Happily for us wine shoppers, the supermarket 25% off wine promotions come along with increasing regularity. It used to be that you’d only see them in advance of national holidays – Easter and Christmas, for instance – but now they seem to be running as often as they’re not running! And 25% is a significant saving, so it makes sense to take advantage and pick out six bottles to enjoy.

You might imagine that a Decanter editor would have no need to buy wine, but in fact I regularly pick up a few bottles while I’m grocery shopping. Not at the Express outlets, where the wine selection is extremely limited and invariably uninspiring – and the prices inflated – but at the larger branches where there’s room to stock more than lowest common denominator wines.

Spoiled for choice

The choice on offer at my local Tesco Extra is impressive – and probably overwhelming to some. So how do I, as the editor of a wine magazine for the last 25 years, whittle down my choice to six wines? How do I bring my expert knowledge to bear?

The last time I took advantage of the promotion was in mid-May. I was specifically looking for whites and / or rosés to enjoy during the warmer weather that I knew was on the way. (And indeed temperatures rose to 35˚C.)

I was looking for everyday-drinking wines, at the lower end price wise, but wines that would offer maximum bang for buck – let’s say at around the £10 to £15-a-bottle mark. You’re not going to find any great complexity at this level, but I wanted to avoid the kind of commodity wines that are typically found on the lower shelves, often with noticeable residual sugar, and lacking in any kind of regional character.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores for Amy's six picks

Supermarket wine guides on Decanter.com

The first step – a step that any Tesco shopper can take – was to consult Decanter.com, naturally. Decanter’s in-house tasting team reviews the UK supermarket wine ranges at least twice yearly, and it’s a great shortcut to some interesting bottles, if you’re in a hurry.

Even with my expert knowledge, it’s useful to see the wines that my colleague Natalie Earl picked out for her regular ‘best of Tesco’ round-up. Any wine rated at 89 or 90 points and above would warrant my consideration. You’ll only be able read full tasting notes if you’re a Decanter Premium subscriber (great value at only £99/yr!), but even non-subscribers can see the wine names and scores.

Three of my six purchases were recommended by Natalie in her current selection: the Nepenthe Gruner Veltliner, the 2 banks winery Assyrtiko/Malagousia blend (singled out as her value white of the bunch) and the Finest Viñas del Rey Albariño.

I have tasted the Albariño before and we regularly recommend it on Decanter.com. Tesco’s Finest range is typically a safe bet if you’re looking for well-made and good-value wines, and this particular wine is a consistent performer from vintage to vintage – so a safe choice. Plus a strong 91-point score.

Nepenthe is a well-respected Aussie name, and I liked the idea of trying a cool-climate (Adelaide Hills) New World Gruner. A screwcap closure on this style of wine is another plus point for me, not so much because I fear faults with wines under cork – cork is a far more reliable closure these days than it used to be – but because it helps to keep youthful, aromatic styles of wine vibrant and singing.

Lastly, I adore Greek wine (hence two in my final selection) and so the Assyrtiko/Malagousia blend, again under screwcap, was an easy pick. It’s smartly packaged and the blend of those two grapes can work very well, the Malagousia being all about fruit and aromatics, while Asssyrtiko adds more weight, structure and sometimes minerality.

Sauvignon Blanc decisions

Moving on to the wines I chose beyond Natalie’s recommendations, the first wine I looked for was a New World Sauvignon Blanc. I went through a long phase of never buying or choosing to drink Sauvignon Blanc, but have recently come back to it from time to time, especially in warmer seasons when I’m often not looking for rich and buttery whites. Tesco has some very good Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs at higher price points – the Smith & Sheth Cru, for instance, but I wasn’t looking to spend £20 on a single bottle.

At the value price point, I often turn to cooler-climate Chile over Marlborough. It’s a generalisation, but Marlborough Sauvignons are often more pungent and tropical in style (with the exception of wines from Awatere, maybe), and more inclined to have noticeable residual sugar at lower price points, which is exactly what I don’t want from this crisp and refreshing style. I always avoid Sauvignon Blanc from Chile’s Central Valley, as it’s a warmer region and I’d rather go for a marginal, cooler-climate area. So my attention naturally turns to Aconcagua, in the north of Chile, the centre of cool-climate Sauvignon Blanc.

Chile's cool side

There’s a good choice at Tesco. Its own Finest Valle de Leyda Sauvignon Blanc is a good buy at £9, and the Luis Felipe Edwards (LFE) Gran Reserva Sauvignon Blanc (£10) is another well-made pick from Leyda (a sub-region of Aconcagua). In fact Luis Felipe Edwards makes the Tesco Finest wine, so there’s not much to choose between them.

In the end though, I plumped for Errazuriz’s Reserva Estate Sauvignon Blanc, also from Aconcagua. It was on offer when I bought it, and offer prices apply in addition to the 25% off, taking this wine down to around £7.50 – a steal at that price. I visited Errazuriz many years ago, and walked among its cool-climate vineyards. Its president and owner Eduardo Chadwick won Decanter’s Hall of Fame Award back in 2018, and it is a quality-driven operation, at all price levels.

Next I wanted to pick up a bottle of rosé. So what am I looking for in a value rosé? Not necessarily the palest colour – paler doesn’t equal better, and actually I often really enjoy rosés of a deeper hue with exuberant and juicy fruit flavours (like some of the Navarra rosés, for instance).

The Arbousset Tavel rosé (£13) is one of its darkest in the Tesco line-up, and is always a good buy, but I wanted to try something new. So I couldn’t resist picking out the Dianthos rosé, made from one of my all-time favourite grape varieties, Xinomavro. It’s a grape that displays delicious strawberry character and often a hint of tomato in red wines, so I was curious to discover this rosé expression.

Viognier dilemma

So we’re up to five bottles. One left to qualify for the 25% off. I reached for a Paul Mas Viognier from the south of France, as I’ve enjoyed Paul Mas whites in the past – the Grenache Blanc-based whites in particular. But then I spotted next to it a wine I wasn’t familiar with, the Tesco Finest Viognier – £1 cheaper, also French. Which to go for? I stood there for at least five minutes examining the labels, trying to make my mind up.

The Finest wines are usually good, and this one was made by a talented winemaker, Julie Rouffignac (she also makes the Tavel rosé mentioned above). Not much in the price difference, both from the south of France, and both the same alcohol, 13%. It was the Paul Mas that ended up in my trolley, primarily because it is a single-vineyard wine, which usually indicates a level of quality.

Out of curiosity, I later requested a sample of the Finest Viognier from Tesco’s PR company and tasted the two wines side by side. Both are decent wines, but I felt satisfied that I had made the right choice – the Paul Mas was riper and slightly richer, with more of the textural weight that I look for in Viognier.

The final selection

I hope it’s reassuring that even those of us with wine knowledge still take their time in the wine aisles – and that it’s possible to buy six perfectly enjoyable bottles for everyday drinking for just over £50.

Lastly, a note on vintages: in general, when shopping for crisp, fresh whites and rosés at the value end for immediate consumption, I’ll look for the youngest possible vintage. All these wines, with the exception of the Greek white, were from 2025. Sometimes these styles will gain in interest over a couple of years, but these are not wines designed for cellaring and will often lose some of their vibrancy as they age.

The six picks: five whites and a rosé for summer

Tasting notes and scores from Amy Wislocki and other Decanter Editors. Prices shown are full RRPs, before any discount is applied

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I f you’re anything like me – and if you’re in the northern hemisphere – you’ll have spent the past few months warming body and soul against the cold, dark and damp with red wines from the deeper, richer end of the spectrum.

Right now, though, with that first, almost-ticklish warmer breeze filling the air with birdsong and blossomy scents, the wines that have the most compelling claim on my attention are almost always white.

Scroll down for 20 value recommendations perfect for spring

So what do I typically look for in a spring white?

Energy for one thing; freshness, too, and a difficult-to-define feeling that I’ll call ‘flow’.

Technically speaking, that comes down to the level of acidity, and the more mouthwatering the better – although the accompanying flavours and textures will depend, as ever, on what I’m eating and just how ‘spring-like’ the weather really is.

Spring's wine timeline

On those first warm, sunny afternoons, the verdant charms of classic unoaked Sauvignon Blanc seem almost irresistible – so, too, the quicksilver pulse of Riesling and the fresh white peach and Atlantic salt spray of Albariño.

But earlier in the season, with the nights still cool, I’ll be looking for more substance, to go with my creamy-sauced fish or chicken, some fleshier stone fruit and pithy texture, too.

Two barrel-aged styles come to mind: oak-aged Chardonnay, and Sauvignon paired with Semillon in the classic Bordeaux-style white blend – both of which, it seems to me, provide the perfect segue from winter into spring.

20 vibrant spring whites to add to your list:

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Every month, Lidl launches a new ‘Wine Tour’ focusing on a different theme.

Operating on a ‘when it's gone, it's gone’ model, you'll need to get in quick if you want to get the best wines on the discount retailer's shelves.

Below we've picked out the three wines to grab this month, plus two more from their core range which is available year-round.

The Nero di Troia from Puglia offers comfort and sunshine in equal measure; a great BBQ pick.

While April's theme is Italy, it's hard to resist the captivating mandarin, apricot and white peach flavours of the Orange Sunset from France.

And the Falanghina, a grape native to Campania, makes for a delicious white that's a bit off the beaten track.

Meanwhile, the two core wines I've picked out are a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and a Chablis – reliable styles perfect for enjoying with friends when paired with salads, fish, or simply conversation.

Grab these while you can

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Australia Day, marked on 26 January each year, commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet in Australia in 1788, and the raising of the British flag at Sydney Cove by Captain Arthur Phillip. This official national day is an opportunity to acknowledge the country’s complex history – and for wine lovers it’s a chance to drink Australian.

The current crop of Aussie bottles on the supermarket shelves delivers plenty of choice and great quality.

As you might expect, classic Australian styles and regions are well represented. For example, you can find great Clare Valley Rieslings at Sainsbury’s and Tesco that are ‘fantastic value for money’.

Sainsbury’s also has a pair of new Australian Chardonnays that are worth seeking out: a stylish Margaret River bottling with sea-breeze freshness from Vasse Felix and Wakefield’s South Australian Chardonnay, packed with ripe golden apple and peach (both available in-store only).

Classic reds for winter drinking

If you prefer reds, head to Waitrose. The own-label Waitrose No1 Seven Generations Shiraz is made by respected family producer Langmeil and is a ‘poised and polished’ Barossa Shiraz at a very decent price (£14).

There are more big names at Sainsbury’s, where you can buy Penfolds Bin 8, a deeply flavoured red from one of the masters of that truly original Aussie style: the Shiraz-Cabernet blend. It’s ideal for chilly winter evenings.

There’s plenty more for Cabernet Sauvignon fans to enjoy, with appealing bottles from Western Australia. Top Margaret River winery Xanadu has its Point Break Cab on sale at Tesco and also makes the M&S own-label Yarri-Karri Cabernet that’s available in-store or online via Ocado.

Discover something new

Some retailers have also done a great job of tapping into the current trends in Australian wine and adding bottles to their shelves that might not be what you expect from Australia.

At Tesco you can find Nepenthe’s Dolcetto, a gluggable berry-and-cherry take on the native Italian grape. It’s just one example of how Italian varieties are finding a new home Down Under, with grapes such as Fiano and Sangiovese finding new expression in the southern hemisphere.

Austria’s Grüner Veltliner also makes an appearance in the Aussie selection at Tesco. While ‘The Best’ range at Morrison’s includes a delicious Botrytis Semillon, made by De Bortoli in Riverina, New South Wales.

Whatever you choose to buy, enjoy your taste of Australia this January.

Best Australian buys on the high street

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• Wines of the Year 2025: Australia
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Light up your dinner table with zingy fizzes and sophisticated Chardonnay and Pinot made closer to home. Here is a shopping list curated from our favourite English and Welsh wines tasted recently.

Our highlights

From a Panel Tasting on vintage sparkling wines, a regional profile of Hampshire and an East Anglia vineyard guide, to a discovery feature on Welsh wines – last year we have taken you on a journey around the United Kingdom to unearth the best bottles the nation has to offer. And here’s a listing of the top scorers:

Vintage English sparkling wine panel tasting

• Chapel Down, Kit’s Coty Coeur de Cuvée Extra Brut 2016 – 97pts
• Gusbourne Estate, 51 Degrees North Brut 2016 – 95pts
• Leonardslee Wine Estate, Reserve Brut 2021 – 95pts
• Wiston Estate, Blanc de Noirs Brut 2018 – 95pts
• Louis Pommery England, Blanc de Blancs Brut 2020 – 95pts
• Bee Tree by Sugrue, Pinot Meunier Rosé Brut 2019

Hampshire regional profile

• Hambledon Vineyard, Blanc de Blancs NV – 95pts
• Hattingley Valley, Kings Cuvée 2017 – 95pts

The surprise finds from Wales

• White Castle Vineyard, Sparkling White 2022 – 93pts
• Velfrey Vineyard, Vintage Sparkling Wine 2022 – 92pts
• Ancre Hill Estates, Chardonnay 2023 – 92pts

It’s also worth mentioning that wines from the UK had a fantastic yield at this year’s Decanter World Wine Awards. ‘The Trouble With Dreams’ 2009 from Sugrue South Downs was among the ‘Best in Shows’ – the top accolade of the world’s largest wine competition, followed by Platinum winners, Bluestone‘s Blanc De Noirs Brut 2019 and Digby Fine English‘s Rosé Brut 2018.

Below we’ve added more recommendations fresh from recent trade tastings. For reliable gifting options, opt for Nyetimber‘s top cuvée, the 1086, as well as Langham Wine Estate‘s Blanc de Noir 2019. But for a more affordable, crowd-pleasing fizz, Flint Vineyard‘s Charmat Rosé is an absolute delight.

The beautiful still wines from Crouch Valley of Essex are also worth a special mention. Try ‘The Cut’ 2023 from The Heretics for a sophisticated and elegant Chardonnay. The layered Pinot Noirs from Danbury Ridge and Missing Gate Vineyard won’t dissappoint either.

The rise of English still wines

In 2025, WineGB reported a 3% increase in the sale of wines from the UK compared to 2023, despite a challenging market ( WineGB 2025 industry report). Still wines achieved 10% growth in volume year-on-year, outpacing sparkling wines.

By 2024, Britain had 4,841 ha under vine, with 3,763 ha in active production, alongside a total of 1,100 registered vineyards and 238 wineries. The two leading wine-producing regions were Kent, with 1,239 ha, and West Sussex, with 671 ha.

A total of 10.7 million bottles of wine were produced in Great Britain in 2024 – around half of the record 21.6 million bottles produced in 2023 – due to challenging climatic conditions during the vintage. Still wines accounted for 31% of production, up from 21% in 2023.

Chardonnay (1,498 ha), Pinot Noir (1,370 ha) and Pinot Meunier (411 ha) remained the most widely planted grape varieties. Meanwhile, cool-climate grapes such as Bacchus (334 ha), Seyval Blanc (123 ha) and Solaris (117 ha) are increasingly valued for their ability to produce high-quality still wines.

Best English wines to try this spring

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Vintage English sparkling wine: Panel tasting results

Growth of English and Welsh still wine sales outpaces sparkling

Expert’s choice: Ageing English fizz

Alongside new vintages of its core range, Tesco introduced 39 entirely new wines to its spring offering, many of which are at the cheaper end.

We’ve picked out a curated selection of the wines to look out for during your next shop.

Although there have been a few esoteric additions – a tasty sparkling Vinho Verde and a Romanian Merlot, for example – the current range gives a sense of returning to comfortable classics.

Coming in hot is a slew of new Bordeaux wines (ranging between £8-£30) worth checking out, and the brilliant new addition of Balfour’s Blanc de Blancs sparkling English wine at £26.

If I was dashing into Tesco to pick up a bottle for an impromptu spring picnic, I’d grab the Nepenthe Grüner Veltliner from Australia's Adelaide Hills – it’s zingy, with loads of citrus flavour and great freshness.

In a hurry? Here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet:

Best Tesco wine buys: top picks on the shelves right now

The recommendations that follow are new wines and new vintages tasted by Decanter's Natalie Earl at Tesco’s spring/summer 2026 press tasting in London.

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It’s always a joy attending Morrisons’ seasonal trade tasting at Foyles in London. As the pianist jazzed away, we browsed the supermarket’s own The Best range in search of bottles that not only offer excellent value, but also provide convincing snapshots of both grape and place. We also explored the newly released Block Series, which aims to deliver a little extra typicity and sophistication.

For this season, reliable sparklers such as The Best Crémant de Limoux and La Gioiosa Prosecco – at just above £10 – are easy no-brainers to counter the heat, or to add sparkle to your summer cocktails.

Seek out the Pecorino, Verdicchio, Côtes de Gascogne Rosé and Primitivo Blush from The Best range for serious thirst quenchers under £10.

I’ve also included a few chill-proof reds – such as The Best Dão, The Best Douro Superior Reserva and Criadores de Rioja’s Anciano No 3 (at less than £6!), which boast juicy dark fruits and soft tannins.

For more generous fruit and a touch more sophistication, opt for The Best Block Series 002 Dillons Point Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough for white, and Antonin Rodet’s Grande Sélection Pinot Noir from the Loire and Les Clés de la Tour’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape blend on the red side.

In a hurry? Here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet:

See notes and scores for the finest from Morrisons' new season

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There weren’t an awful lot of new additions in the line-up of 111 wines at Asda’s latest tasting. A sign of retrenchment after a few years of steady improvement under the thoughtful stewardship of the wine department’s senior manager for sourcing, Clive Donaldson, perhaps?

Maybe, but Asda still offers plenty of interest for wine buyers on a budget, with several wines offering outstanding value for their category and pricepoint.

Many of the best buys can be found at those distinctively specific Asda pricepoints of £6.97 and £6.98 – that’s where you’ll find, among others, such clever buys as the Wine Atlas Garda Sparkling Brut, Asda Extra Special Douro, Asda Extra Special Carmenère, and the flat-out bargain buy that is the Exceptional by Asda Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon.

A little more expensive, but no less impressive on a pound-for-pound basis, are the Exceptional by Asda Great Western Shiraz from Victoria (£8.77) and the tangy De Botrytis Semillon dessert wine from New South Wales (£7.97). Both these Australians would be welcome standby bottles for, respectively, roast-and-all-the-trimmings and the cheese board over the Christmas period,.

