Sauvignon Blanc with its zesty acidity is in the ascendant while Chardonnay is arguably in retreat. As usual France can deliver many of the least expensive wines, notably Touraine Sauvignon 2023 and Muscadet, although it’s good to see retailers recognising the great value (and real quality) to be found in Portugal, Greece and South Africa. One response to the embarrassing surplus of red wine in south-west France in general and Bordeaux specifically is the second still white wine recommended below, made from dark-skinned Merlot grapes.
As for sparkling wines, I found the supermarkets’ ranges rather predictable but the growing Amathus chain of wine shops has been especially good at seeking out sparkling value. The quality of France’s Crémants, made all over the country in the same way as champagne but with different terroirs and, sometimes, different grape varieties, is increasing every year, and they are generally much less expensive than champagne.
The UK’s new duty regime that is linked to alcoholic strength seems to have encouraged a few wines under 11.5% on which duty is ‘only’ £2.35 rather than the £2.67 for wines between 11.5% and 14.5%. (Duty rises to £3.21 for wines of 15%.) This is all before VAT at 20% is levied.
Sparkling
The Uncommon Bubbly Rosé 2023 England 11.5%
100% Pinot Noir from a certified B Corp with a carbon-positive canning process. Very pale provençal pink and not that bubbly but just the job for portability. Good balance. The best of Waitrose’s canned wines.
£3.74 per 25-cl can Waitrose
Paul Ginglinger, Prestige Extra Brut 2021 Crémant d'Alsace 12.5%
Great-value organic blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc aged on lees in bottle just like champagne.
£15.81 The Wine Society
Regateiro, Aplauso Bruto 2017 Bairrada 12%
Unusual, mature wine based on dark-skinned grapes from Portugal’s answer to the Champagne region. Extremely crisp on the palate with some lemon flavour. Looks good too.
£16 Amathus
Château des Cossé, Réserve du Marquis Brut 2019 Crémant de Loire 12.5%
Based on Chenin Blanc and Chardonnay. Pretty nose with some development. The slight sweetness comes across as something as positive as richness. Appetising finish.
£16.50 Amathus
Bernard-Massard, Cuvée de l'Ecusson Brut Rosé NV Moselle 12.5%
100% Pinot Noir. As delicate a wine as you’d expect from somewhere as far north as Luxembourg. Traditional method. Off dry.
£19 Amathus
Le Vigneron Savoyard NV Crémant de Savoie 12%
From the Chautagne co-op, another good-value fizzy find by Amathus. Light, but quite intriguing, alpine nose. Very pretty and lightly floral. Afternoon wine?
£21.50 Amathus
Caves Transmontanas, Vértice Bruto 2019 Douro 12.5%
The Davies of Napa Valley’s Schramsberg were originally involved in this. Really substantial, serious wine – for the table?
£24 Amathus
Jean de Foigny, Brut Premier Cru NV Champagne 12.5%
Bargain champagne from Castelnau. Relatively simple but it has the magic word on the label. Slightly astringent, sudden finish.
£24.31 The Wine Society
No 1 Family Estate, Blanc de Blancs NV Marlborough 12.5%
NZ fizz pioneer Champenois Daniel Le Brun’s family venture. Clean and lightly soapy on the nose but really substantial on the palate. Well done!
£28.50 Amathus
A Bergère, Blanc de Blancs Solera Brut NV Champagne 12%
50% 2021 and 50% older Chardonnays from a solera dating back to 2013. Some oak and bone dry. A pure aperitif style with some depth and length.
£47 Amathus
Leclerc-Briant Réservé Brut NV Champagne 12%
Organic and biodynamic and brimming with interest. A rewarding wine that happens to sparkle rather than standard-issue champagne.
£50 Berry Bros & Rudd
Laurent-Perrier, Grand Siècle No 26 NV Champagne 12%
Hugely successful version of this house’s de luxe blend of wines from the celebrated 2012 vintage with 2008 and a smidgin of 2007 gaining complexity but not a trace of heaviness from a full 10 years on lees in their cool, dark cellars. Laurent-Perrier is the first champagne house to be granted a royal warrant by King Charles III.
£180 Waitrose Cellar (online only) and elsewhere
Still, dry whites
Shallow Bay Chardonnay 2023 Western Cape 14%
Thanks to its slightly honeyed character, this tastes almost more like a Chenin Blanc, South Africa’s most-planted vine variety, than a Chardonnay but it’s a very acceptable wine for the price.
£6.75 Tesco
Black & Wine, Blanc de Noirs 2023 IGP Atlantique 11.5%
An answer to Bordeaux’s red-wine surplus: a white wine from Merlot grapes made by a group of 10 co-ops in Entre-Deux-Mers and Duras. Good fruit and an enterprising initiative preferable to pulling out vines.
£7.95 The Wine Society
Kintonis, G & L Malagousia 2023 PGI Peloponnese 11.5%
Great value from Greece. A fine introduction to this leafy-but-fruity variety. Not for ageing but very good for early drinking. Admirably light bottle.
£8.95 The Wine Society
Calvet, Cuvée du Cap Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Bordeaux 11%
From the heartland of Bordeaux misery (Entre-Deux-Mers), this bone dry wine should please those looking for half-price-or-less Sancerre. Obviously it doesn’t have as much subtlety on the mid palate but would be a clean, refreshing drink in midsummer.
