting the recognition it deserves, partly because of the rise in the grape’s fortunes elsewhere? If so, it’s about time. Where else can you find a wine as complex as this Chinon for under £9? It’s a classically grassy, refreshing red with no apparent oak and remarkable elegance and fruit purity. Drink it chilled, and drink lots of it.
2015 Bellingham The Bernard Series Roussanne, Paarl
( £10, 14%, Sainsbury's )Bellingham’s Roussanne is one of the few stand alone examples of the grape in South Africa, and it’s getting better with every vintage, showing impressive weight, texture and finesse. This deftly-oaked, full-bodied white is rich but not unctuous, with notes of baking spices, citrus and green tea, a hint of tropical fruit sweetness and a grippy, almost tannic finish that works really well with food.
2012 David Reynaud, Beaumont Crozes Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage, Rhône Valley
( £16.33, 12.5%, Liberty Wines )This is my kind of wine. In fact, I could drink a bottle of this almost every day and never get bored. Classic, perfumed Crozes, with violet and rose petal aromas, textured tannins and lovely, gluggable flavours of blackberry, black olive and liquorice. The tannins are silky smooth, the oak beautifully integrated and there’s enough tannin to add some backbone.
2007 Mount Pleasant Cellar Aged Elizabeth Semillon, Hunter Valley
( £14.95-£17.80, 11%, Berry Bros & Rudd, Hedonism, Slurp )Not many white wines age as wll as Hunter Valley Semillon and this is well up to speed, as its haul of medals (plastered all over the front label) testifies. It’s just starting to shift into another gear, developing the toasty notes that are so typical of the style. Refreshing, waxy and taut with custard, honeysuckle and citrus peel notes. Long and satisfying.
2014 The Tea Leaf Chenin Blanc, Piekenierskloof
( £12.49, 14%, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Noel Young Wines, Woodwinters Wines )Sourced from vineyards at 750 metres (which is high for South Africa), this was made by the talented Donovan Rall from the under-rated Piekenierskloof region. Tangy, refreshing and crisp, it’s tauter than some Cape Chenins with apple, pear and herbal notes and a creamy mid palate.
2013 Gerovassiliou, Malagousia Single Vineyard, Epanomi, Greece 2013, Epanomi
( £16.99, 13.5%, Wine Rack )We have Vangelis Gerovassiliou to thank for rescuing the Malagousia grape from obscurity in the 1970s. This comes from his oldest plantings and it’s typically rich, textured and scented, with grapey, musky aromas, flavours of stone fruit and orange peel and a ripe, satisfying finish. At its best with spicy food.
2014 Terre de Gneiss Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, Muscadet Sècre et Maine, Loire Valley
( £19.99, 12%, Carte Blanche )Not many wine writers have the guts to make their own wines, so take a bow Christelle Guibert, my colleague from Decanter for making something as good as this from her native Loire Valley. As the label suggests, it was grown on gneiss soils (in case you were wondering) and was fermented in über trendy concrete eggs. It’s all about old vine texture rather than perfume, owing as much to Burgundy as to the western Loire. Mineral, refreshing and bone dry, this is one of the best Muscadets I’ve ever drunk. Let’s hope this is the first of a range of wines.
2009 Berry Brothers & Rudd Gevrey-Chambertin, Burgundy
( £29.95, 13%, Berry Bros & Rudd )Showing the sweetness and silky drinkability of the 2009 vintage in Burgundy, this Gevrey from the excellent Rossignol-Trapet domaine is one of the best wines in Berrys’ newly-launched own-label selection. Supple, textured and forward, it has aromas and flavours of summer pudding and a hint of savoury oak, underpinned by just the right amount of acidity. So good, you’ll want to drink it now, but this has more stuffing than you think.
2014 Patatsfontein Steen, Montagu
( £29.95, 13.5%, Edgmond Wines )This is my white wine discovery of the year in my recently published South Africa report. Sourced fromthe little-known area of Montagu, it’s a brilliant Chenin Blanc (Steen) made by three friends, including the talented Reenen Boorman of Boschkloof. Formerly sold off to the local co-op, these grapes have produced something remarkable in the first vintage under their own label: saline, textured and mealy with some skin tannins, wax and spice and perfectly judged oak. One of the Cape’s best Chenins.