The Extra Special Marqués Reserva and Gran Reserva, meanwhile, are as ever among the most satisfyingly soft, savoury and mature examples of Rioja around for their respective £8.07 and £12.19 pricepoints.

When it comes to new wines, a pair from the Stellenbosch stalwart Stellenrust stood out for their brightness: both the Mason’s Kloof Sauvignon Blanc and, especially, the Mason’s Kloof Chenin Blanc are more than worth their £9.97 price tag, while the discreetly stylish dry Italian white from the Lugana DOC near Lake Garda, a long term favourite in the Asda range, is as ever a lovely wine that offers far more fragrance and subtle concentration than its £11.42 pricetag would generally provide.

The best Asda wines to buy this season:

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• Waitrose – Best buys this autumn
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• Best Sainsbury’s wines to try

There’s a lot to enjoy in the Waitrose wine aisle right now, even if the distance between what has traditionally been the poshest of UK supermarket wine ranges and those of its bigger rivals is less pronounced than it’s ever been.

Bridging the affordability gap

Like its peers, Waitrose is making efforts to bridge the affordability gap created by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, with regular Wine Lover Weeks, which offer customers six bottles for the price of five (or, in a trial earlier this month, four for the price of three). And, in the run-up to Christmas, the continuation of its popular £10 Fine Wine promotion, the best of which (from Beaujolais and St-Emilion to Australian sparkling and Argentine Malbec) we’ve highlighted in the pick of 25 wines featured below.

The sweet spot

Although the sub-£10 trio we’ve also picked out here – a sunny southern Portuguese addition to the reliably interesting and good-value Lost & Found range, a fragrant Italian Moscato, and a typically punchy-for-the-money Spanish Garnacha – deserve special mention in this context, this is a retailer that has never confused the genuinely good value with the merely cheap, and many of the best buys here sit in a sweet spot around £15.

Wines such as the winter-warming reds offered by stalwart Barossa Valley producer Langmeil and Domaine Boutinot in Cairanne in the Southern Rhône; the blistering McLaren Vale Riesling of d’Arenberg; or the very fine new Fino Sherry from Alvaro Domecq all punch well above their price points.

Aim higher

For space reasons, we’ve kept this review focused on the core range of Waitrose wines stocked in its 300-odd stores, but it’s worth keeping an eye on the online-only Waitrose Cellar , which is home to some of the retailer’s smartest wines, including a highlight of the tasting: the immensely satisfying and, given the quality, outstanding value (£34) 2021 Rubicon from the historic Stellenbosch estate, Meerlust (96 points).

Waitrose & Partners: top buys this autumn and winter

 All bottle prices are correct at time of publication and do not reflect special or multi-buy offers. Wines are grouped by style and ordered by score, in descending order. 

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The Co-op’s latest press tasting showcased a line-up of around 70 wines, an eclectic selection that inevitably majored on options for the spring and summer season, with fizz, whites and rosés the main focus. One advantage that Co-op offers over other supermarkets – a particular bonus as the weather gets warmer – is that its entire white and rosé selection is refrigerated in store, so your choice isn't limited if you're looking to grab a chilled bottle for opening immediately.

What were the highlights of the tasting? First and foremost, a strong showing at the value end, with a plethora of well-made wines that would have wide appeal priced at under or around the £10 mark. This includes many under Co-op's 'Irresistible' own label, such as the Prosecco, which you'll find in pretty much all 2,500 UK stores; the Assyrtiko from northern Greece; and the peach-scented Viognier from the Languedoc.

Moving on to red wines, the smartly packaged Al Fresco, a Navarra Garnacha, is a clear winner for summer sipping, an easy drinking, fruit-driven red with sour cherry and strawberry flavours – chill it briefly before serving. From Portugal, the 1000 Paths red – a third Syrah and the rest a mix of Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet – is another value pick, this more on the black fruit spectrum and a good choice for summer barbecues.

Co-op deserves recognition for the fact that it is the retailer selling the most Fairtrade wines in the world. Our star pick from the tasting was the Cape Point Sauvignon Semillon blend from South Africa, an expressive lemony, buttery white that puts a New World spin on the traditional white Bordeaux blend.

Lastly, if you're heading out on a picnic or looking for something to drink on the move, Co-op is launching two new vodka-based spritzes in a can, from June, both priced at £2 for 250ml, and 5% alcohol. The Aperitivo Spritz gives a nod to the Aperol Spritz in style, with grapefruit zestiness. Meanwhile the elderflower and mint-flavoured Hugo Spritz did bring back memories of my holiday in Lake Garda last summer. Worth a try.

In a hurry: here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet:

Best Co-op wine buys: top picks on the shelves right now

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As the last wine specialist chain of any scale left the UK high street (or edge-of-town retail park), Majestic has a distinctive niche in UK wine retail.

We may not go there for the very finest wines in the world – although from time to time we may encounter one or two at often very reasonable prices – but we do expect Majestic to offer a step up on the supermarkets in quality and diversity of range, while still providing plenty in the way of good value.

How well does it live up to that billing, almost six years after being taken over by current owners Fortress Capital?

Scroll down to see notes and scores for recommendations from Majestic

Curated for gastronomic pleasure

It was sheer joy tasting through Majestic’s spring and summer offerings – an 80-strong range, plus some no- and low-alcohol options – at Vagabond’s new artisan-chic, urban winery-slash-wine bar in Canada Water.

What caught my attention immediately was the breadth of sparkling wines, just in time for the high season of weddings, parties and outdoor gatherings. From light-hearted carbonated fizzes to rich fruity Crémant de Loire – many priced around £15 – through to more sophisticated traditional-method bottles from Italy, South Africa and England, alongside the merchant’s exclusive Champagnes.

There’s also plenty to stock up on among the crisp, scented whites from Vinho Verde, Abruzzo and Chile’s Colchagua Valley, many just under £10. Regional classics from Sancerre, Provence and Marlborough sit at slightly higher price points, offering typicity and distinct flair.

There are plenty of gems in the red range, too: aged claret, richly structured Valpolicella Ripasso, saline, poised Xinomavro and mint-tinged, chocolatey Australian reds – all clearly curated for immediate enjoyment and gastronomic pleasure.

In a hurry? Here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet:

See notes and scores for the finest from Majestic’s new season

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The summer selection at Sainsbury's is well worth investigating this year, with a recent shake-up in the buying team resulting in a much more interesting wine range. The UK’s second-largest supermarket has clearly been keeping an eye on the competition – as well as the latest trends – introducing a raft of exciting firsts.

Following in the footsteps of Aldi and M&S, Sainsbury's has launched an own-label pét-nat (£12) and an own-label orange wine (£11). ‘Our first Taste the Difference orange wine, offering vibrant peach and citrus peel notes with a subtle pithy texture, is a brilliant introduction to the style and a fresh alternative to summer rosé – ideal with olives and sunny day nibbles,’ says Jono Tiffany, who joined the team last autumn as a product development manager.

The latest sparkling selection also includes a new Blanc de Blancs Champagne (£29.50) and a first-ever own-label Discovery Cap Classique (£13). I've recommended it below, but Graham Beck’s Vintner’s Selection Brut is a worthier choice, at £14.50, if you're a fan of this uniquely South African style.

Discover whites you may not know…

The Discovery collection has much more to offer however, and as usual remains a source of good value, unusual and lesser-known grape varieties and styles to explore.

The new white range includes a Gemischter Satz (£10) – ‘A little-known Austrian style I’m excited to champion,’ says Tiffany. ‘Crisp, sherberty citrus and peach meet delicate florals, making this the ultimate summer white – perfect with simple fish or gently spiced dishes.’

Meanwhile product development manager Lauren Ballantyne, another newcomer to the wine team last September, is championing Discovery Custoza (£8.50). ‘A crisp, elegant white from northern Italy, offering bright citrus and white stone fruit with a clean refreshing finish.’

My top picks include the Discovery Marsanne Roussanne, a textured and characterful wine that’s great for food pairing. It’s made for Sainsbury’s by talented Languedoc winemaker Jean-Claude Mas, who has a hand in most of the Sainsbury's own-label southern French wines – look for his name on labels.

Finding value

Several of the Discovery wines I've recommended below come in at around £10 – or less with a Nectar card. But there are bargains to be found right across the Sainsbury's range. One of my great value picks is the fruity Clearsprings Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa (£7).

Or look to Portugal for a fresh Taste the Difference Vinho Verde white (£7.75) and Lisboa red (£8). Both are great for summer parties and barbecues.

Meanwhile from neighbouring Spain, seek out the Taste the Difference Sherries made for Sainsbury's by top producer Bodegas Lustau, which took all three Platinum medals awarded to Sherry in this year's Decanter World Wine Awards. The bone-dry, savoury fino below is perfect as an aperitif or with tapas – and is also among the most competitively priced wines you’ll currently find on the high street.

Summer sips

And of course it wouldn't be summer without a chilled glass of rosé… A highlight of the new selection is the recently launched Queen Côtes de Provence Rosé. Called Cuvée Rock n’ Roll – what else? – it’s produced by Roger Taylor, the drummer of the legendary band, in association with Provence winery Les Caves du Commandeur.

Only available at Sainsbury's and Waitrose, it makes a nice change from Kylie’s Provence Rosé if you like a pink with star power. At the launch Taylor described it as ideal for drinking ‘on the back of a major yacht in hot weather’ – but we think your back garden will do nicely if you don’t have a yacht…

In a hurry? Here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet...

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Best Sainsbury’s wines to drink now

Tasting notes come from the Sainsbury’s spring/summer 2026 tasting. All bottle prices are correct at time of publication.

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There are 22 new wines on the shelves at M&S this summer, including three newcomers to the excellent own-label Found range that champions under-the-radar grapes and styles. From classic Grand Cru Champagne to fun and fruity Asti Spumante, there’s something to suit every palate and pocket this season.

Trend-setting bottles included Red Diamond Strawberry Royale NV, a fruity English fizz made by Balfour Winery, that’s finished with a bespoke strawberry dosage made from M&S Red Diamond strawberries (£15). Just the ticket with a big bowl of strawberries and cream – and likely to go viral if last year’s Red Diamond Strawberry & Creme Sandwich is anything to go by…

Other eye-catching bottles included the new Trouble Cloudy Rosé, an opaque natural rosé from top Southern French winemaker Gérard Bertrand (£12). Plus the latest vintages of the pioneering M&S English Pét Nat Rosé Brut and English Orange Wine.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of the best M&S wine buys for spring and summer

English heroes

In fact M&S continues to fly the flag for English wines, with one of the best ranges on the high street. Alongside bottles from Balfour in Kent are new vintages of the excellent Rockferne English Sparkling white and rosé, made for Marks by Roebuck Estate in Sussex.

I also loved the new English Lily range made by Denbies in Surrey. Look out for the elegant English Lily White, a blend of Reichensteiner, Müller-Thurgau, Bacchus and Solaris (see below) and English Lily Rosé, a blend of Pinot Noir, Dornfelder, Bacchus and Pinot Gris (both £12).

In the pink

Rosé fans will be spoiled for choice this summer in Marks & Spencer. As well as English Lily and Trouble, other pink newbies worth buying are the great value Portuguese Lisboa Bonita Rosé, a new addition to the popular Lisboa Bonita white and red (£8).

French rosés are a particular strength, ranging from the good value off-dry Rosé d’Anjou (£7.50) up to organic Provence pink La Balconne – the M&S version of Whispering Angel (£16). At £10 the M&S Classics No22 Côtes de Provence Rosé is always a dependable choice.

I’m also a fan of the Greek Myrtia Xinomavro Rosé, just a little pricier at £12. While for those looking to cut back on their alcohol intake, mid-strength Koha Sauvignon Blanc Rosé from Marlborough in New Zealand is a good option (£7.50). Just 6% alcohol, it still has distinct regional and varietal character.

What a find!

The brilliant Found range also has a new vintage of its Vinho Verde Rosé from Portugal for £8 or choose the slightly pricier (£10) Italian Susumaniello Rosé, which has super depth of fresh raspberry and strawberry fruit.

‘The Found range is new and interesting wines for customers that they wouldn’t usually pick from the shelf,’ explains buyer Joseph Arthur. Think little-known native grape varieties, such as Kratosija from Macedonia and Georgian Saperavi.

I can guarantee you that every single Found bottle is worth a taste. I’ve recommended several below, but was particularly impressed with the new Palomino from rugged Piekenierskloof in South Africa, a textured savoury white made from Spain’s Sherry grape, which is an absolute steal for £10. There will be a bottle in my fridge door all summer long…

In a hurry? Here's our 'save or splurge' cheatsheet...

Best M&S wines for spring and summer

Tasting notes come from the M&S Spring Tasting 2026. All M&S wines are now sold online via Ocado. Wine is only sold as part of the retailer’s range of gift packs on the M&S website.

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The last time Decanter covered an Aldi tasting in March this year, Tina Gellie gave voice to a persistent problem that she and many of the other attendees (this taster included) had at the event: put simply, too many of the 94 wines on show contained far too much sugar.

Scroll down for scores and tasting notes of the best Aldi wines to buy

It’s only fair, then, to begin the latest review of this always competitively priced range by acknowledging what appears to have been a concerted attempt by the Aldi team to dial down the sweetness.

By and large, the ‘dry’ wines in what was a considerably more focused tasting of 53 sparkling and still wines (including four enticing festive-season Ports and a rather less attractive 0% abv mulled wine) were genuinely dry – and all the better for it.

As ever, Aldi’s buyers on this showing still have a knack for finding highly drinkable wines at the very lowest price points possible. In the context of the UK’s draconian duty rates and other rising costs, the quality of the three-strong, non-vintage Chilean Estevez range for prices ranging from £4.15 to £4.49, for example, is as surprising as it is welcome; so, too, the white and red Chassaux et Fils Côtes du Rhône (£5.29 apiece).

On a strict pleasure-per-pence accounting, however, there is even more fun to be had higher up the price scale. There’s a strong trio of red new additions in the shape of the intensely true-to-type Baron Amarillo Specially Selected Ribera del Duero 2024 (£8.99), the sinewy, spicy Chassaux et Fils Specially Selected Cairanne 2024 (£9.99), and the Christmas dinner-red contender, Margaux Declassified 2023 (£19.99); while white highlights include a pair of Chardonnays: the brightly fruited Cambalala Specially Selected Stellenbosch Chardonnay 2024 (£6.29) and a particularly vivacious Chassaux et Fils Specially Selected Chablis Premier Cru 2023 (£22.49).

A shout-out, too for Chassaux et Fils Sainte Victoire Côtes de Provence Rosé 2024 (£10.99) and the evergreen house Champagne, Veuve Monsigny Brut NV (£15.49), each an example of a continuing long-term Aldi strength: affordable premium rosé and good-quality budget fizz.

Aldi wines: Decanter’s pick of the best buys

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Is there a better range of supermarket wines in the UK than Booths?

On the strength of the wines on show at its latest press tasting, the upmarket ‘northern Waitrose’, which has 25 stores across the northwest of England, would certainly take some beating.

Scroll down for 25 brilliant wines from Booths supermarket

Whether the wines in question are old school classics or more adventurous choices from lesser-known corners of the wine world, the quality is consistently high; no less importantly, the prices are always competitive and sometimes surprisingly low.

Wine buyer Victoria Anderson and sparkling and Champagne buyer Rachel Machin make for a small team, but they evidently know exactly what they’re doing, and nowhere is the thoroughness of their approach more clearly on display than in the exemplary EH Booth & Co own-label range.

The wines – notably the English Sparkling Wine, Barolo, St-Julien, Finest Reserve Port, and Sauternes – are all made by leading producers in their regions, and could all be described as ‘textbook,’ if that rather dry term didn’t undersell just how delicious they are.

Beyond the pleasingly clean and simple sans-serif labels of the EH Booth range, Francophiles are particularly well served on Booths’ shelves, as you might expect from a retailer who would probably see their main competitors as independent retailers and specialists such as The Wine Society or Majestic rather than (or at least as much as) other supermarkets.

Booths has added 19 new French wines to the range, with a delightful Corsican white (Domaine Terra di I Nostri’s Vermentinu), an exceptional organic Crozes-Hermitage (Gilles Robin’s Papillon) and a trio (white, orange and red) from the outstanding Languedoc-based English winemaker Katie Jones all very much among the highlights at this tasting.

Italy (including a sumptuous white newcomer: Planeta’s organic Terebinto Grillo) and Spain (with an outstanding bargain red, Sabina Tempranillo, among others) are also undoubted strengths, but so, too, is Australia.

There is also plenty of space for off-the-beaten-track finds such as the cracking pair featured here from Georgia.

Booths wines: 25 top autumn and winter buys

All wines tasted in September 2025. Prices do not reflect any special or multi-buy offers. Some wines might only be available either online or in selected stores. All bottle prices are correct at time of publication. Wines grouped by style and ordered by score, in descending order. 

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These days Laithwaites wine portfolio almost exclusively operates within the £12 to £25 price range, comprising wines from producers around the world.

Below you’ll find five recommendations to buy from the UK retailer to enjoy with family and friends.

Sustainability

In 2022, Laithwaites saw itself doubling down on sustainability, with the aim of halving its carbon footprint by 2030.

It committed to increasing the number of UK-bottled wines in its range to help cut down on CO2 emissions from shipping glass bottles – shipping in bulk in large ‘bags’ drastically reduces the weight of the same volume of wine.

In September 2023, Direct Wines (owner of UK retail arms Laithwaites Wine and Averys) was announced as Decanter’s Green Champion, thanks to its ‘comprehensive’ action plan across many aspects of the business, from packaging to transport, training and biodiversity.

From strength to strength

Over the last few years, the range seems to have gone from strength to strength, and I’ve noticed a general uptick in quality. It’s still far too easy to find overly oaked wines (which is great, of course, if you like that), but there is also far greater variety that not only covers the classics but also does a great job of introducing customers to weird, wonderful and off the beaten track wines.

Take the Notebook Old Vines Pais (see below), for example. It’s not an easy grape to find in the UK, and it’s quite a unique style, but one that’s easy to love thanks to its soft berries and herbal lift.

Meanwhile, the Sartirano Barbaresco is great value for lovers of Nebbiolo. It’s getting harder and harder to find wines of this calibre under £20, so pick it up while you can!