£8.99 Waitrose
Calçada, LB7 2023 Vinho Verde 10%
Very pale with lots of spritz. Slightly sweetened up but not aggressively so. More interesting than most apple juice. And very useful for alcohol-watchers.
£8.99 Majestic
Castel 2022 Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 12%
Not showy but very satisfying and persistent for fans of Muscadet who want immediate pleasure. Bring on the oysters …
£9 Tesco
Fournier, The Pebble Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Touraine 12.5%
Very obviously Loire Sauvignon and friendlier than many a wine from a fancier appellation though definitely not a cellar candidate.
£9.50 Tesco
Plaimont, Grande Cuvée Tradition 2020 St-Mont 12.5%
Beautifully intriguing blend of grapes from south-west France with real presence in the mouth and it goes on and on. Fabulous value.
£9.50 Tesco
Amandla, Our Future Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Greater Cape 12.5%
From the admirable Bosman outfit and made by Praisy Dlamini. Attractive punchy green fruit. Zesty and salivatory. Good attack!
£9.50 Tesco
Saget La Perrière, La Perrière Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Touraine 13%
Another bargain from well downriver of Sancerre.
£9.99 Waitrose
A A Badenhorst, The Curator 2023 Coastal Region 13%
Chenin Blanc plus Chardonnay and Viognier equals value. Rich but not sweet.
£9.99 Waitrose
De Martino Organic Sauvignon Blanc 2022 Maipo 13%
Sleek, sophisticated, bone-dry Chilean Sauvignon with real structure and persistence. Great value.
£10.99 Waitrose
Domaine de la Tourmaline 2023 Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 13%
Real bite and salinity. Seriously sappy and refreshing. Proper, persistent wine that vibrates in the mouth.
£11.29 Majestic
District 7 Chardonnay 2021 Monterey 13.5%
Unmistakeably California (popcorn) on the nose, but with quite enough zest on the palate. A great buy sniffed out by buyer Sarah Knowles MW.
£12.95 The Wine Society
von Kesselstatt, Niedermenniger Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett 2022 Saar 9.5%
The touch of sweetness is a delight in this Riesling. Precise balance, and wonderful delicacy and transparency. Amazing value for a wine that will surely continue to grow in stature and interest for many a long year.
£12.95 The Wine Society
Domäne Wachau Grüner Veltliner Federspiel 2022 Wachau 12%
Fun and mouth-filling with masses of dill pickle, white pepper and freshness. Bargain example of Austria’s signature grape.
£13 Tesco
South By South West, Treeton Chenin Blanc 2022 Margaret River 12.5%
Quite complex and a welcome addition to what Western Australia has to offer. Quite saline – not the honey of South African and Loire Chenins – but well balanced and not overpriced.
£13.95 The Wine Society
Stellenrust, Stellenbosch Manor Barrel Fermented Chenin Blanc 2022 Stellenbosch 14%
Old vines and imperceptible oak influence adds up a sophisticated wine worth ageing. An alternative to white burgundy?
£15 Tesco
Tyrrell’s, Brookdale Semillon 2022 Hunter Valley, New South Wales 11%
Already approachable example of a low-alcohol Australian classic. Perfect for summer.
£15 Tesco
55 Malbec, Zaha La Consulta Semillon 2021 Uco Valley 13.5%
Confusingly named Argentine producer makes this distinctive, full-bodied dry white from 50-year-old vines. Well worth trying and, probably, ageing too.
£17.50 The Wine Society
Domaine Rostaing, Puech Noble Blanc 2021 Languedoc 13.5%
Blend of Vermentino, Grenache Blanc and Viognier that’s much fresher and tenser than most Languedoc whites, presumably thanks to a hefty proportion of Vermentino, sorry Rolle as it now has to be called outside Italy. From Rostaing of the northern Rhône.
£22.50 Berry Bros & Rudd
Dom Pierrette et Marc Guillemot-Michel, Quintaine 2022 Viré-Clessé 13.5%
A white burgundy at last! And biodynamic to boot, showing that wild-flower thing that many biodynamic wines have. Pizzazz, glamour and quite a bargain for burgundy!
£24 The Wine Society
Sweet whites
Bersano, Monteolivo 2023 Moscato d'Asti 5.5%
Good example of the refreshing, grapey, lightly sparkling wine style from Piemonte that’s one of the few to benefit from the new UK alcohol duty regime that’s linked to alcoholic strength. The late Michael Broadbent would have loved it.
£9.99 Waitrose Cellar (online only)
Mendel, Late Harvest Petit Manseng 2022 Paraje Altamira 11.5%
Andean answer to Jurançon? Great balance and super-clean. Golden-syrup sweet but not sickly.
£14.95 per 50 cl The Wine Society
Tesco Finest Sauternes 2016 13.5%
From the family Dumon who own Château Bêchereau du Ruat in Bommes. Delicious now with some noble rot/botrytis evident. Horribly cheap – for the future of Sauternes.
£13.50 per half Tesco
Disznókő, 1413 Édes Szamorodni 2021 Tokaj 13%
Hungary’s famous elixir. As sweet and tangy as lime marmalade. Creamy texture and lots of botrytis. Very easy to like.
£21.99 per 50 cl Waitrose Cellar (online only)
Full tasting notes, scores and suggested drinking dates in our tasting notes database. For international stockists, see Wine-Searcher.com.
Image credit Klaus Vedfelt via Getty Images.
