Etna in north-east Sicily is better known for its reds than whites, but the best examples of the latter, made from the local grape Carricante, can be spectacular, somewhere between a Burgundian Aligoté and a top Soave in style. This is totally unoaked, but draws richness from six months of lees’ ageing. Stony and intense, with notes of lime, fennel and lemon juice, steely, palate-cleansing acidity and a mineral tang. Best drunk with the Mediterranean sun on your face, but it’ll cheer you up in winter too.
Wine Type: White
2023 Vito Mameli Grillo, Sicily
( £8.99, 12.5%, Majestic )Co-operatives don’t come much bigger than the Cantina Europa in western Sicily, but this wine proves that, assuming the winemaking is up to snuff, size can work to your advantage, giving you access to grapes grown by 2,000 members, This is fresh, spicy and savoury with notes of sea breeze and wild flowers on the nose and a palate of citrus, quinine and fresh herbs.
2021 Manda Huevos Carramainas, Calatayud
( £15, 13.2%, The Wine Society )Norrel Robertson MW, known as the Escocés Volante (Flying Scotsman), is making some of the most distinctive wines in northern Spain right now. Manda Huevos – Spanish slang for “no way!” – is a remarkable, barrel-fermented cuvée of Macabeo and 5% Garnacha Blanca from an 85-year-old vineyard at 850 metres in Calatayud. Creamy, spicy and stylishly wooded, it has notes of beeswax and citrus zest, stony intensity and a hint of vanilla spice.
2023 Lyrarakis Orange Wine, Crete
( £11.99, 13%, Majestic )A wine to sip while you’re reading Peter Pharos’ article about Crete last week, this is my kind of orange wine. Made from a judicious cuvée of Assyrtiko and Vidiano, it has the freshness of its 500-metre site in Heraklion, subtle tangerine, quince and lemon zest flavours, a hint of quinine bitterness and a tapering finish. Appealingly versatile with food.
2021 Invincible Número Dois, Douro
( From £18.74, 12.5%, Dionysus Wines, Givino, Heritage Cellars, Majestic, Philglass & Swiggot )The Douro Valley is mostly red wine (and Port) territory, but its whites can be brilliant too, as long as the site is cooler and at altitude. That’s the case with Rita Marques’ brilliant assemblage of local varieties, dominated by Rabigato, Arinto and Códega de Larinho. Aromas of saffron, fennel and wet stones segue into a palate that has lovely granitic minerality, layers of citrus zest, lime and wild thyme and a mouth-watering finish.
2020 Samartzis Dío Potámia Kontoura Barrique, Thiva
( £16.50, 12.5%, Tanners )A brilliant new find by one of the the UK’s best wine merchants, this is a pure Kontoura from vines in the Valley of the Muses north-west of Athens, made by ex-pharmacist Panos Samartzis. Surprisingly rich and textured for a wine with just 12.5% alcohol, it has aromas of beeswax and toast, lots of racy acidity, lemongrass and yellow apple flavours and a stony finish. The oak is especially well integrated. Outstanding value for money.
2023 M&S Expressions Marsanne, Voor Paardeberg
( £9, 13.5%, Marks & Spencer, Ocado )Outside the northern Rhône, Marsanne is rarely bottled as a stand alone grape. But it’s found an exciting new home in the Voor Paardeberg region of the Western Cape. This unwooded, lees-aged example is made by the talented Trizanne Barnard. Aromas of honeysuckle and anise guide you into palate of pear, peach and lemon zest complemented by plenty of zip and acidity.
2023 Eidosela Albariño, Rías Baixas
( £12.99, 12.5%, Waitrose )I sampled this good value Albariño in a large line-up at the Consejo Regulador in Pontevedra this week and it really stood out. Sourced from the warmer Condado do Tea region – but tasting more like a white from the cooler, more Atlantic Salnés Valley – it’s crisp, tangy and focused, with jasmine, beeswax and wet stone aromas, plenty of mouth-watering acidity and flavours of passion fruit and lime.
2022 Tesco Finest Steep Slopes Mosel Riesling, Mosel Valley
( £7.25, 11%, Tesco )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.
2022 Taste the Difference Grüner Veltliner, Traisental
( £11, 12.5%, Sainsbury's )It always strikes me as something of a coup by Sainsbury’s to get top Austrian winemaker Marks Huber to produce their own-label Grüner Veltliner. Gloriously pure and perfumed, this has classic white pepper and bay leaf aromas, a palate of pear, peach and green apple, some extra texture from three months on lees in tank and plenty of racy, crunchy acidity. A delicious summer white.
2022 Laurent Miquel Lieu-Dit La Vérité Viognier, Pays d'Oc
( £19.99, 14.5%, Waitrose Cellar )I have to admit that I often find Viognier a one glass wine, but Laurent Miquel’s La Vérité from a special parcel on one of his Languedoc estates is the kind of thing I could drink by the case. Intense, textured, creamy, yet refreshing, it has aromas of honeysuckle and vanilla, a toasty top note from ageing in new French barrels, layers of peach, citrus zest and apricot and enough acidity to keep the palate barrelling along.
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.