Laithwaites wines are predominantly sold online and via wine clubs, but the retailer also has a smattering of stores around the south of the UK, including in London, Beaconsfield, Gloucester, Reading, Banbury and Windsor.

Laithwaites: Five to buy

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National Chianti Day was originally conceived by importer, Santa Margherita USA – which represents Chianti Classico estates Santa Margherita and Lamole di Lamole – and aims to highlight the qualities of the famed area in Tuscany.

It’s an area of rolling hills, cypress, chestnut and oak trees, olive groves, villas, stone castles and – of course – wineries aplenty.

Below, we have highlighted some delicious Chianti recommendations, and not a fiasco (the traditional round bottle in a straw basket) in sight! You’ll find some picks from the established names of Frescobaldi and Barone Ricasoli as well as some UK supermarket recommendations.

Chianti & Chianti Classico: What’s the difference?

It’s easy to look past the differences between Chianti and Chianti Classico, but these Sangiovese-based wines actually belong to two distinct DOCGs (similar to the AOC system in France).

While Chianti DOCG constitutes a vast 15,500 hectares of vines, Chianti Classico DOCG is concentrated on the original, hilly zone situated halfway between Florence and Siena and totals 6,800ha of vineyard.

Chianti Classico was a subzone of Chianti from its inception in 1967 until 1996, when it was granted its own separate DOCG. The vineyards here are typically at higher altitudes than those of Chianti DOCG.

Chianti: What’s in the blend?

Chianti DOCG wines must be a minimum of 70% Sangiovese, but Chianti Classico DOCG wines demand a minimum of 80%. Both DOCGs permit the use of local and international varieties: Canaiolo Nero, Ciliegiolo, Colorino, Foglia Tonda, Malvasia Nera, Mammolo, Pugnitello, and also major international varieties, such as Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah.

Chianti DOCG permits a maximum of 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and/or Cabernet Franc, and a maximum of 10% of white varieties Malvasia and Trebbiano. Chianti Classico DOCG is no longer permitted to include white varieties in the blend.

Ageing requirements

Chianti DOCG wines can be sold from 1 March in the year after vintage, often suitable for drinking young.

Chianti Classico DOCG wines increase minimum ageing to around 12 months, being sold from 1 October in the year after vintage. This can give the wines greater complexity and cohesion, and helps to round off the raw edges of youth.

Classification hierarchy

Chianti DOCG has three classifications: Chianti, Chianti Superiore and Chianti Riserva. It also has seven sub-zones (such as Rùfina and Colli Fiorentini) which each have their own, stricter requirements including lower yields, longer ageing and higher alcohol.

Chianti Classico DOCG also has three classifications: Chianti Classico (known as ‘annata’), Chianti Classico Riserva and Chianti Classico Gran Selezione.

Changes were recently made to the Gran Selezione regulations including increasing the minimum required Sangiovese content from 80% to 90%, and introducing 11 sub-zones.

Decanter’s picks for National Chianti Day:

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Although rosé can of course be sipped at any time of year, the shelves are currently groaning under pink bottles of varying styles.

There’s a time and a place for both the pale salmon and the deep fuschia, and everything in between.

Scroll down for 20 great rosé wines under £25

The wines below are all priced under £25, but if you have a bit more to spend, I was impressed by this Sancerre rosé from Domaine Claude Riffault and this Corsican rosé from Clos Canarelli.

If you’re looking for rosé to really impress, both are real showstoppers and nudge just over £30.

All the wines below are available from a range of independent merchants, as well as supermarkets such as M&S, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco.

Le Grappin’s rosé ‘bagnum’ (magnum in a bag) is hard to beat for quality, price and quantity. Easy to transport, great value, easy to chill and just delicious, this is quite literally the perfect product for a camping trip, a seaside jaunt, a picnic, a dinner with friends or a night in.

How is rosé wine made?

There are three main methods of making rosé wine: direct press, short maceration (including saignée), and blending.

With direct press, red grapes are picked, put into a press and crushed gently. The grape skins remain in contact with the juice until the desired level of pink is achieved.

Sometimes a small proportion of white grapes can be co-pressed and co-fermented with the red grapes, which can increase acidity and freshness. This is allowed in appellations such as Côtes de Provence.

Alternatively, red grape skins can be macerated in their juice for a short period before pressing and fermentation – the longer the maceration period, the darker the colour of the rosé.

The saignée method typically involves bleeding a proportion of pink-tinged juice out of a tank destined to make red wine. The juice has been in contact with the grape skins for a short amount of time, and is therefore pale pink in colour.

Often the remaining wine in the tank will go on to be made into red wine, but on other occasions the saignée method is used with the express intention of making rosé.

Decanter‘s rosé expert Elizabeth Gabay MW says: ‘Producers are now choosing to make these wines separately from the red wines, harvesting earlier to maintain freshness.’ As a result, these wines ‘have both full-bodied freshness and darker colour’.

Some basic rosés use a small amount of red wine blended into a white wine. Most EU appellations do not permit this method, with rosé Champagne being the notable exception.

Best rosé wines with food: Pairing suggestions

20 of the best rosé wines under £25

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Mother’s Day falls on Sunday 30 March in the UK this year, when the trees are beginning to blossom, buds are breaking and there are signs of new life.

Flowers, plants and bulbs make for wonderful presents on Mothering Sunday, but your gifting skills can be elevated by a bottle or two of sparkling wine.

The list of recommendations below includes varying styles of sparkling wine from classic Champagne and Crémant to English sparkling and Prosecco. Prices range from under £20 to over £100.

Scroll down to see our selection of sparkling wines for Mother’s Day

Quick guide to sparkling wine styles:

• Champagne – Mostly made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, this must come from the French region of Champagne. It’s produced using the traditional method, with secondary fermentation taking place in the bottle.
• Traditional method – This refers to wines made using the same method as Champagne, where a second fermentation takes place in the bottle. The key examples are:
• Cava – Sparkling wine from Spain using both native grapes, such as Xarel·lo and Parellada, as well as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Reserva and Gran Reserva Cavas undergo extended ageing in bottle, bringing additional complexity.
• English sparkling wine – The cool climate and limestone soils in southern England are similar to those in Champagne, producing many fantastic sparkling wines.
• Franciacorta – From the northern Italian region of Lombardy, this serious traditional method wine can be both fresh and complex.
• Crémant – There are eight appellations in France where Crémant sparkling wines can be produced, and local grape varieties tend to be used. Examples include Crémant de Bourgogne, Crémant de Limoux and Crémant de Loire.
• Other very good traditional method sparkling wines can be found in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Brazil.
• Prosecco – Made in the Veneto region of northeast Italy from the Glera grape, using the tank – or charmat – method.
• Pétillant naturel – This is in fact the oldest method of making sparkling wine, also known as méthode ancestrale. Unlike Champagne, the wine is bottled before it finishes its first fermentation, so the bubbles develop in the bottle. They can be slightly cloudy due to sediment, fairly low in alcohol, with a gentle fizz and sometimes a touch of sweetness. For the more adventurous mothers out there, what’s not to like!

At a glance: top picks for Mother’s Day

Top Champagne pick under £50:

Ayala, Brut Nature, Champagne, France

Top supermarket Champagne pick:

Alexandre Bonnet, Waitrose Brut, Champagne, France NV – £24.99

Top splash-out Champagne pick:

Champagne Stroebel, Pour Toi! Brut Nature, Champagne, France – £119

Top traditional method pick:

Clotilde Davenne, Brut Extra, Crémant de Bourgogne, Burgundy, France – £20.95

Top Prosecco pick:

Bele Casel, Col Fondo Agricolo, Colli Trevigiani, Veneto, Italy 2021 – £22

Top off-the-beaten-track pick:

Domaine Giachino, Don Giachino, Vin Mousseux de France, Savoie 2019 – £36

Sparkling wines for Mother’s Day:

The wines below were tasted by Decanter’s editorial team and experts.

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Fortified wines may be largely associated with Christmas in the UK, but with a myriad of styles, there’s no reason why this category can’t be enjoyed year round.

A chilled manzanilla on a balmy day, a contemplative oloroso and a good book, a tawny Port with a shard of dark chocolate by the fireside…

Scroll down to see notes and scores for 11 great-value fortified wines

Offering great versatility, fortified is also a category that lends itself well to cocktails. Anyone for a Bloody Sherry, whereby you replace the gin or vodka with fino? Or perhaps a refreshing white Port and tonic, garnished with a slice of orange.

We’ve picked out 11 great-value fortified wines all available in the UK and priced at £20 or less per 75cl.

Starting with Sherry, Marks & Spencer’s Extra Dry & Light Manzanilla offers up classic apple, blossom and yeast flavours and would make a great tapas all-rounder. Sánchez Romate’s Don José Oloroso is rich, powerful and nutty with a streak of salinity and a long finish. Or if you’re after something sweeter, Morrisons’ Pedro Ximenez is bursting with toffee, currants and spices.

Port lovers will also find plenty to celebrate here. Quinta do Vale Meão’s Reserve Port for The Wine Society’s Generation Series is balanced and elegant with great ageing potential. Co-op’s Irresistible 10 Year-Old Tawny Port oozes berries and black cherry while Graham’s Fine White Port is perfect for summer drinking.

Outside of these two classic regions, seek out Samos Vin Doux from UWC Samos – a fully sweet fortified Muscat with honeysuckle and fruit salad aromas. Martinez’s 5 Year Old Dolce Superiore Riserva Marsala offers a great alternative to cream Sherry, with its notes of nutty toffee, dried figs and vanilla oak spice.

Great-value fortified wine: 11 to try

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There’s nothing quite as celebratory as a bottle of sparkling wine. And nothing more evocative of a celebration of love than a bottle of sparkling rosé. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, we guide you through a selection of pink bubbles that will make an elegant statement and also work as perfect gifts.

How is rosé sparkling wine made?

Sparkling rosé simply uses a rosé base wine, which then goes through one of the methods of sparkling winemaking. That could be ancestral, traditional, charmat or transfer method. The rosé base wine itself is produced through one of the usual rosé winemaking techniques (saignée or direct press), although some regions – such as Champagne – allow the addition of red wine to a white-dominated blend.

Looking beyond Champagne

Champagne might be the region that first springs to mind when thinking of a celebratory fizz. Indeed, some rosé Champagnes have become synonymous with romantic occasions: Billecart-Salmon and Laurent-Perrier rosés are just two of a number of cuvées that are ubiquitous in Valentine’s Day displays and have acquired iconic status among lovers of pink Champagne.

Scroll down for our selection of brilliant sparkling rosés

But it’s well worth looking beyond the French flagship region for sparkling wines, pink or not, that deliver a different character but the same quality. Other regions and appellations producing outstanding traditional method sparkling include:

Cava

A peculiar appellation in that it is scattered across multiple regions rather than corresponding to a delimited area. Most Cava is, however, produced in Catalunya, with Sant Sadurni d’Anoia as its historical and spiritual epicentre. Cava Rosado uses the red varieties Garnacha, Monastrell, Pinot Noir and/or Trepat for colour, in addition to the other permitted white varieties. When looking for high-quality Spanish fizz you will also need to explore the wines from producers that have actually decided to leave the Cava DO. Amidst disagreements about viticulture and winemaking standards, leading names such as Raventós i Blanc, Recaredo and Gramona (the latter two being founding members of the Corpinnat group), have left the denomination and produce some of Spain’s finest bubbles under specific regional labels.

Crémant

A term referring to French traditional method sparkling wines produced outside of Champagne. The regions producing Crémants are Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Die (in the Rhône), Jura, Loire, Limoux and Savoie.

Franciacorta

This northern Italian region, in the hills east of Brescia, has a somewhat short but impressive history producing traditional method sparkling, mostly from Champagne varieties. Its reputation has grown quickly, firmly establishing it as a leading sparkling wine region in Europe and the world, with some of the most renowned producers making highly sought after wines, not least outstanding rosés.

Tasmania

The southern Australia island state produces some of the country’s best sparkling wines, with its cool climate yielding fruit of incredible finesse and balance, particularly suited for elegant, precise, ageworthy fizz.

United Kingdom

If you are looking for a proper bottle of pink fizz you don’t need to look further than the British Isles, where sparkling is winning awards the world over with expressive wines marked by a very characteristic freshness. The rosés in particular show beautiful wild berry flavours brought to life by vibrant acidity.

Prosecco

Prosecco only made a move into pink territory relatively recently. In May 2020 the Italian government approved the production of Prosecco DOC Rosé, a move ratified by the EU in November the same year. The crossing of two highly popular categories, Prosecco rosé uses Pinot Noir for colour in addition to Prosecco’s own variety, Glera. Unlike the other regions listed above, Prosecco can be made using either the traditional or Charmat Method.

Sparkling rosé: Taste and food pairing

So does rosé sparkling taste different from white sparkling, or is it just a matter of colour?

Grape varieties, blend and winemaking process all play a role in the eventual flavour of the wine, making it difficult to generalise how a sparkling rosé tastes and how it is different from its white counterpart.

Having said that, there are some general characteristics you might expect from a pink fizz:

• Subtle red berry flavours, sometimes with a hint of red citrus (think pink grapefruit or blood orange) and red orchard fruit.
• A hint of tannin, imparted by mild contact with skins during the production of the base wine, which might give it a pleasant grip and texture.
• The higher degree of phenolic compounds can give it a richer body, especially if the wine has spent more time ageing on its lees prior to disgorgement.

Sparkling rosé for Valentine’s Day

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Pink wine and sunshine? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. But there are still plenty of reasons to enjoy a glass of great-value rosé this time of year. Whether you’re looking for a bottle for Valentine’s Day, something to pair with a particular dish or simply something to put you in mind of warmer climes, the selection below offers plenty of inspiration.

Scroll down to see notes and scores for 14 great-value rosé wines

The choices are based on value and quality and while we couldn’t run this piece without the south of France playing a large role, we’ve cherry picked some delicious wines from further afield, and in a variety of styles.

Our selection of great-value rosé showcases 14 pours priced at £20 and under, all tasted and rated by the Decanter team.

Fans of Provence rosé are – predictably – well catered for here. The depth and concentration of Château des Sarrins’ Grand Cuvée 2023 makes it a great example of a more ‘serious rosé’. Mirabeau’s Haute Couture Rosé 2023 with its red berry, citrus and white flower profile would make a great pairing for richer fish dishes, while Marks & Spencer’s Collection Rosé 2023 offers up an abundance of peaches and cream.

Or how about something from Corsica? We’ve included two picks from l’île de beauté, including Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference 2023, pale in colour but with a great texture having spent up to six months on the lees.

Austria provides a treat in the form of Judith Beck’s Beck Pink 2023 – a biodynamic blend of Zweigelt and Blaufränkisch boasting wild strawberry and zesty orange rind.

Italy’s Antinori may be better known for its celebrated reds, but its Scalabrone Rosato 2023 is well-worth seeking out, with its bouquet of cherries, wild berries and a hint of rose petal.

Marks & Spencer presents a home-grown pick with its Bramble Hill 2023, made by Surrey producer Denbies from dry-farmed old vines. A beautiful balance of acidity, fruit and candied lemon.

Great-value rosé wine: 14 to try

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With so many bottles lining the shelves it can be hard to know where to begin in seeking out great-value red wine.

Scroll down to see notes and scores for 20 great-value red wines

Our selection comprises celebrated names, powerhouse regions and notable grape varieties as well as a few off-the-beaten-path picks, all offering a fantastic price-quality ratio.

The 20 wines below have been reviewed and rated by the Decanter team and are priced at £20 or less.

Mendoza Malbec fans are in for a treat here with Doña Paula’s elegant high-altitude 2022 from Luján de Cuyo and Marks & Spencer’s food-friendly 2023 Uco Valley offering made by Decanter’s Hall of Fame 2024 winner, Susana Balbo.

Or how about Wirra Wira’s Church Block 2021 from Australia’s McLaren Vale: a Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot blend oozing with black fruit and chocolate.

Highlights from France include both Northern and Southern Rhône offerings, in the respective forms of M Chapoutier’s silky smooth Crozes-Hermitage 2022 and Boutinot’s Soleil Pierres Cairanne of the same vintage, showing beautiful typicity of style. You could also opt for a refreshing and zesty Beaujolais 2023 from Louis Jadot.

A great choice from Spain comes in the form of a new-wave Rioja – Marks & Spencer’s Viñedos en Laguardia 2023 – boasting perfumed cherry spice.

Italian favourites have also made the list. Morrisons caters for Amarone enthusiasts with its velvety The Best 2020 and Castellore’s Specially Selected Chianti Riserva 2021 impresses with its elegant fruit and smoky spice notes.

Waitrose’s Loved & Found range strikes again for those wanting to try something less mainstream – its Campania Piedirosso 2023 from Orion Wines shows an expressive red fruit and herb character alongside a hint of white pepper and vanilla.

Great-value red wine: 20 to try

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You’re nearly there! Christmas is done and dusted and there’s just one more party left before the new year begins in earnest.

New Year’s Eve is a time when friends and family get together to see in the next 12 months (and if it’s anything like the previous 12 months it will be filled with tax rises, political dogfighting and French protests).

But it can be a juggling act trying to appeal to everyone, especially when there’s a wide spread of tastes even among like-minded friends. Below, we identify some of the key drinking types and suggest how to make them feel at home at your New Year’s Eve party.

The Traditionalist

The Traditionalist wine drinker excels at purporting the virtues of claret, Burgundy, Rioja, Sancerre and Chablis. It’s a tough crowd as they know exactly what they like – but it may not fit your New Year’s Eve party budget.

Try visiting a trusted wine merchant and ask them what their bestselling Bordeaux is. Chances are it will be affordable and delicious. There are also some good picks available in the supermarkets, although you’ll need to rely on our reviews rather than a memeber of staff to guide you.

Rioja is a great option, as even the very affordable options can be absolutely delicious – as long as they’re not drowned in oak – while younger, cheaper Bordeaux can be a bit more fickle. Look for Rioja Crianza for a vibrant, bright style, or a Reserva for a great balance of quality and complexity (but typically at a higher price point).

If it’s a more intimate dinner occassion, you could consider upping the budget to a cru classé (classed growth) Bordeaux or premier cru Burgundy (red or white) for more wow factor, as well as good compatability with your guests’ palates and the food you are serving.

The Occasional Drinker

There are many possible reasons why some of your guests may not be consuming alcohol at your New Year’s Eve party; designated driver springs to mind. But it’s also becoming an increasingly popular lifestyle choice – and as the host it’s important to respect your guests’ choices.

Serving no/low alcohol beverages can be a great way to provide some mindful alternatives to wine, and has the added bonus of making you appear to be on the cutting edge of drinks trends.

The Pinot Grigio Lover

A bit like the Traditionalist, the Pinot Grigio Lover has a firm vision of what they like, and what they don’t – but in this case it revolves around one thing; Pinot Grigio.

They’ll go out for lunch and order a Pinot Grigio. Take them to dinner and they’ll order a bottle without even asking to peruse the wine list. They’ll probably turn up to your party with a couple of bottles tucked under their arm too, but just in case they don’t, it’s best to stock up on a few bottles.

You’ll have to have very poor observational skills to not find one in your local wine merchant or supermarket, and for our money, the most delicious examples come from north Italy, in Trentino. Luckily, options are abundant and bottles are very affordable.

The Rosé Lover

Nothing says ‘winter drinking’ like a rosé from the French Riviera, but no doubt it will be the preferred drink for some of your guests. Given the popularity of Provence pinks, you’d be forgiven for going down that route – and you’ll be spoilt for choice.

But there are alternative rosé styles to consider, especially if you’re hosting a dinner party – in this case, you might want something a little bit more structured to stand up to a particular course you are serving.

The Spirits Fiend

The Spirits Fiend will take a hard pass on your vinous offerings in favour of a gin & tonic (double, of course), cuba libre, Aperol spritz or negroni. Why not appeal to their tastes and set up a cocktail station to inject some novelty into proceedings?

The ingredients don’t need to be complicated, and you could even cater to your Occasional Drinkers by offering some alcohol-free cocktail options.

It’s got to be sparkling

Chances are you’ll have some fizz lined up for midnight anyway, but given the celebratory occassion it would be remiss to not offer some to your guests when they arrive. Prosecco and Champagne are the two most obvious choices, there are also cremants, pét nats, Cava, Franciacorta to consider if you’re hosting a more open-minded crowd.

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It’s arguably become a tradition in itself: Waitrose’s Fine Wines at £10 campaign, running through December each year, is always a much-anticipated opportunity to stock up on a selection of great wines for a mere tenner per bottle.

Many if not all the wines in this year’s line up are already very good value when not discounted – delivering quality and a point of difference at prices ranging from £14.99 to £16.99 – making the promotion all the more appealing.

Affordable classics

The selection covers an interesting array of styles and regions, with a classic leaning. As the wine world grapples with sky-rocketing Burgundy prices, Cave de Lugny’s Les Charmes will make for a particularly budget-friendly addition to your festive cellar – and makes the case for the enduring relevance of quality-driven cooperatives. Montecillo’s Reserva, on the other hand, shows how Rioja remains a reliable source of classical elegance at reasonable prices.

Likewise Doña Paula’s El Alto Malbec – a truly beautiful, nuanced take on Argentina’s flagship variety, hailing from high-altitude vineyards. Winemaker Cristóbal Undurraga is doing such fantastic work producing refined expressions of the estate’s vines, while keeping them approachable and affordable.

The only fortified wine in the line up, Warre’s King’s Tawny Port, is another example of an enduring classic delivered consistently, without breaking the bank.

Decanter Premium: The perfect gift for a special wine lover

Opportunities for discovery

But the Fine Wines at £10 campaign is also an opportunity to step beyond one’s comfort zone and explore alternatives to the ‘usual suspects’.

A case in point is Bijou’s Éminence, a food-friendly pink from Languedoc-Roussillon, challenging you to consider French rosé outside Provence. Or Louis Jadot’s Beaujoulais-Quincié, a smooth Gamay, exclusive to Waitrose, that reflects a trend for ‘Burgundy adjacents’ that evoke the drinkability and affordability of the Pinot Noirs of yore.

An unoaked Bordeaux? That’s Croix des Coteaux’s proposition with its Saint-Émilion AOC – another example from a region having to somewhat reinvent itself in the face of economic challenges and changing consumer demand.

Another wine that defies expectations, Wirra Wirra’s Church Block combines the power of an Australian red with very ‘Old World’ refinement and detail.

Restraint and focus is also the hallmark of the Stich Sauvignon Blanc; it might disappoint lovers of overtly aromatic exuberant Marlborough Sauvignon but will delight those who appreciate purer, more terroir-expressive takes on both the variety and the region.

At the crossroads of classic and offbeat, Prince Alexandre’s Crémant de Loire is among a host of traditional method sparkling wines that offer intriguing alternatives to Champagne at appealing prices. This Chenin Blanc-based blend, with splashes of Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc, will not disappoint – creamy, textural and with fine mousse it makes for both a great aperitif and great companion for food.

Explore further

It’s well worth looking beyond these 11 wines though; Waitrose’s winter selection is looking very strong indeed, particularly on the fortified front. And the retailer’s own No.1 and Loved & Found ranges remain a source of well-priced, interesting discoveries, many of which produced in partnership with renowned winemakers.

Waitrose’s Fine Wines at £10

All wines tasted 21 November 2023. Prices shown here are the full retail prices, and do not reflect this, or any other, special offer.

Some wines might only be available in selected stores.

Wines grouped by style and ordered by score, in descending order.

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Christmas marks the time of year when marketing hype goes into overdrive, encouraging us all to part with our hard-earned cash for everything from the latest kids’ toys to wifi-enabled washing machines..

For many of us, it’s the one occasion every year we will spend above our comfort zone on a few bottles of wine. But there’s no need to break the bank: despite rising supply chain and duty costs, it’s still possible to pick up some delicious, Christmas-worthy wines for under £15.

The selection below covers a wide selection of regions and styles, which will pair perfectly with turkey, duck, beef, vegetarian options, or even boxing day leftovers.

Surprise the wine connoisseur in your life this Christmas with a Decanter Premium subscription

Red wine for Christmas: things to know

Avoid big tannins

Unless you’re serving beef, it’s perhaps best to save your tannic reds (think young Bordeaux, Barolo, Napa Cabernet) for another time. You’ll find that the intense flavours, punchy spices and fattiness of traditional Christmas fare does not play nicely with tannins, and the result will be an astringent mouthful.

Instead, pick out a red with softer tannins such as a Rioja Gran Reserva, Chianti Classico, Pinot Noir, or a mature vintage of Bordeaux or Barolo.

Serve cool

One of the most common mistakes when serving reds is to pour them too warm, perhaps based on the misnomer that ‘room temperature’ is ok – except these days, most of us have central heating and houses are much warmer than when this advice first circulated. If served too warm, red wines can seem ‘flabby’ and lacking in energy. Instead, aim to serve light- to medium-bodied reds at 12-16°C (54-61°F), and fuller bodied reds at 15-18°C (59-65°F). They’ll warm up once in the glass anyway.

Don’t be misled by marketing tricks

As tempting as it can be, don’t fall for snazzy labels, heavy bottles and deep punts. They’re all marketing tricks to make a wine seem more premium than it is. Instead, home in on wines from a region or made from a grape variety that you know you like, and ideally find a winery that makes wines you’ve enjoyed in the past.

Buy ‘in the middle’

The cheapest wines are a false economy, as most of the price covers packaging, shipping and duty costs with very little left for the wine in the bottle.

Equally, once you get into premium territory you’re not always just paying for better wine – while the price will cover the cost of better production, such as high quality oak barrels, you might also be paying for the prestige of the winery or the region (think Champagne), or for buying a much more limited product (the law of supply and demand…).

The optimal value-for-money window is somewhere between around £10 and £25, and below £15 you’re in bargain territory if you shop carefully.

There are resources available to help you

You can, of course, search for reviews and recommendations on decanter.com. And we strongly recommend asking your local wine merchant for guidance. They may even have some samples open for you to taste!

Christmas red wine recommendations under £15/$20

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Online supermarket Ocado has finally joined the UK’s other high-street retailers in showcasing its seasonal wine highlights.

Despite having more than 1,600 wines, a recent autumn/winter tasting focused on ‘a small snapshot’ of just 27: 11 reds, nine whites, four sparklings, two rosés and one fortified.

Being free of shelf space constraints means Ocado’s online offering boasts popular brands alongside exclusives and wines from small producers. And, like the bricks-and-mortar supermarkets, it is also promoting lesser-known regions, unusual grape varieties and wines made using innovative production methods.

In addition to offering the entire Marks & Spencer wine range, Ocado has announced a partnership with Virgin Wines. Some 50 bottles from that online retailer are available to Ocado customers.

While only five Virgin Wines were on show at the focused 27-wine tasting, they excited Decanter the most. We recommend four below: Eghemon’s Passimento Bianco, De Martino’s Old Vine Cinsault, Soleil Pierres et Vent’s Cairanne and Black Flag’s Shiraz-Viognier.

Beyond these, this year’s En Rama Fino from Tio Pepe is a great buy, as is the 2019 red blend from Lebanon’s Chateau Musar. Of the Ocado exclusives, we particularly enjoyed the Provence-like white from La Baume.

A notable benefit is that customers can filter their search on Ocado.com to find wines that suit their dietary needs. There are currently 44 organic, 307 vegan, 330 vegetarian and four Fairtrade wines.

The six-strong buying team, headed by Vanessa Pearson, intentionally avoided featuring M&S wines in their inaugural tasting as they are already familiar to most UK shoppers. But it is interesting to note that more M&S sparkling wines are sold via Ocado than in Marks & Spencer stores.

Ocado’s wider portfolio also includes 1,000 spirits, ready-to-drink and no-and-low alcohol beverages, along with 600 beers and ciders.

Ocado wines: Best buys for your online shop

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Your wine choices, as your wardrobe’s, are subject to seasonal review. It’s a matter of weather and it’s a matter of mood. So what does the arrival of autumn (and the faint hope of an Indian summer) call for? Versatile wines with character and food-pairing appeal.

Pale rosés give way to their fuller-bodied counterparts, chillable reds make space in the fridge for rich whites and bolder reds sneak in. Cocktail recipes get zesty and spicy, perfect for longer autumn evenings.

Fittingly-coloured orange wines are also perfect autumnal wines. At once refreshing and generous, for these moody days when sun and rain might be out within the same hour. And as the season’s produce starts to fill market stalls these amber-hued wines will give you perfect and versatile food pairing options.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of 12 orange wines to try this autumn

How is orange wine made?

An orange wine is made from white grapes fermented in contact with the skins – hence why they are also called skin-contact wines.

The light hue of most commercially available white wine is a result of the separation of the juice from the skins immediately or shortly after the grapes arrive at the cellar, by pressing the bunches. Fermentation happens without the skins thus preventing the extraction of colour, tannins and other polyphenolic compounds.

The length of maceration (the period when skins are left in contact with the juice before, during and after fermentation) determines the colour intensity of an orange wine. Fermentation temperature as well as the vessel used for fermentation and/or ageing also have a role to play.

As mentioned above, maceration extracts tannins and flavours compounds in addition to colour, which is why orange wines tend to have a distinct textural character (often described as grippy), some weight on the palate and, therefore, great food pairing appeal.

It’s sometimes said that orange wines are ‘white wines produced like a red’. However, historically, fermentation on the skins was the rule for all grapes, red and white, namely because these were often grown and fermented together. The concept of single-varietal wine and mono-varietal planting is very recent in the history of wine.

Even when varieties started being planted and vinified separately, wines were rarely light and clear in the glass. Light-hued white wines are a modern invention, only made possible by modern winemaking techniques such as cold settling, sterile filtration, temperature control and routine use of sulphites. Wines used to have a slight hue due to a degree of oxidation if not skin contact.

Millennial revival

As the industrialisation of wine production took hold, orange wines – perceived as less sophisticated, symbols of a less technologically advanced era – lost territory to modern ‘cleaner’ styles. They survived in regions where the wine sector struggled to establish itself as an industry, such as the Balkans, and at the hands of mavericks such as Josko Gravner and Stanko Radikon.

Orange wines were rediscovered at the beginning of the 21st century as part of a backlash against the standardisation of industrially-produced wine and the resulting loss of diversity of grape varieties, styles and traditions.

Orange wine was adopted by the ‘natural wine movement’ as its flagship style and propelled to the international stage as a beacon of resistance to commercially-made wines. Skin-contact became shorthand for low intervention as both producers and consumers increased their awareness of the sustainability implications of mass production.

Countries, like Georgia and Slovenia, where the style had remained firmly in production throughout the 20th century, found a new, enthusiastic audience and encouraged new producers. The vibrant natural wine community in Austria and Italy passionately embraced orange wines, with producers like Gut Oggau, COS, Claus Preisinger and Elisabetta Foradori releasing some of the defining wines of the dawn of the new millennium.

Winemakers in Portugal, Spain and Chile started researching their own regions’ historical iterations of orange wine – especially those produced in clay vessels – while adventurous ‘new world’ winemakers also embraced the style. Even producers in England and Wales are exploring the expressive potential of fermenting white grapes on their skins.

The result was a fresh understanding of the history of many wine regions, of the expressive potential of white varieties, and of how wine styles need to be seen in a spectrum rather than classified as ‘black (or red) or white’.

It’s important not to confuse orange wine and natural wine: the latter is a style while the former is a technique. It follows that not all orange wine is necessarily natural, and vice versa – i.e. skin-contact wine is not necessarily ‘funky’ or low intervention.

While texture and complexity are attributes of all (good) amber-hued wines, they can also be extremely refined. You will find a range of expressions, and both adventurous and classical wine lovers will surely find an orange wine they love. This style is not as divisive as one might think.

Tannins, flavour, texture – perfect food wines

Aromatic complexity, structure and textural character are what make orange wines special. At the crossroads of a red and white wine, they playfully stimulate and challenge the senses. Imagine the freshness and taught acidity of a white wine entwined with the tannic grip and suppleness of a red. What could possibly be better to pair with food?

Many orange wines are perfect companions for cheese platters, smoked fish, root vegetable-based dishes and roasted meat. They usually have a herbal, savoury edge that brings a meal’s flavours to life, supported by gentle tannins and firm acidity.

Best enjoyed only slightly chilled, skin-contact wines have a fresh vibrancy but also a sense of textural warmth, perfect to ease yourself into autumn’s mood. Nothing better than a picnic with a amber-hued bottle alongside the season’s harvest bounty – grapes, pear and Mediterranean citrus – before the winter’s loom sets in.

Great orange wines for autumn – 12 to try:

The wines below have been tasted and rated by Decanter’s editorial team and contributors.

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With the autumn equinox on the horizon on 22 September, days are getting shorter and late summer nostalgia weaves into the appeal of longer evenings and richer meals. Darker rosés are some of the best transitional wines for this period.

As we enjoy the last of the season’s barbecues and garden parties, these deep-hued pours are best enjoyed alongside some nibbles and served slightly less chilled than their paler counterparts.

Regions and appellations producing dark rosé wines:

Cerasuolo d’Abbruzzo – Abruzzo, Italy

Chiaretto di Bardolino – Verona, Italy

Cigales and Ribera del Duero – Spain (namely Clarete styles)

Nemea – Peloponnese, Greece

Tavel – Rhône, France

What makes the colour of a rosé more or less intense?

Two main factors contribute to the colour of a rosé wine: winemaking method and grape variety.

Wine gets its colour from the grape skins. The longer the grape juice is in contact (or macerated) with the skins, the more colour, aroma, flavour and tannin will be extracted.

Pale Provence-style rosés are mostly produced using the direct press method without extended maceration.

Whereas Tavel winemakers typically macerate for up to 48 hours, for wines comparatively more intense and deeper-hued. For context, in red wine production the juice macerates on the grape skins for anything from a week to over a month.

Grapes with thicker skins will produce more colour in the wine than thin-skinned varieties. Hence why a rosé made from Garnacha is generally more intense than one produced from Pinot Noir, if macerated for a similar number of hours.

A traditional style, revived

Pale rosé wines are in fact a relatively modern trend, dating back to the 1980s, only made possible by technological advancements in refrigeration, cold stabilisation and sterile filtration.

Previously, rosé wines were more akin to light reds in both colour and structure. They were either a product of short, but not insignificant, macerations or co-fermentation of red and white grapes. Generally produced as a cheaper wine for local consumption, they were often seen as ‘farmer’s wines’ which in turn led to the perception of light rosés as a more sophisticated alternative.

There is, however, renewed interest in these more traditional styles of rosé, fuelled by a growing movement towards terroir specificity, historical research, varietal expression and low-intervention winemaking.

The revival of Clarete in Spain and Palhete in Portugal is an example of this new trend.

Perfect food companions

It’s not by chance that the French call these deeper hued wines ‘rosés d’assiette’ – in other words, rosés to eat with. Dark rosés are ideal food companions and versatile when it comes to pairings.

Whether you are planning the season’s last barbecues or looking for a dry alternative to serve alongside fruit-based desserts, an intense rosé will not let you down. Their textural richness, aromatic intensity and subtle tannins are the ideal combination to handle a wide range of foods, and therefore often favoured by sommeliers.

Dark rosé wines for late summer drinking:

Wines shown in score order

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Cap Classique, South Africa’s signature sparkling wine, has plenty to offer wine lovers. Made in the same way as Champagne, with a secondary fermentation in bottle, Cap Classique costs a fraction of the price, with an array of styles to choose from.

Admittedly Cap Classique has a much shorter history than Champagne. It was first made at Simonsig in 1971 by the late Frans Malan, who dubbed his traditional-method brut sparkling wine Kaapse Vonkel – or Cape Sparkle.

At a time when most of the country’s fizz was cheap, sweet and carbonated, the sophisticated style of Kaapse Vonkel stood out. But it would be another decade until a second South African winery – Boschendal – also decided to make a dry traditional-method sparkler in the 1980s.

The style gained momentum gradually. As producers began to share knowledge and ideas, the name Méthode Cap Classique was adopted to identify their premium product. The Cap Classique Producers Association (CCPA) was founded in 1992.

Although Cap Classique only celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2021, it has been one of South Africa’s fastest-growing wine categories in recent years.

What is Cap Classique?

The CCPA has a series of guidelines for production of Cap Classique, which can be made anywhere in the Cape winelands. First, the wine must ferment on its lees in the same bottle that it will be sold in. Second, that period of lees ageing must be for a minimum of 12 months (though it is often longer for top wines).

Since the 2023 harvest whole-bunch pressing is mandatory. The CCPA also requires its members to use only the first 450 litres of juice from pressing 1,000kg of grapes to make their top expressions. That figure rises to 600 litres for simpler styles.

The main styles of Cap Classique are defined by their residual sugar levels. Brut must have below 12g per litre of residual sugar, Extra Brut below 6g/L and Brut Nature below 3g/L.

Perhaps surprisingly there are no legal restrictions on permitted grape varieties for Cap Classique. While the CCPA recommends the classic Champagne varieties – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier – other grapes including Chenin Blanc and Pinotage are used.

Names to know

Although Cap Classique can be made across South Africa, certain regions have become known for their quality. The hardened limestone soils of Robertson produce elegant Chardonnay-led Cap Classiques, assisted by cooling ocean breezes, funnelled by the Langeberg and Riviersonderend mountains.

Other names to look out for on labels are: Elgin, Darling, Durbanville, Overberg, Plettenberg Bay and Walker Bay. These cooler regions are a good source for the Pinot Noir used in Cap Classique blends.

While pioneering wineries Simonsig and Boschendal continue to make Cap Classique, they are no longer lone rangers. The CCPA has grown from just 14 founding members in 1992 to more than 100 today.

What differentiates them on a global stage? The minimum of 12 months lees ageing for Cap Classique positions it neatly between the nine-month minimum for French crémant or Spain’s Cava and the 15-month minimum for non-vintage Champagne.

Not as cheap as Prosecco, but cheaper than Champagne or English sparkling wine, Cap Classique is a style of fizz that hugely over-delivers for the price. If you want to explore the category, here are some good value recommendations chosen by the Decanter team…

Best Cap Classique: value picks

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In the US wine industry, premium wine from boutique producers reigns supreme. Whether implicitly or explicitly stated, these wines garner respect and esteem from wine enthusiasts. Correspondingly, their high point scores and critic reviews positively impact bottom-line sales. In contrast, the vast majority of American consumers purchase their wines (and alcohol in general), most commonly at grocery stores and big-box wine retailers.

Scroll down for a selection of 15 wines to try from grocery and big-box stores

Producers of fine wines will often craft wines from broader appellations – rather than sub appellation or single vineyard offerings – as a way to build their brand beyond their tasting room and wine collector audiences.

Convenience is king

With more than 260 stores, Total Wine & More is now the largest alcohol retailer in the US, with revenues of over $6bn. According to Rodolphe Boulanger, vice president of wine merchandising at the chain, ‘customers rave about the convenience of being able to find all the wines, beers and spirits they’re looking for in one location.’

This convenience drives consumers. ‘While supporting small businesses is encouraged, many consumers still value the convenience of big-box stores, making accessibility a key factor in their purchasing decisions,’ says Aly Wente, vice president of marketing & experiences at Wente Vineyards, her family’s fifth-generation winery in the Livermore Valley of California.

Complexities of distribution

The United States alcohol industry operates within a three-tier system in which wineries must work through an importer or distributor to secure placements of their wines in both on-premise (i.e. restaurants and bars) and off-premise (i.e. wine shops and retail stores) locations.

This ‘distribution’ model is in contrast to selling their wines directly to consumers (DTC) either in a tasting room, online, or through a wine club. Profitability is higher with the DTC model, but distribution helps you more easily secure brand recognition in the marketplace, primarily through placements at large retailers.

Just because a quality producer has a wine in wide distribution does not mean the wine is made any differently than their smaller production bottlings.

Some of the best values will be found in these more significant production and broader appellation designate wines. Small, quality producers strategically distribute such wines to expose more wine drinkers to their brand. Their single vineyard or single block ultra-premium wines only have so much reach due to their small production sizes and higher price points.

Large retailers also chose to carry larger appellation premium wines in only select stores to localise the assortment. ‘We’re big believers in carrying local wines and popular brands. Although we have stores from coast to coast, every store carries a different assortment,’ says Boulanger.

Courting new consumers

Early in their wine-drinking journey, consumers may be unfamiliar with specific regional sub-AVAs, let alone understanding the corresponding quality hierarchies that these designations may imply. Still, they will likely be familiar with broad and established appellations such as ‘Napa Valley’ or ‘Columbia Valley’.

Wente agrees: ‘Broader appellation designates appeal to a wider consumer base that may not be familiar with specific wine regions and their distinctions.’ Aaron Barnett, a winemaker at Paul Hobbs’ Crossbarn brand, emphasises: ‘A broad appellation wine is a terrific introduction to the region’s terroir – to the depth and balance it’s capable of in a blend of expressions from top sites.’

Crafting approachability

The ‘red blend’ category has seen significant growth in the US wine market. It is the third largest selling category after Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon (according to the 2023 Silicon Valley Bank Report).

For the seasoned wine drinker, a ‘blend’ typically refers to a wine made from multiple grape varieties. For this discussion, we’re referring to a quality and value-driven wine made up of grapes from multiple places within one larger region. In the Old World, classic wines such as Cotes du Rhône, or Bordeaux Rouge or Blanc come to mind.

‘Bordeaux blends are rooted in this philosophy. Crafting a single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon versus a multi-appellate Cabernet Sauvignon is like trying to colour a picture with four crayons instead of a 24-pack,’ says Hope Goldie, vice president of winemaking at Darioush in Napa Valley.

Broader appellation wines allow the winemaker to select the aroma, flavour, and textural elements from each site they seek in the final wine.

Barnett demonstrates this with Crossbarn’s Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. ‘You’ll find bright acidity from cool West Sonoma Coast, powerful fruit with complementary earth notes from Russian River Valley, and even playful hints from smaller sub-AVAs like Sebastopol Hills.’

He continues, ‘All those elements together create the larger Sonoma Coast palate, but even if the wine drinker doesn’t realise it, individually, they’re also offering introductions to smaller, distinctive regions.’

The role of gateway wines

Winemaking is a complicated process filled with seemingly endless decisions that inform the final wine in the glass. Crafting a wine from a broader appellation requires restraint from the winemaker. Restraint to understand that not all wine must be super-premium. Restraint to embrace the reality that there is tremendous value in showcasing a quality wine from a broader appellation that appeals to more wine drinkers.

This helps bring brands in front of new customers. Perhaps those same drinkers can grow with the brand and enjoy their other smaller-production offerings. Barnett hopes to ‘build their confidence to take deeper dives into the sub-AVAs with our Paul Hobbs vineyard-designate wines or that they’ll taste wines from other producers who work with the same regions’.

Blossoming wine aficionados can find quality, value and a sense of place in grocery or big-box retailers through wines of the broader appellation. These ‘appellation’ SKUs are quality wines that speak for themselves and where they came from, no matter how broad the region.

‘Wine is about exploration and discovery, so embracing some level of risk and adventure in your choices can lead to rewarding experiences,’ says Wente.

‘While it’s exciting to detect a specific sense of place in a vineyard-designate wine, it’s also incredibly satisfying to find in a well-made appellation wine,’ concludes Barnett.

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It wasn’t all that long ago that judging the rosé class in a New Zealand wine show was a bit like receiving a competition booby prize. Quality was as variable as the colours, but alas, not nearly as enticing.

New Zealand’s rosés may still come in a veritable rainbow of pink hues, but the quality has taken a huge leap forward as winemakers, following the global trend in rosé appreciation, have stepped up their game.

Hawke’s Bay consultant winemaker Damian Fischer observes: ‘The industry is clearly taking the category seriously and putting more effort into crafting these wines. The trend for paler colours and drier styles is continuing and I’ve noticed more freshness, purity and delicacy in the wines without sacrificing flavour.’

Rosé wines are produced the length and breadth of the country, though as expected, the output from industry engine room Marlborough surpasses all other regions.

Grapes and regions

Pinot Noir is the country’s most common red grape variety and accordingly produces the majority of rosés, be they still or sparkling. But there is a decent range of Merlot and Syrah-based wines to be found, alongside a few of the less usual suspects. These include Malbec, Pinotage, Cabernet Franc and even Tempranillo. Occasionally, white varieties such as Pinot Gris or Chardonnay are also slipped in, though generally only in small blending fractions.

Regional variation tends to reflect the respective climatic and varietal makeups. So you can expect to find more robust, spicy Merlot or Syrah-based wines from Hawke’s Bay. Meanwhile Marlborough and Central Otago’s focus is generally bright, aromatic berry fruit-rich Pinot Noir-based wines. The latter’s cooler climes add crisper acidity as well as cherries and fresh herbs.

Most wines showcase New Zealand’s signature fruit purity; vibrant and refreshing, they’re intended to be consumed nicely chilled within a year or so of harvest, and are generally dry or just off-dry, though a few have a crowd-pleasing hint of residual sugar for that lusher mouthfeel. There is also a small diverse faction of winemakers experimenting with degrees of skin contact, oxidative winemaking, oak or amphorae.

Unfortunately many rosés don’t leave New Zealand’s shores. Export figures have climbed from 0.7 million litres in 2014 to 4.3 million litres in 2023, according to the New Zealand Winegrowers Annual Report 2023. However producers either have a strong enough domestic sales base, or instead struggle to find a place in the hyper-competitive global rosé market. So should you happen to spot one of the following wines on the shelves in your own market, best snap it up quick.

Top New Zealand rosé: 20 to try

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Some of the best biodynamic wines are produced by small-scale, independent growers all over the globe, while other examples incorporate prestigious labels.

Below, you’ll find some great biodynamic wines reviewed by Decanter experts to help you raise a toast to the wider movement for environmental protection on Earth Day 2024 – on Monday 22 April.

Taking inspiration from scientist and philosopher Rudolf Steiner, biodynamics is rooted in a holistic vision of vineyard management, respectful of soil and nature and promoting a form of ecological harmony.

It is also associated with lower intervention in the winemaking cellar, to a stronger extent than organic approaches.

As with organics, some wineries choose to pursue certification, while others have long adopted biodynamic principles without seeking such ‘official’ certifications, which come from bodies including Demeter and Biodyvin, and whose logos adorn the bottles of wines which meet the various criteria.

As Decanter’s Amy Wislocki wrote in her article of biodynamics in winemaking, ‘both Biodyvin and Demeter have rules on growing and vinification that can be stricter than organic alone – for example, less use of copper sulphate per hectare, and the use of natural yeasts for fermentation’.

Châteaux Palmer, Pontet-Canet and Climens in Bordeaux are leading proponents of biodynamic wines, but others in the region have been embracing the methods, as Simon Woolf highlighted in this article.

Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon, the highly regarded chef de cave and executive vice-president at Louis Roederer, owner of Cristal, has credited biodynamics with enhancing a ‘fight for freshness’ in Champagne vintages, in particular. He has previously spoken of how biodynamic approaches encourage greater attention to detail in the vineyard and critical thinking.

Some producers have said biodynamic approaches enhance the expression of terroir in the glass, although the skill and expertise of the winemaker is inevitably a big factor in terms of overall wine quality, while higher costs can be a downside of biodynamics.

Best biodynamic wines: a selection of top bottles to seek out

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In 2023 global Champagne shipments fell by around 8% to 299 million bottles but Champagne remains a firm favourite with UK customers and is particularly popular as a celebration wine.

With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, rosé Champagne is in sharp focus right now. This is a category which has been on the rise for a while, but how is rosé Champagne made and what should it be paired with?

See the results of the Decanter vintage rosé Champagne panel tasting

Rosé on the rise

While non-vintage rosé Champagne is still a popular choice with consumers, sommelier Jan Konetzki notes that vintage and prestige cuvée rosé Champagnes are gaining traction, particularly in restaurants.

It’s easy to see why, as many of the best examples can work brilliantly at the dinner table – whether it’s Valentine’s Day or not.

The list below features rosé Champagnes reviewed by our experts and available at a range of prices, with some great value options to more expensive choices over £300 a bottle.

How rosé Champagne is made

There are two ways to achieve the pink hue of rosé Champagne: rosé d’assemblage or saignée.

Rosé d’assemblage

Champagne is the only region where the blending of red and white wine is permitted for the production of rosé wines, and it is common across quality levels.

A small amount of red wine made from Pinot Noir and/or Pinot Meunier is added to the white base wine prior to its second fermentation. The percentage of red wine added at this stage depends on the producer’s preference and can vary from 5% to more than 15%.

The aim is to ensure that the freshness and tension of the Champagne is maintained. Carine Bailleul, chef de cave at Champagne Castelnau, says her goal is ‘to have a fine balance between fruitiness, sweetness, colour and acidity’.

It goes without saying, therefore, that the red wine added should be of high quality. It not only contributes colour to the finished Champagne, but also flavour and texture.

Saignée

The saignée method involves bleeding off the pink-tinged juice from macerating red grapes.

Louis Roederer uses a version of this technique alongside cold maceration to make Cristal rosé, for instance.

The Fleur de Miraval variant uses the saignée method, blended with top Chardonnay, according to winemaker Rodolphe Péters, who worked on the project alongside Brad Pitt and the Perrin family.

How rosé Champagne tastes

It is difficult to generalise about what rosé Champagne tastes like because styles can vary, yet many will have noticeable red berry characters alongside citrus such as grapefruit and orange. In more complex styles, such as vintage rosé, you might find this balanced with the traditional autolytic flavours of Champagne, such as brioche or bread-like aromas, associated with ageing on lees.

Rosé Champagne and food pairing

Pink Champagne is versatile when it comes to food pairing. Richer styles can stand up to bigger flavours and richer foods, while the more delicate, fruit-driven wines make for a stylish aperitif. Sweeter styles such as demi-sec are a great match for fruit-forward desserts.

Konetzki recommends ‘a colossal, Pinot Noir-heavy prestige cuvée like Bollinger La Grande Année Rosé with Peking duck’. The plum sauce in the dish matches the sweet plummy flavours in the wine.

He suggests a beetroot Wellington with something like the Philipponnat Clos des Goisses Juste Rosé. The pastry-rich, fruity, earthy flavours in the wine pair perfectly with the sweet, earthy beetroot.

For extra glamour, add some preserved black truffles into the dish and try it with a 20-year-old vintage rosé Champagne for a superb – yet fairly pricey – match.

Rosé Champagnes to try for Valentine’s Day

Related articles

• Sparkling rosé wines for Valentine’s Day
• A guide to non-vintage Champagne
• First Taste: Billecart-Salmon 2016 & Le Clos St-Hilaire 2007

Lake Michigan, the fifth largest lake in the world, is an integral part of quality grape growing in the state. The Michigan coastline is extensive and full of peninsulas formed thousands of years ago due to glaciation. Arctic glaciers pushed south during the ice ages and carved out the major Great Lakes basin. The lake accumulates heat during the growing season and retains it through the autumn when temperatures drop, thus extending the growing season and giving the ‘lake effect’ necessary to produce quality wine.

‘Our vineyards hug the shores of one of the largest freshwater inland seas in the world, in a land once carved out by glaciers – and this unique terroir creates some real magic in any bottle of Michigan wine,’ says Patrick Brys, president & CEO of Brys Estate Vineyard & Winery.

Riesling: Michigan’s great grape

The latest figures show that Riesling is the most widely planted vinifera grape in Michigan, with 29% of plantings. Over 930ha of vinifera grapes are grown in the state, 270 of them Riesling.

Considered one of the great white grapes of the world, Riesling is lauded by experts for its purity and versatility. Despite this, many consumers believe that all Riesling is sweet, when in fact, the grape can be vinified from a bone-dry wine to the stickiest botrytised style. Riesling is known for its prominent aromatics and high acidity. The naturally high acidity from the grape can be balanced with residual sugar, usually from a halted fermentation. Alcohol levels are generally low, sometimes even in the single digits.

The best regions for Michigan Riesling

For quality grape-growing regions in Michigan, we look to Traverse Wine Coast and Lake Michigan Shore, located in the northwest and southwest corners of the state, respectively. Michigan, shaped like a mitten (or mitt) has 5,200 kilometres of the nation’s largest freshwater coastlines. ‘We have a range of Riesling styles in Michigan. Including more commonly recognised late harvest or sweeter Rieslings, but also dry in style and similar to the highest class Trocken and Alsatian producers,’ says Emily Dockery, executive director of the Michigan Wine Collaborative.

Home to nearly 40 wineries, the Traverse Wine Coast in the north includes two peninsulas moderated by the massive waters of Lake Michigan. The Leelanau and Old Mission Peninsula wine trails both provide optimal expressions of winemaking. They showcase the influence of the lake with very fruit-forward wines. These two peninsulas, north on either side of Traverse City, are responsible for 55% of the state’s production.

In the southwest corner of the state, with 130km of coastline is the Lake Michigan Shore AVA. With 15 winery members, it accounts for approximately 40% of the state’s production. This region is home to the oldest and longest-running winery in the state, St. Julian, founded in 1921. The area is slightly warmer than in the north, giving it an extra two to three weeks for the growing season.

Says Adam McBride, president of the Lake Michigan Shore Wine Trail and owner/winemaker at Hickory Creek Winery: ‘While refreshing acidity is constant across Michigan Rieslings, the wines in the Lake Michigan Shore seem to have a bit more texture and deeper fruit notes. We’re getting more peach, pear, apple and orange phenolics here compared to lighter citrus like lemon and lime in the northern AVAs.’

How Michigan Riesling tastes

The cool-climate wines wines of Michigan have a strong backbone of acidity and fruit-forward aromas and flavours, specifically with Riesling. As is common with the variety, it is vinified from dry to sweet, including botrytised and ice wine styles. McBride says: ‘The constant characteristics across Michigan Rieslings are bright acidity, lower alcohol and aromatic stone fruit and citrus notes. Michigan Rieslings are refreshing, easy to drink and meant to be paired with food.’

Pairing Riesling with food

With the proximity of Lake Michigan, local freshwater fish is a plentiful and a natural pairing with Michigan Riesling. Simple grilled fish from the lake, including salmon and trout, works well with a dry Riesling with a small hint of residual sugar. For a more flavour-packed fish dish such as honey garlic salmon, an off-dry Riesling gives a nice interplay of sweetness and acidity to cut through the sweetness of the sauce.

The most common pairing with Riesling is any mention of ‘spicy Asian food’. More specifically, the high acidity and slight residual sugar in a Michigan Riesling can counteract and balance the spice from dishes such as gochujang noodles, Thai coconut curry, or a spicier curry vindaloo.

Cherries, as an agricultural crop, reign in Michigan. It is the number one state for cherry production in the country. Spiced cherry chutney over roasted pork tenderloin pairs well with a dry Michigan Riesling. On the sweeter side of things, a sweet Riesling or ice wine paired with a fresh-baked cherry cobbler shows how the tartness in the cherries plus the acidity in the Riesling can match each other.

Best Michigan Rieslings to try

This selection of bottles covers the styles and regions mentioned above. In general, the Rieslings from Michigan are affordable and approachable.

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Supermarket own-label wines feature frequently in Decanter’s recommendations and reviews, because they provide notable consistency and value for money.

While it is difficult to make great Champagne cheaply – it is a labour-intensive process, after all – there are still gems to be found on supermarket shelves under their own-label brands.

If you’re looking for recognisable names, the grandes marques can of course also be found in supermarkets.

Scroll down to see the top value UK supermarket Champagne to seek out

There are are also impressive Champagne alternatives in supermarkets that go beyond Prosecco, such as Crémant de Bourgogne and English Sparkling. Find the Decanter team’s recommendations here.

Looking for bubbles and feeling adventurous? Check out these 15 offbeat sparkling wines

The UK remains one of the strongest export markets for Champagne, only second behind the US, with 28,061,766 bottles exported to the UK in 2022.

The selection below lists Champagnes from most of the key UK supermarkets, including Aldi, Booths, Co-op, Lidl, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.

Champagne styles

There are a number of factors which influence the style of Champagne, including grapes, vintage, colour and sweetness.

The majority of the supermarket Champagne in the list below is non-vintage, with a few vintage examples.

Blanc de Blancs Champagnes offer the pure, citrus character of Chardonnay, whereas Blanc de Noirs offers a richer, red-fruited character, like Waitrose own Blanc de Noirs Brut made from 100% Pinot Noir.

Prepared to splash out this Christmas? See the Best vintage and non-vintage Champagnes to try

The best supermarket Champagne to try:

The wines below have been tasted and rated by the Decanter editorial team, and are ordered by colour and score.

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Waitrose 10 Fine Wines at £10: tasted and rated

Best Sherries: top bottles to try

There are plenty of sparkling choices if you’re selecting bubbles for the festive season. From Champagne, Crémant and Prosecco to English sparkling wines. But there’s only one type of fizz that combines signature Spanish style with quality and value.

Cava, Spain’s flagship sparkler, offers something for everyone. World-class gran reservas and vintage wines will please fine wine lovers. Meanwhile great-value non-vintage bottles are ideal for bargain-hunters. Many UK retailers offer great value own-label options too.

What’s more, with its own trio of grape varieties, Cava has a gastronomic character that makes it an ideal choice for Christmas meals. Serve it as an aperitif or pair it with a variety of dishes (see below).

How is Cava made?

For a sparkling wine to be classified as Cava it must be made using the traditional method (also known as méthode Champenoise). In this process the second fermentation happens in the bottle.

Cavas must also be made within specific areas approved for Cava DO (Denominación de Origen) production. Unlike other DOs, however, the defined area for Cava production is not contiguous. While most Cava is produced in Catalunya – with the village of Sant Sadurní d’Anoia as its epicentre – it can also be made in other Spanish provinces. These include Aragón, Euskadi, Extremadura, La Rioja, Navarra and València.

Rather than origin, what truly differentiates Cava from other Spanish sparkling wines is production method and regulations.

This scattered geography has caused intense debate within the Cava DO itself in the past. Some producers opposed a system that, in their opinion, should focus more on terroir. As a result some famous names, such as Raventós i Blanc, chose to leave the DO and lobby for region-specific classification. Similarly the Corpinnat group from Penedés is now making wines under a new quality label.

Others chose to push for change from inside the DO, which resulted in a new classification introduced in 2017: Cava de Paraje Calificado. Cava’s top classification, this is for single-vineyard Cava from an exceptional vineyard. To qualify, vines must be at least 10 years old, with lower yields. All wines must be brut, extra brut or brut nature, and bottle-aged on the lees for at least 36 months.

There is also a requirement for full traceability, which means all Cava de Paraje Calificado vineyards must be owned by the winery or contracted on a long-term basis. If all of these criteria are met, the Cava is tasted blind by a panel of independent wine judges and experts. Finally winemakers have to explain to the judging panel what makes their vineyard a unique terroir.

Which grapes are used to make Cava?

Another key part of Cava’s identity is grape varieties. Most renowned traditional-method production areas focus on the Champagne trio: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier. However Cava has its own flagship varieties, which impart distinctive aromatic and textural characters.

While Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are also permitted in the Cava DO, the traditional and most commonly used varieties are:

• Macabeu (also called Macabeo or Viura) – Widely grown across Spain as well as in the French Roussillon. Although relatively neutral in flavour, it plays an important role in blends by adding body and texture.
• Xarel·lo – The grape largely responsible for the trademark herbal perfume of the best Cavas. In addition to lime blossom and hay-like aromas it adds acidity and earthiness to blends, therefore being essential to the age-worthiness of top quality Cavas.
• Parellada – Grown almost exclusively in Catalunya, Parellada contributes with fruit aromas, especially green apple and citrus notes. There are single-varietal examples of Cava that use just one of the above, but blends are by far the most common, making the most of the characters imparted by each variety.

For Cava rosado (rosé), Garnacha, Pinot Noir, Mataró (Mourvèdre) and the local Trepat are the most commonly used red grapes. They are often blended with at least one of the flagship whites.

Malvasía, known locally as Subirat Parent, is increasingly used to make Cava dulce (sweet) and semi-dulce (semi-sweet).

Is Cava good value for money? 

It’s true that Cava delivers great value: you can pick up reliably good bottles for under £10. But it’s worth investing a bit more money to explore some of the higher quality Cavas. Reserva, gran reserva and Cava de Paraje Calificado (single-vineyard wines) are well worth seeking out.

The fact that Cava is often dismissed in favour of its traditional method sparkling counterparts, especially Champagne, means that great wines are unfairly overlooked. Wine lovers are missing an opportunity to discover a different, specific expression of fizz, produced by very talented winemakers. It’s worth exploring the top Cava producers. All of them make wines with outstanding ageability.

On the flip side, Cava has been somewhat immune to the branding and pricing games which have inflated prices elsewhere. Wine lovers can benefit from a great value-for-money option, across tiers, quality levels and price points. So if you’re looking for a great fizz for the festive season consider Cava; but look at the top, not the lower shelf!

What can you pair Cava with?

Because it’s generally quite dry, with most wines falling in the brut category, Cava is particularly versatile when it comes to food pairing.

It makes a wonderful festive aperitif, no doubt. But try it with a selection of canapés, buttered lobster or a chocolate-based dessert and you won’t be disappointed.

Extra-brut and brut styles of the traditional white blends go well with meat- and fish-based recipes. Rosados will pair better with dairy and/or rich sauces. They’re a good alternative if you are having a vegetarian or vegan Christmas banquet.

If your festive table features more exotic flavours, try pairing Cava semi-dulce with Asian-inspired dishes. It’s also a surprisingly good match for your Christmas cheese selection.

Whichever style you try, here are a few suggestions to get you started…

Top Cavas for Christmas

Recommendations by Decanter’s editorial team.

Wines ordered by score, in descending order. 

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In my opinion Sherry is the single-most underrated style of wine from Spain. Even among wine lovers it suffers from misconceptions about taste (‘It’s too sweet!’), how to serve it (‘In a tiny glass from your granny’s cupboard?’) and strength (‘It’s fortified: is it as strong as a spirit?’).

But as any Sherry aficionado will tell you, this style of wine is as nuanced, enjoyable and complex as any fine wine from Spain. In fact it isn’t even a single style – but we’ll come to that later…

Sherry comes from Southern Spain, in the so-called ‘Golden Triangle’ of vineyards that lie between the towns of Jerez, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María. Sherries are fortified wines, meaning that a small amount of grape spirit (brandy) is added to them, after fermentation, to give them greater longevity and stability.

What is Sherry?

Sherry is an aged white wine that’s matured by being passed through a series of 600-litre barrels, in a system known as a solera. The solera system allows for fractional blending of the wines. The barrels in a solera are arranged in different tiers or groups, called criaderas, according to their age.

The oldest criadera holds wines that are ready to be bottled. When wine is removed from a barrel for bottling, that barrel will then be topped up with an equal amount of wine from the first criadera, which holds the youngest wines.

The first criadera will be topped up from the second criadera; the second from the third; and so on. This means that any Sherry will be a blend from different years.

Where you see an age statement on a label, such as 40 years, this will be an approximate average age. The blend will certainly contain wines much older than 40 years, but also some younger.

The Sherry styles

There are two broad styles of Sherry. The first is known as ‘biological’ and refers to wines that are aged under a thick layer of yeasts, called the flor. This flor prevents the wine from being exposed to oxygen. But it also interacts with the wine, eating sugars and other chemical compounds, and producing acetaldehydes, which give Sherry its distinctive ripe apple aroma.

The second broad style of Sherry is ‘oxidative’. These wines are aged without their layer of flor, so in contact with oxygen. Oxidative ageing gives Sherries a deeper colour and a complex nutty character.

Within these two broad types, the Sherry category is then broken down further into distinctive styles, depending on the exact method of ageing.

Six Sherry styles to know

Fino is made from the white Palomino grape (see above) and fortified soon after fermentation to 15% abv. It is then aged under flor in a solera, for a minimum of two years. The resulting style of Sherry is fresh, pungently aromatic and very dry.

Manzanilla is initially made in the same way as fino. The difference is that it has to be aged in a solera in Sanlúcar de Barrameda. Here the humid sea air encourages a denser layer of flor. Similar in taste profile to a fino though the sea adds a salty character to this delicate wine.

Amontillado starts life as a fino before undergoing further ageing without its protective layer of flor. For some Sherry lovers Amontillado offers the best of both worlds, combining the freshness of fino with more evolved textural, nutty and creamy notes.

Oloroso Full is is aged oxidatively (without its blanket of flor) producing a Sherry that’s full-bodied, relatively high in alcohol and packed with flavours. Olorosos are dry and savoury, but they can seem to show a hint of sweetness thanks to the ageing process.

Palo Cortado is one of the rarest Sherry styles, which is a product of natural deficiencies in the flor layer. Traditionally it begins life as a fino, but casks that fail to develop a complete covering of flor are fortified to 17-18% abv, then aged oxidatively like an oloroso. In style, palo cortado combines amontillado’s aromatics with the fuller structure of an oloroso. The results can be buttery and nutty, with a full body, dried fruits and a tang of salinity.

Pedro Ximénez or PX, as it’s also known, is an indulgently sweet dessert wine. Thick, luscious and syrupy, with flavours of Christmas pudding, it’s an after-dinner treat to be paired with chocolate, coffee or cheese. Or simply pour it over ice cream for a decadent dessert.

How to store Sherry

When a Sherry is bottled, it’s ready to drink. But it can be kept for future consumption. Fino and manzanilla can be kept in a sealed bottle for up to 18 months after purchase. Amontillado, oloroso and palo cortado for up to 36 months. And PX for up to two years.

Like other wines, unopened bottles of Sherry should be stored in a cool, dry, dark place. But unlike other wines they should be stored upright in order to minimise oxidation via contact with the cork.

Once you have opened a bottle of Sherry, it will keep for longer than a bottle of regular wine because it’s been fortified with spirit. But as with any wine, it will start to deteriorate once it has been opened, so reseal the bottle and keep it in the fridge.

Opened bottles of fino and manzanilla will keep in the fridge for a week. Amontillado and palo cortado for up to three weeks. Oloroso will last for up to six weeks. And PX for up to two months.

How to serve Sherry

Always serve Sherry chilled. Enjoy fino and manzanilla at 5-7°C. Amontillado, oloroso and palo cortado should be served at 12-14°C and PX at 14°C .

Finally, Sherry is a white wine, so serve it in a wine glass – particularly if you are drinking it with food. In fact Sherry is one of the most food-friendly wines out there, as well as being a great aperitif (fino and manzanilla) or dessert wine (PX).

Best Sherries to try

This selection of bottles covers the six styles mentioned above, with Sherries to suit every palate and pocket. Discover top-scoring expressions from leading producers such as Bodegas Barbadillo, Lustau and Hidalgo. Alongside some great value own-label bottles from supermarkets and specialist merchants, with prices starting from as little as £4.99 for Aldi’s Specially Selected Pedro Ximénez. Proof that Sherry is brilliant value for money!

Related articles

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• Know your Sherry styles
• Exploring en rama Sherries

It’s no secret that when it comes to finding quality wines with complexity and character at affordable price points, Languedoc is ripe for the picking.

Value isn’t its only calling card, but it is one of the main reasons Languedoc remains so exciting – you can discover new wine styles and experiment with grape varieties you’ve never tried before all without breaking the bank.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for the 10 best value picks from the Languedoc report 2023

See the Languedoc report 2023 homepage

Individual appellation analysis:

Limoux | Corbières & Minervois | La Clape | St-Chinian | Faugères | Picpoul de Pinet | Terrasses du Larzac | Pic St Loup

Here is a breakdown of the top five value wines from each appellation from the Languedoc report 2023.

If any of the following wines are available to buy at retail in the UK, this has been indicated in the wine’s tasting note and most are £20 or less. Of those that are not available in the UK, I have selected wines that retail in France at €15 or less, except for appellations such as Pic St Loup and Terrasses du Larzac, where the wines representing the best score to price value have been selected.

Limoux

Clos Teisseire, Vue Sur Ciel, Haute Vallée de l’Aude 2022 – 92 points

Domaine Rosier, Cuvée Ma Maison, Blanquette de Limoux 2021 – 91 points

Domaine J Laurens Clos des Demoiselles Brut Crémant de Limoux 2021 – 90 points

Domaine Begude, L’Etoile, Limoux 2022 – 92 points

Plô Roucarels, La Petite Rive, Haute Vallée de l’Aude 2022 – 90 points

Corbières & Minervois

Domaine Py, Troisième Cuvée, Corbieres 2022 – 91 points

Château Beauregard Mirouze, Campana, Corbières 2022 – 90 points

Clos de L’Anhel, Le Lolo de L’Anhel, Corbières 2022 – 92 points

Domaine Combe Blanche, La Chandelière, Minervois La Livinière 2020 – 93 points

Château Maris, La Touge, Minervois La Livinière 2020 – 94 points

Picpoul de Pinet

Château Petit Roubié, L’O Sur Lie Patience, Picpoul de Pinet 2022– 92 points

Château Petit Roubié, Picpoul de Pinet 2022 – 92 points

Domaine Belle Mare, Classique, Picpoul de Pinet 2022 – 92 points

Font-Mars, Picpoul de Pinet 2022 – 92 points

Domaine Félines-Jourdan, Picpoul de Pinet 2022 – 91 points

St-Chinian

Domaine La Linquière, Fleur de Lin, St-Chinian 2021 – 93 points

Les Vignobles Foncalieu, Petit Paradis, St-Chinian 2022 – 88 points

Cave de Roquebrun, Les Fiefs d’Aupenac, St-Chinian 2020 – 93 points

Clos la Rivière, St-Chinian 2019 – 93 points

Clos Bagatelle, Sentiers de Bagatelle, Colline, St-Chinian 2020 – 90 points

Faugères

Domaine Ollier-Taillefer, Allegro, Faugères 2022 – 93 points

Mas Olivier, Blanc, Faugères 2022 – 90 points

Domaine de Cébène, Ex Arena, Faugères 2022 – 93 points

Château Chênaie, Conviction, Faugères 2021 – 93 points

Mas Olivier, Sélection, Faugères 2020 – 92 points

Terrasses du Larzac

Domaine Plan de l’Homme, Cuvée Khi, Terrasses du Larzac 2020 – 93 points

Mas de Cap Daniel, Les Cormiers, Terrasses du Larzac 2021 – 91 points

Castelbarry, Les Raisins d’Y Croire, Terrasses du Larzac 2019 – 90 points

Château de Jonquieres, Lansade, Terrasses du Larzac 2021 – 90 points

Mas d’Amile, Le Petitou, Terrasses du Larzac 2021 – 90 points

Pic St Loup

Château de Lascaux, Carra Rosé, Pic St-Loup 2022 – 93 points

Château de Lancyre, Vieilles Vignes, Pic St-Loup 2020 – 93 points

Le Chemin des Rêves, L’Optimiste, Pic St-Loup 2021 – 93 points

Château de Cazeneuve, Les Calcaires, Pic St-Loup 2021 – 92 points

Domaine de Villeneuve, La Muse, Pic St-Loup 2021– 92 points

La Clape

Château Rouquette sur Mer Cuvée Arpege – 92 points

Château La Negly La Brise Marine – 92 points

Cave La Clape L’Empreinte – 90 points

Sarrat de Goundy, Le Moulin 2021 – 90 points

Château Combe des Ducs, Pierres de Mer 2021 – 90 points

See the Languedoc latest releases score tables:

All top-scoring wines

All top-scoring white wines

All top-scoring red wines

Individual appellation analyis:

Limoux | Corbières & Minervois | La Clape | St-Chinian | Faugères | Picpoul de Pinet | Terrasses du Larzac | Pic St Loup

The 10 best value picks from the Languedoc report 2023:

The wines below are listed by style then score.

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Champagne Bruno Paillard is one of the region’s most distinctive small houses, founded in 1981 by a personality who has remained at the very top of Champagne’s machinery over the last 30 years, and is one of the region’s most prominent statesmen.

Bruno Paillard has been closely involved with protecting Champagne’s name around the world, not only as former communications director for the Comité Champagne (the region’s governing body), but also as chairman of Lanson-BCC (a group which includes not only Champagne Lanson but also a number of other prominent houses such as Philipponnat and De Venoge).

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for two new Bruno Paillard releases

If the story began in 1981 with Paillard selling his vintage Jaguar for 50,000 francs to found the house, then 2018 marks an equally significant year: the first year when Paillard’s daughter Alice, who returned to the estate in 2007, took full control at the blending table. Such handovers in Champagne are often marked by a new cuvée. Among the many temptations in the cellar, it was the idea of a multi-vintage blanc de noirs, sourced only from grand cru villages, that won through.

‘There are already beautiful blanc de noirs in Champagne, sometimes on the opulent or vinous side,’ says Alice Paillard. ‘Often we know them from the southern side of the Montagne de Reims, but this was not the idea for this blanc de noirs…the idea was to put forward the northern terroirs,’ she says.

The effect, Paillard believes, is to offer a surprisingly fresh take on Pinot Noir, offering citrussy aromas that ‘might not be the first aromas you would expect from blanc de noirs,’ she says.

The villages of Verzy, Verzenay and Mailly make up two thirds of the wine, while the final third is from the south-facing grand cru of Bouzy. The first release, based on 2018, contains just 12.5% reserve wine, although this will double with the 2019 base and will increase a little from there onwards.

This is a cuvée that hints at a slightly cooler, quieter aesthetic than is sometimes found at a property perhaps best known for open, demonstrative wines.

The new Nec Plus Ultra (NPU) Rosé 2008, however, served as a reminder that the house’s heart still beats at the dining table, the wine matching strides with dishes that might not come immediately to mind for many Champagnes, such as venison.

Made by adding a small amount of red wine to the house’s existing white prestige cuvée Nec Plus Ultra 2008, it is a wine of startling density and complexity from a vintage whose innate tension and freshness complements the style.

The Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru Extra Brut retails in the UK for £66, and the Nec Plus Ultra Rosé 2008 will retail for £320.

Tasting notes and scores for the new Bruno Paillard releases

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Online wine retailer Naked Wines has made significant steps in improving and developing its range over the last few years. Buying director Matt Smith and wine director Ray O’Connor MW have continued to plug what they saw as key gaps in the range across various classical regions, as they now look to introduce a broader set of wine styles to fulfil the tastes of new consumers.

The company uses a crowd-funding business model to fund production costs for winemakers across the world, providing its members, dubbed ‘Angels’, with exclusively made wine directly from its producers.

Scroll down for the top 30 buys from Naked Wines this autumn

Reports of slowing sales and £15m loss

Despite an increase in revenue and subscriber numbers during the pandemic (which shot from 260,000 to 350,000 in the UK), current UK membership numbers now sit around 300,000.

‘We haven’t been aggressively acquiring new customers recently,’ said Smith, ‘we’ve been focusing on providing an excellent experience to our members. Driving innovation, finding quality wines and spirits, broadening the range to a degree, plugging some gaps, and keeping things really interesting [for members].’

The delayed release of the company’s results for the financial year up to April 2023, published on 19 September 2023, shows a £15m loss, despite total sales being up 1% year on year.

The results also show that the company has had a ‘slower than expected’ start to the new trading year, and share prices have dropped significantly.

Founder and former CEO Rowan Gormley, who stepped down at the start of 2020, returned in July 2023 as the company’s new chairman. In a letter to shareholders, he said that trading conditions are tough. ‘High inflation, higher taxes on alcohol and falling disposable incomes has put pressure on sales and costs,’ he said.

Unavoidable price increases

Despite the company absorbing costs amid rising inflation and increases across the supply chain, the latest UK duty rise has not left the company unscathed.

‘We’ve tried to offset as much as possible, but when the new duty came in [in August 2023] – there’s nothing you can do,’ said O’Connor, ‘it’s a new landscape’.

Retail prices per bottle have therefore had to increase, which is being seen widely across the sector.

Tasting the range

Despite these price rises, there are still many wines to be found that offer excellent value for money.

Over the last year Naked Wines has ‘made good progress in filling in gaps in the range,’ said Smith, bringing in 19 new Bordeaux wines, as well as classical styles from the northern Rhône and Alsace.

The retailer has long been strong in wines from eastern Europe, and O’Connor said ‘Angels ask us a lot for wines from Croatia’. Check out the Malvazija Istarska from Kabola, the retailer’s new producer from the Istria region.

Highlighting under-the-radar regions is one of Naked Wines’ calling cards, and it has brought in two delicious new wines from the Custoza appellation within Italy’s Veneto region. For under £20, the Tenuta Monte Fitti Custoza Superiore has upfront aromas of ripe fleshy peach, apricot kernel, marzipan and preserved lemon and is easy to drink, succulent and lip smacking. Or for a little more money the Monte del Frà Sexaginta Custoza Superiore offers a whole other level of power and luxury, showing a real Burgundian elegance and refinement.

Chile has fared particularly well in the recommendations below, with one white and two reds to seek out. ‘It’s Chile but not as you know it,’ said O’Connor, and he’s right; all three showcase single grape varieties and are excellent value, with a lot of complexity and concentration on show.

The Green Grape logo

This year Naked Wines launched its Green Grape logo. ‘By working closely with winemakers we’ve reviewed how they have been trying to minimise their impact right from grape to glass,’ said Luke Landers, the company’s senior sustainability manager.

Of the 600 wines in its range, more than 100 have been awarded the new logo. ‘We plan to continue to develop the framework and reflect best practice as the green agenda moves forward in wine,’ said Landers.

The company has made some headline-grabbing environmental commitments, for example saving 500 tonnes of glass in 2022, and as of summer 2023 it has lightweighted 6.5 million bottles in an effort to cut its carbon emissions.

The company has also recently announced that it is making a growing number of its wines capsule-less, removing the plastic or foil capsule from 11 of its wines to date, which should be up to 17 by the end of March next year.

‘More than a quarter of a million bottles will be capsule-less – that’ll help us avoid more than 230kg of unnecessary packaging,’ said Landers.

Decanter Retailer Awards: Runner Up

It has been announced today that Naked Wines is the runner up in the Best Large Online Retailer category at the Decanter Retailer Awards 2023.

See more about the Decanter Retailer Awards here.

Pricing structure

Naked Wines displays both a member price and a non-member price for most wines on its website. All wines are benchmarked and tasted blind against similar wines available on the UK market. The non-member price is therefore determined by the retail price of these comparable wines – what Naked deems the market price.

This can range from anywhere between 0% and 60% more than the Angel’s price, depending on what comparable wines they have been benchmarked against. Some wines on the site are ‘Angel exclusives’ and can only be purchased as a member.

Being a member also provides a platform for customers to engage and converse directly with the winemakers themselves. Through its online wine community, members rate wines and interact with winemakers, and their feedback ultimately decides whether Naked continues to sell the wines.

See tasting notes and scores for 30 top finds from Naked Wines:

The selection below includes both member-exclusive wines and wines available to non-members. Where the wine is exclusive to members, this has been indicated in the tasting note.

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‘Everyone deserves a perfect partner, as a nice bottle of wine deserves the right glass,’ says Marcello Neri, head sommelier of Kensington’s Launceston Place restaurant. However, unlike spectacles, where one pair ordinarily suffices to bring a multitude of subjects into sharper view, humanity has managed to further complicate the subject of wine by designing a dizzying array of glasses to enhance it, whether they flatter specific varietals, styles or bottles at a particular stage of maturity.

In this guide, you will find such specialised tools as well as, for those on a budget, with limited storage, or incurable indecision, excellent one size fits all options. However, common to every glass included is the tapering, tulip shaped nature of the generously proportioned bowl which, true wine lovers unite on, helps build and nurture aromas and, when swirled, keeps the liquid within from spilling out.

Such a form also applies too to glasses for sparkling wines. As Nick Baker, founder of merchant, The Finest Bubble, advises, ‘remember, the Champagne flute can be beautiful if you want to watch bubbles, but it is hopeless if you want to enjoy the aromatics hence we recommend people throw them away!’ Stephen Duckett, co-founder of England’s Hundred Hills sparkling wine estate agrees. ‘Designed to mask poor quality Champagnes, flutes were never expected to become ubiquitous, but cheap Champagnes and Prosecco accelerated the need for them in modern times.’

And best, too, to avoid the saucer-shaped coupes. These, say Charles Goemaere, executive director of Comité Champagne, were popular in the 1920s for their stable base when carried on trays. ‘However, their shape rapidly dissipates Champagne bubbles.’

Best luxury all-rounder for sparkling wines:

Lehmann Grand Champagne Mouth-Blown Ultralight ((£94 for two, The Finest Bubble)

Both the shapely Lehmann Grand Champagne and subsequent Synergie are informed by self-described ‘oenoconsultant’, Philippe Jamesse, a sommelier in Champagne for 30 years. Of the Grand Champagne, while its machine-made counterpart is ‘okay’ says Nick Baker, the mouth-blown version, which takes a minimum of six master glassmakers to manufacture one item, is ‘exquisite’. These ‘offer a lightness and delicacy without being too fragile.’ The Grand Champagne’s chief attribute: to bring forward the reductive elements in a sparkling wine and help suppress oxidation.

Best for prestige sparkling rosé and saignée:

Lehmann Jamesse Synergie 60cl Mouth-Blown Ultralight (£88 for two, The Finest Bubble)

‘There is rarely much to be gained going any larger, though prestige cuvée rose will nearly always benefit from a larger bowl,’ notes Baker, as seen in these more Burgundy-shaped glasses which coax forth red fruit, including those from the rarer, redder saignée style of fizz.

Best affordable all-rounder for sparkling wines:

Riedel Veritas (£43.95 for two, The Riedel Shop)

According to chairman of the Champagne and Sparkling Wine World Championships, Tom Stevenson, the machine-made Riedel Veritas is a vessel which adeptly assists in ‘swirling, nosing and assessing’ hence its use in the competition. It also happens to be the ‘go-to fizz glass’ for Riedel’s MD, Stephen McGraw when he is enjoying English sparkling wines at home.

Best for younger whites:

NUDE Stem Zero Master (£49 apiece, Nunido)

At once wafer-thin and lightweight, this Turkish designed, handmade glass brings the drinker in closer contact with the liquid. It is debatably less showy than a Zalto Universal and remarkably tougher than its looks suggest thanks to the ‘Ion Shielding Technology’ deployed in which, according to the manufacturer, ‘larger ions replace smaller ions in the glass surface, suppressing the micro-fissures that cause glass to crack.’

Best for more developed whites:

NUDE Stem Zero Full Bodied White Wine (£48 apiece, Bonbinate)

With a broad diameter of 125mm, this large but lightweight, again, handmade glass encourages the wine to interact with the air while notes of oak and the backbone of acidity, are simultaneously nursed.

Best all-rounder:

Jancis Robinson x Richard Brendon (£90 for two, The Finest Bubble)

A graduate of Kingston School of Art, Richard Brendon often looks to the past, as per his ‘1650’ collection of just 24 seal impressed decanters crafted by classical British glassblower, Simon Moore. In contrast, his collaboration with Master of Wine, Jancis Robinson OBE is much more contemporary. Conveniently intended to degust every style of wine imaginable, their wine glass holds one sixth of a bottle at its widest point, tapering to an undistracting, thin rim. For Bastille Day, the English-designed collection, which is handmade in Slovenia, will be filled with sparkling wine from Stephen Duckett’s aforementioned English estate, Hundred Hills of Henley, as the toast to strengthen an Anglo-French entente at Raymond Blanc OBE’s Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons.

Best for younger reds:

NUDE Ghost Zero Belly (€98 apiece, NUDE)

Our third entry from NUDE is the most visually striking so far, evoking in shape the Mr. Greedy protagonist immortalised by children’s author, Roger Hargreaves. The voluptuous, handmade Ghost Zero Belly captures the wine in its ‘belly’ and then vigorously funnels the ensuing aromas along the chimney. Tactile, it is also a good glass to ‘hug’ to bring cool wines to a warmer temperature, if required.

Best for more developed reds:

L’Esthete (£237 per six, Wineware)

Antoine Schvartz founded the Sydonios company ‘from a piece of paper’ five years ago. ‘We started with one year of scientific research involving more than 100 wine professionals, reading all the papers written on the impact glass has on wine tasting, meeting the best winemakers from each French appellation.’ The resulting handmade L’Esthète glass, which sleekly tames tannins in young wine and coaxes nuances from older renditions without exposing the wine to a shocking amount of air, is now used by ‘around 80% of the Grand Cru Classes in Bordeaux,’ says Schvartz. While these are currently mouth-blown in Bohemia, Schvartz is due to open a factory in France later this year. Resourcefully, he intends to release ‘the Unperfect glass’ in September, ‘which has a bubble or more at a discount of around 35%.’

Best varietal specific glass:

Riedel Winewings Pinot Noir/Nebbiolo (£29 apiece, Riedel)

Although arguably the least visually appealing entry in this guide given its vast, wobbly helmet-like look, our second entry from Riedel comes from the machine-made Winewings range. This is so-called after the way the broad base of its bowl extends like an aircraft’s wings. The Pinot Noir/Nebbiolo glass however positively transforms the sometimes-shy Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo, especially when the latter is youthfully tannic.

Best for sheer luxury:

Lalique 100 Points Burgundy (£140 apiece, Lalique)

‘Once a customer has used a Lalique wine glass, they always come back and buy into the wider collection,’ says Frederick Fischer, Managing Director of Lalique UK. The 100 points collection was designed in collaboration with the wine personality, James Suckling, and takes pride of place at the freshly Michelin-starred Lalique restaurant at Scotland’s Glenturret distillery. Lalique creative director, Marc Larminaux says it can take as many as 20 workers five days to perfect each glass. While the 100 points collection runs to 15 designs, characterised by a tactile, frosted, pillar-like stem, I particularly rate the Burgundy glass which lifts Syrah as well its raison d’être, Pinot Noir.

Best for value:

Villeroy & Boch Manufacture Rock (41.52 for four, Dawsons Department Store)

At around £10 per glass if you shop carefully, this machine-made range is designed to dovetail with a corresponding matt finish porcelain range which evokes slate in its look. The white wine version is a good all-rounder for still wines, and has an interesting, gently diffusing black stem leading to an ample bowl.

Best for city dwellers:

Waterford Elegance Stemless (£65 for two, Waterford)

Ireland based Waterford is today owned by Finland’s oldest company, Fiskars (1649), which is famous for its sturdy, practical, orange handled scissors. Also rational in design are these hand-made stemless glasses made to a new crystal formula, which feel generations away from Waterford’s much imitated, deeply etched Lismore design. At only 11 centimetres high, these stemless glasses are easy to store in the tightest of cupboards, while the dimple in the base provides a grip point and aesthetically evokes the punt of a wine bottle. Despite their apparent informality, the Slovenian crystal brings a sense of occasion to a daily pour.

Best for blind tasting:

Spiegelau Authentis Blind Tasting (£71.40 for four, RoyalDesign)

Now owned by Riedel, Germany’s Spiegelau brand dates to at least 1521. Sprayed black to dramatic effect, these shiny, machine-made glasses are intended to wholly strip a wine of its visual cues. The results can be humbling if it transpires a so-called professional cannot tell their Riesling from a rosé.

Best for sweet wines:

Rochini Oekks Digestif (€216 per six, Rochini)

This precise, tall, hand-made glass, which works for sweeter styles of wine, including the full canon of sherry, is part of a range of ‘feather-light hand-blown eye-catchers’ according to Austrian designer, Hannes Tiefenthaler. All glasses in the core range adhere to a harmonious height. ‘Every glass has the same height leading to a well-balanced feeling on the table,’ adds Tiefenthaler. Quirkily and effectively, at Farringdon’s classy Persian restaurant, The Drunken Butler, owner, Yuma Hashemi delights in serving his signature antique Negronis, free from ice, in these glasses.

Best for a picnic:

YETI Rambler wine tumbler (£25 apiece, Yeti)

Adhering to their motto, ‘built for the wild’, the Texas based outdoor living specialist, YETI, has created a strong, puncture and rust resistant, machine-made stainless-steel vessel for wine with an optional lid. And being double wall insulated, no condensation will form, even if you like your juice as cool as these revolutionary vials look.

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Port will be celebrated across the world on 10th September. National Port Day offers the perfect opportunity to explore the many styles of this famous fortified wine.

In his guide to Port styles Richard Mayson explains that there is a Port for all occasions, if you know what you’re looking for. ‘Often thought of as an after-dinner, fireside drink, Port can be enjoyed in multiple ways depending on the character of the wine,’ he says.

Scroll down to discover 12 top-scoring Ports reviewed by Decanter’s team of experts

Take a look at his ‘Know your Port styles – The Decanter guide’ for a formidable look at the Port pyramid, which explains each different style from white Port (often served with tonic water to make an alternative version of a gin & tonic) through to vintage Port and everything in between. It will point you to the right Port for any occasion, winter or summer.

All Port comes from Portugal’s Douro Valley, which is one of the oldest regulated wine regions in the world, with demarcation dating back to 1756. Given the myriad grape varieties native to Portugal more than 100 different varieties are permitted in port production, but in reality just a handful are used.

For red Ports Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), Tinto Cão and Touriga Francesa are the key varieties, while for white Ports, Viosinho, Malvasia Fina, Códega and Rabigato are the most common.

Whatever style you prefer, make sure you enjoy a glass on National Port Day.

To get you in the mood, here’s a selection of recently reviewed Ports.

12 top Ports to try on National Port Day

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While different wine styles and market shares seem to have waxed and waned over the last few tumultuous years, no wine save sparkling has shown the resilience of rosé. From New York State to California, there are pink wines for every palate. While often cast as ‘porch pounders’, the level of rosé’s sophistication has risen over the last few years to make it well-suited for more refined meals and summer barbecues and, in a few cases, even worthy of ageing.

Scroll down to see notes and scores for 20 US rosé wines

A decade in pink

Rosé has had quite the decade. A global trend, not merely confined to Provence or the Instagram-savvy influencers of Brooklyn or Portland, Oregon, rosé has ruled and for quite some time. The high watermark for rosé tends to be seasonal, with sales increasing in the warmer months, and as a planet, we’re nothing if not warmer. Celebrities have launched their own rosé brands, from John Bon Jovi to Sarah Jessica Parker, and perhaps most famously, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s Miraval brand.

Pink wines have never been cooler, particularly as temperatures rise, and their market share and production growth have both been astronomical. No one makes or sells more rosé than the French of course. In a report from beverage industry data company Provi, the presence of Provence rosé in the US market increased by 7,100% (that is not a typo) from 2001 to 2016.

The sales of rosé have bucked all the wine trends in both still and sparkling categories. While younger generations may be turned off by some wines and are choosing alcoholic seltzer, they have not turned their backs on rosé. According to Provi, three of the top five wine growth categories are comprised of rosé.

Myriad styles

Stylistically, Americans have settled on dry rosé in the style of the wines of Provence after a long love affair with the sickly sweet White Zinfandel. However, style can vary within that range. Depending on how the wines are produced, they can appeal to a variety of drinkers. How a particular rosé is made will affect the texture, colour and the finished wine.

The three main methods of producing rosé wine are to make it via direct press, saignée, and – in a few cases – blending of red and white wines.

When rosé is made in the direct press method, red grapes are picked and crushed. The grape skins remain in contact with the juice until the desired level of colour is achieved. The grapes are typically harvested specifically to make rosé when made in this way.

The saignée method is a type of short maceration and the wine is actually a bi-product of red wine production. This involves bleeding a portion of pink-coloured juice out of a tank destined to make red wine. The juice has not been in contact with the grape skins for very long. It is typically very lightly coloured, depending on the grape variety and the desired hue of the finished rosé. In many cases, the remaining wine will go on to be made into red wine, though not necessarily always.

Sometimes rosés may use a small amount of red wine blended into a white wine. This approach is seen as non-traditional and more of a shortcut than a winemaking technique. Note that this method is not allowed in the majority of EU appellations (rosé Champagne is an important exception).

Below, find an array of rosés to choose from for all budgets.

20 US rosés to beat the heat

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So, the sun is beginning to shine with purpose and your thoughts are turning to sitting outside in a park or on the beach with a picnic. Will summer 2023 see a repeat of 2022’s heatwaves? Regardless, as the mercury rises, al fresco eating and drinking is going to be one of the main ways to socialise this summer.

As well as packing the antipasti, crudités and more snacks than strictly necessary, it makes sense to slip in a bottle or two.

Picnic wine essentials to pack

• A corkscrew. It sounds obvious, but without one you’ll be left resorting to that YouTube video you once saw about someone opening wine with a shoe. Screwcap wines are the obvious alternative, or think inside the box and discover how the quality of bag in box wines has gone through the roof in recent times. Or perhaps take a characterful sparkler.
• Ice or ice packs. If you’re going for white, rosé, sparkling or even a light red wine, then you’re probably going to need a way of keeping the wine cool. If you’re already out and about, head to the nearest shop and buy ice and salt.
• Glasses. Chances are that you won’t have the latest grape-specific wine glass to hand. Instead, plastic cups can do the job, at a stretch – if not too big or flimsy and the wine is kept cool and fresh. But real glass – even a simple tumbler – provides a better experience and the environment will thank you. Or, try out the growing trend for canned wines – we’ve even listed some of our recommended ones below.
• Consider ordering a picnic wine glass holder: Because life is too short to spend time balancing a wine glass on blades of grass.

But the question is, which wines should you take? We’ve rounded up some ideal picnic wines, rated by our experts.

If it’s sparkling wine you’re looking for, there’s a recommended Cava which shows ‘a twist of lime zestiness and mouthwatering acidity to keep it fresh and lively’. Or there are a raft of other sparkling wines which may take your fancy, or you could dabble in a touch of luxury with a bottle of rosé Champagne.

There’s the ‘waft of sweet, fleshy peach perfume’ belonging to a Chilean Riesling from one of the country’s largest yet most respected producers, or a gently sparkling, ‘attractive and fruity’ canned wine from the Cotswolds. Both would be great matches for seasonal asparagus dishes, as well as other spring ingredients.

When the sun comes out, many of us think pink and Provence. We’ve highlighted a classic, what with its ‘spicy red currant fruit, spice and white flower notes’  Or, for ultimate convenience, there’s an organic, Sicilian rosé straight from an easily chillable can.

For the reds, plan ahead and go for a style that works when served slightly chilled – like the Beaujolais below, which is ‘so perfect for summer drinking’. Or a Pinot Noir which is a partnership between a UK supermarket and one of Chile’s biggest names, and rewards with ‘savoury, gamy notes, stewed red cherry and strawberry on the nose’.

Top picnic wine recommendations:

First published in 2016. Updated and with new wine recommendations June 2023.

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What is Picpoul de Pinet wine?

Picpoul de Pinet is a crisp, refreshing white wine made exclusively from the ancient Piquepoul grape variety in the Languedoc region in southern France. It is the only Languedoc appellation dedicated solely to dry white wine production, and in a region dominated by blends, this is one of very few areas that permits the use of one single grape variety.

Scroll down for 10 Picpoul de Pinet wines to enjoy this summer

A variety connected to its surroundings

The Picpoul de Pinet vineyard area borders the Etang de Thau, a large lagoon on the edge of the Mediterranean sea. The maritime influence, both cultural and climatic, is strong here.

The Piquepoul variety, with its inherent freshness, has been grown here for centuries. A variety that ripens late, the grapes retain their acidity despite the warm, dry climate – the appellation sees just 400mm of rainfall a year.

‘It’s the marine pressure – the sea breezes, sea freshness and low rainfall – that allows the grapes to ripen well into September,’ says Claude Jourdan of Domaine Félines Jourdan. The variety is well suited to drought too. ‘At the end of August and beginning of September, we get some fog in the vineyards, which wets the leaves, and the vine profits from moisture, leading the grapes to full maturity,’ she adds.

Originally Piquepoul was better recognised as one of the grapes used to make vermouth in this area. However the variety has found its niche in dry, refreshing whites, and now more than 11 million bottles are produced each year.

In fact 67% of production is exported, with the UK guzzling up the largest share. Production of Picpoul de Pinet is dominated by four large cooperative wineries, which make 82% of production, with the rest made by 24 individual producers.

What does Picpoul de Pinet taste like?

The wines are often pale lemon-yellow in colour with green tints, although some styles can be more golden.

The name Piquepoul means ‘lip stinger’, on account of its zingy acidity. This is complemented by citrus and stone fruit, and a distinct saline, iodine quality. More complex examples can also display mineral, wet stone notes, or round, leesy richness.

Food pairing tips

Oysters and mussels are harvested from within the Etang de Thau itself, so these are naturally classic pairings with Picpoul de Pinet wines. The saltiness of seafood platters and salt cod croquettes pair excellently with the grape’s signature racy acidity.

Its lip-puckering freshness can also cut through richer foods like cheese and charcuterie, or even lemon-based desserts, making it a versatile wine for picnics.

Picpoul de Pinet is also pairs well with plant-based dishes, such as a salad of salicornia (sea asparagus). As with oysters, this type of sea vegetable also grows around the edges of the Etang de Thau, and imparts the same salty, iodised tang that matches so well with the wine.

Similar styles of wine include Loire Valley’s Muscadet and Portugal’s Vinho Verde, both known for producing fresh, high acidity wines.

What’s next?

The success of Picpoul de Pinet lies largely in its consistency, offering reliably fresh, food-friendly wines. The fluted green bottle, called Neptune, with its Languedoc cross and wave pattern emblazoned across the top, is instantly recognisable.

So where can Picpoul de Pinet go from here? In general the wines are consumed when young, however there is now a movement around a more complex, richer, age-worthy style.

Cuvée Patience – wines with ageing potential?

The appellation has been developing a charter for this different style, called Patience. Its main focus is to show that Picpoul de Pinet wines have the potential to age. Commonly these wines are made from specific plot selections, the grapes are harvested at higher maturity, and there tends to be extended lees contact during the winemaking process. These wines show a fuller, riper, more complex expression, while retaining that signature acidity and the saline varietal typicity.

This new approach was initiated in 2018, and gradually the Patience cuvées are coming onto the market.

Top Picpoul de Pinet wines to try

Of 34 wines tasted blind, here are the top-scoring Picpoul de Pinet wines to try. The list also includes four additional Patience cuvées, which are not yet available in the UK.

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Situated between 32 ̊ and 42 ̊ north, Greek vineyards are some of the world’s hottest. While this might suggest a preference for growing black grapes, red wine only accounts for one third of Greek output. According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), overall production in 2022 was one of the lowest recorded in decades (down 14% from 2021, to 2.1 million hectolitres), though white wine still has the majority share, accounting for around 60% of volume.

The wide variety of microclimates throughout the mountainous country – ranging from high altitudes to coastal and island vineyards that cool and extend the growing season – create the perfect conditions to produce Greece’s famous zesty, energetic, mineral-driven white wines along with approachable, fruity and floral thirst-quenchers.

Greek whites: Where to find them

Some of Greece’s white wine highlights can be found in regions including Macedonia, the Peloponnese and Santorini.

Moving north to south, the mountainous region of Macedonia covers the largest part of northern Greece and contains two leading PDOs, Naoussa and Amynteo. At their high altitudes (some exceeding 700m above sea level) grapes ripen more slowly in these cooler terroirs, developing more interesting flavours as a result.

While they are both exclusively red wine PDOs, there are exceptional white wines to be found in Florina and Drama in Macedonia from Malagousia and Assyrtiko grapes.

The upside down hand-shaped peninsula in the south is the Peloponnese. With the largest vineyard plantings in Greece, the Peloponnese is responsible for around 30% of the nation’s wine, producing every style from sparkling to fortified.

Nemea and Mantinia are especially prestigious PDOs of this region, both reaching high altitudes of 800m – edging towards the Aegean sea – and producing exceptional wines. While Nemea is a PDO for reds, Mantinia is a PDO for white wines, where the pink-skinned Moschofilero must legally make up at least 85% of the blend for the dry white wines.

Roditis is commonly found here too, where it can appear as a modest (if somewhat bland) white wine, but is increasingly used for more modern and complex wines, too.

Island viticulture in Greece dates back to antiquity, and it is these regions where strong, onshore winds – especially on the Cyclades islands, such as Santorini – result in the famous mineral-driven, saline and acidic white wines.

Relentless Aegean gales and merciless droughts provide challenging viticultural conditions for growers. Yet they persist in working their basket-trained vines with pride, some of which date back 200 years on their original roots where the volcanic soils are phylloxera free. All this results in extremely low yields (due to a combination of very old vines and very difficult conditions), yet demand continues to grow, in turn pushing up prices for Greek island wines.

The white varieties

Around 300 indigenous grape varieties constitute 90% of plantings. Sure, many of them are unpronounceable to the average wine consumer, adding a significant challenge in marketing the wines internationally. But the adventurous drinker will delight in bypassing the Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio in favour of any one of these Greek wonders.

The best-known Greek white wines are undoubtedly Retsina and Assyrtiko. Retsina is famous for historical reasons and has an unarguably chequered reputation, long associated with inferior wine often made from a blend of grapes and masked by pine resin flavours. Traditionally Savatiano (along with Roditis) is the main grape in Retsina wines. Widely planted for its high yields and drought resistance, Savatiano has been a natural choice for producers churning out cheap and simple white wines over the past decades. However, winemakers like Papagiannakos Winery and Muses Estate are seeking out older vines with lowered yields to produce high-quality contemporary wines.

Assyrtiko is Greece’s best success story. Originally from Santorini, now internationally acclaimed, Assyrtiko is widely planted on mainland Greece as it has proven to be drought resistant while retaining freshness when ripe. The flavour concentration intensifies with older vines, and this, coupled with the razor-sharp acidity gives the wines spectacular power and ageability. Assyrtiko is also used to produce sweet wines, such as Vinsanto from Santorini.

Lovers of Viognier or Muscat will feel at home with Moschofilero. This aromatic variety serves up fragrant floral, citrus and spice notes. Usually a lighter body style, with medium alcohol and best enjoyed fresh. Its pink skin means it can also appear as rosé wine with extended skin contact, and even give a blush hue to white wines.

Malagousia went from unfashionable to high profile in recent decades with plantings now popping up all over Greece. Its softer acidity has inspired savvy winemakers to blend it with Assyrtiko, while others bottle it as a single varietal embracing its pronounced nectarine, honeysuckle and rose petal profile. High altitudes, cooler sites, or early picked grapes show a green herbal edge, not unlike Sauvignon Blanc; Alpha Estate Malagouzia, Single Vineyard ‘Turtles’, grown at over 600m above sea level is a perfect example of this racier style.

Though it’s the indigenous grapes of Greece that are most interesting to discover, international varieties such as Chardonnay, Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc are ever prevalent. The best examples are when they have been blended with local varieties such as Cavino’s Mega Spileo Cuvée III White blend of Assyrtiko, Malagousia and Chardonnay.

These exciting exotic grapes, varied terroirs, and soaring quality levels are why consumers will not be bored spending their summer exploring Greek wine gems.

Greek white wines to drink this summer

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Summer often sees us reaching for wines of a lighter hue, and while we have some wonderful rosé recommendations from both Italy and Portugal, here we’ve decided to focus on white wines.

The selection below showcases a variety of grapes and regions from both hemispheres, taking in New Zealand, Italy and Australia, as well as a few intriguing curios – all perfect picnic accompaniments.

Get white wines chilling in the fridge on particularly hot days, but take them out 10 minutes before serving, thereby ensuring the aromas and flavours perform at their best.

Top lighter white wines for summer drinking

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Yes, you most definitely can drink red wines chilled. Some styles even taste better with a light chill.

This probably isn’t the best way to enjoy that 2005 claret you’ve been lovingly ageing, but chilling down lighter styles of red that have good primary fruit, a light body and low levels of tannin and alcohol can be a great alternative to whites and rosés in the summer months.

Scroll down to see tasting notes for 20 red wines to drink chilled

Best red wine styles to serve chilled

• Beaujolais and other wines made from Gamay from areas such as the Loire Valley, Oregon or South Africa
• Valpolicella Classico or wines made with Corvina grapes
• Lighter styles of Pinot Noir
• Some Loire Valley Cabernet Franc
• Frappato
• Dolcetto
• Wines made using carbonic maceration
• Lambrusco
• Wines made from the Pais grape
• Trousseau or Poulsard from the Jura

Winemaking style is important when considering the best red wine serving temperature, and it’s best to avoid chilling red wines that are significantly oaked.

The list below highlights the perfect red wines to chill in the summer, across a range of price points and from a variety of regions around the world.

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What you need to know about chilling red wine

Simple, fruit-forward red wines will take well to being served cool or lightly chilled. Be wary of tannins, which can be accentuated by cooler temperatures, as can overt oak character. The fresher and lighter the wine, the more it will benefit from being served chilled.

A red wine that is pale in colour can indicate that it will benefit from a light chill, because it suggests lighter extraction in the cellar and therefore lower levels of tannin.

Focus on young wines that have fresh acidity and juicy, fruity flavours rather than savoury characters, as a light chill will make them even more crunchy and thirst-quenching.

How long to chill red wine

Summer reds can be served at 10°C-16°C (50°F-60°F).

A bottle with 30 minutes of chill time in the fridge before serving will be immediately more refreshing.

Be careful not to over-chill the wine, as this will mute the aromas and flavours and make the tannins seem more astringent and drying.

Should you ever chill a full-bodied red wine before serving?

The short answer is yes, sometimes. Have you ever been served a red wine too warm? It can easily happen, especially in hotter climates.

Even for full-bodied reds, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz, it’s important to stop the wine getting too warm before serving.

For a red wine, much warmer than 18°C is too high. Its flavours become blurred and soupy, its structure softens and alcohol becomes more noticeable.

Chill it down slightly and the flavours come into focus, the alcohol becomes less apparent, the structure tightens up and the wine is more refreshing to drink.

Quick tips for chilling red wines in a hurry

Advice from Decanter correspondent Matt Walls

Place the bottle in an ice bucket filled with ice and some water for about 10-15 minutes, but do take regular sips to make sure you’re not over-chilling the wine.

A cooling sleeve is less messy. Since most of these can be flattened, they can also be used as a cushion to keep decanters of red wine cool. Alternatively, use a decanter with an ice compartment.

If your red has been stored at around 20°C, pop it in the fridge for 25-30 minutes; set the timer on your oven or your phone so you don’t forget to remove it.

If you’re in a hurry, 8-10 minutes in the freezer will suffice, but more gentle methods are preferable.

Use a plastic or metal wine cooler to keep the temperature low once it’s out of the fridge or freezer, or an ice bucket filled with cool water and ice cubes.

20 of the best red wines to chill, reviewed by our experts

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Beer drinkers have it easy – when the sun starts to shine, they just grab a can from the fridge and head outside. Wine fans face a tougher task: deciding whether to bring plastic cups or ‘proper’ glasses, how to keep a whole bottle cool, and whether they need a corkscrew. Does wine in cans hold the answer? Judging by the number of brands on the internet and the increasing amount of shelf space given over to them in supermarket fridges, it’s a format worth exploring. The 110 cans I assembled fell into two categories – those aiming for the convenience market and those prioritising more serious liquids. That’s no surprise; after all, the same could be said for the split between wine and fine wine in other formats too, whether it’s traditional glass bottles or bag-in-box.

Scroll down to see Peter Ranscombe’s top picks of canned wines

Evangelists (e-can-gelists?) hail the can not only as a practical format for picnics, but also portion control. Opening a 187ml or 250ml can limits the size of servings and perhaps prevents leftovers from an open bottle going to waste.

At the basic end, wines of European Union origin – blends from across the continent – are popular, with or without an an injection of carbon dioxide for a slight spritz, although their scores failed to trouble my top choices. Other examples are likely seen as a way of soaking up excess production in countries such as Italy, Spain and South Africa.

Yet some very serious producers in the Cape and beyond are putting high-quality wines into cans. Organic examples from Italy and Spain also made me sit up and take notice, while several English wineries have embraced cans as a way to reach new consumers unsure about buying a full-priced bottle.

Environmental credentials

The biggest plus-point is their environmental credentials. Producers trumpet their lower carbon footprint when compared with glass, with cans requiring less fuel for transport, and the aluminium itself 100% recyclable.

But picking apart the environmental claims is tricky. Shipping wine in bulk and then canning it in the country in which it will be sold is preferable – just as it is with bottling bulk shipments. So many carbon footprint calculations depend on recycling rates for glass and metals, which vary widely from country to country – in 2020 in the UK, 68% of all aluminium packaging sold was recycled (alupro.org.uk).

Following a can through its life cycle – from its metals being mined and refined, then through transportation and finally recycling and reuse – is just as complex as tracing a glass bottle. Throw the source of power used for production and recycling processes into the mix – whether generated by burning fossil fuels or from renewable sources – and the picture becomes even more complicated.

Having digested a dozen reports, I’ve seen no single authoritative study comparing a can and a bottle’s carbon footprint. The jury’s still out. Yet that doesn’t detract from the high-quality liquid going into many of these cans, or the fresh and fruity entry-level value offered by others. Both deserve their place in the world of wine – and their space in your fridge this summer.

And remember, whether it’s glass or plastic, canned wines need a receptacle. Just as slurping from a bottle dulls wine, canned wines need air to release their aromas and flavours.

Peter Ranscombe’s tasting notes and scores for 30 canned wines

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