White Wine

Shockingly good value from Portugal, this creamy and lush number made from local varieties offers plenty of rich honeyed fruit for the price.

Crisp white fruit and apricot nose with a light nutty element and a Meursault-esque butteriness. Dry, soft but fresh acidity. A lovely depth of mineral laced, grassy white fruit with hints of apricot and nuts. Xarel-lo 100% Producer Profile In the little town of Vilafranca del Penedes in Cataluña, Irene and Laurent are challenging the traditional perception of DO Penedes wine. Converting their vineyards from the typical Penedes high yields and abandoning all forms of chemical treatment and fertilisers, they follow basic organic practices. Much of the construction and equipping of their cellar was modest and homemade, including building their own tanks. Production remains small, yet as they identify further small vineyard sites their range has extended to include distinctive wines from the indigenous varietal Xarel-lo, which they choose to do extended fermentation with, using indigenous yeast and it is then left on its lees to increase the richness and compexity. Viticulture With vines trained gobelet style, the vineyards are approximately 45 years old, on clay and limestone soils, yielding approximately 4000 kg / Ha. Practicing lutte raisonnée. Winemaking Vinification in 228l and 700l french oak barrels, fermented with wild yeast, after fermentation 2/3 parts are aged in 700 litre French oak barrels and 1/3 parts in stainless steel.

Aromatic guava and orange blossom jump from the glass – this Chenin Blanc is off dry with ripe apples, peaches and a hint of orange peel on the palate. The elegant crisp finish makes this a fantastic wine for all occasions. The fruit for Aloe Tree hails from the increasingly fashionable west coast of the Cape. Cool nights and sea breezes combine to extend the growing season, resulting in perfectly balanced, ripe grapes. The iconic Aloe Tree image is sure to be familiar to anyone who has travelled widely through the Cape and is an important part of the biodiversity which South Africa is famous for. The characteristic silhouette provides a backdrop to one of the most spectacular wine regions in the world where wines grow in harmony with the thousands of plant species that make up the Cape Floral Kingdom. Chenin blanc is well adapted for various soil types, but our premium grapes are grown on medium to lower potential soils. Yield levels are limited by winter pruning and by removing shoots and leaving two or three shoots per spur during early spring. Canopy management is required as it plays a major role in yield and quality to ensure an optimum microclimate within the canopy. With its vigorous growth, medium-sized trellises are required and shoot positioning are done to maximize canopy surface. Grapes are harvested at a minimum of 21.5°Brix, but we aim for 22°Brix. Once the Chenin Blanc grapes are harvested, they arrive at the winery where the fruit is gently pressed and only the free run juice is used. Using selected yeasts the juice then undergoes cold fermentation at 14 degrees Celsius for 2 weeks before lying on the lees for 3 months.

The top white here is from very, very old vineyards of Xarel lo, Xarel lo Vermell, Macabeu and Malvasia de Sitges, fermented and aged for 8 months in big French oak barrels and a small number of amphoras. There is a bigger nose than the 'Autòcton' definitely shows more oak influence, but it is a very pleasing and subtle toastiness from the big barrels. Again a creamy, layered texture and a considerable richness of old-vine fruit intensity, still fresh and shapely with power on the finish.

Made from native Catalan varietals, a blend of Xarello, Macabeo and Xarello Vermell (a local strain that is almost Rosé) and 2% Malvasía de Sitges. The palate is balanced, nicely crafted, approachable and easy.

Rolly-Gassmann is a domaine like no other and has a unique style. It is located at Rorschwihr, a sleepy village on the northern rim of Haut-Rhin. The vineyards are located in Rorschwihr and the neighbouring Rodern and Bergheim. The wines are small masterpieces with very good definition. They all carry the signature of Rolly-Gassmann, a certain shameless, velvety sweetness. The fruit is rich and manages to balance the fruit with a vibrant acidity to form wines that melt on the palate.

Best-selling Kosher wine. Light and frothy. Non-mevushal.

From substantial holdings in four different crus, the Bouchard Beaune du Chateau evinces a wonderful sense of richness and polish, suggesting vanilla-scented, honey- and lemon- and apple-filled pastry.

jancisrobionson.com 17/20 "Gruner Veltliner written all over it...peppery but it also has the oily (in a good way) depth that I have only ever seen in the Wachau"

A textured and savoury wine. It shows fleshy white nectarine and orchard fruit, alongside a flint-focussed precision on the palate, with a grainy and honeyed richness. It shows crystalline purity, with powerful savoury oak, and layered complexity.

Pascal Fournillon is a sweet-natured man, always happy when people find him in the sleepy hamlet of Bernouil, some 10 miles north-east of Chablis town. His mum also makes the best gougeres if you need further incentive. Pascal's vineyards cover some 23 hectares of land in the appellations of Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru and Epineuil. He is bottling more and more of his own wine rather than selling in bulk and this means we have access to good allocations of Chablis that Pascal is happy to age for us for a few years till it is perfect to drink. This Bourgogne Chardonnay is from vineyards near Chablis and bears all the hallmarks of it; steely, lemony, fine and elegant.

This 'baby Meursault' is derived from two small, advantageously positioned parcels of old vines just outside the village of Meursault. The 2018 is an excellent vintage that offers immense concentration and a more forward expression in the glass. It boasts opulent, rich qualities and focused minerality that mirror what we love in the wines of the appellation.The vineyards of 35 to 60-year-old vines lie just outside the AOC border of Meursault, which dramatically lowers the price while allowing for one of the greatest White Burgundy values we have. This wine is ready to drink now and doesn’t need aging. Zesty, bitter citrus, lemon, and grapefruit characters, with a biscuity, yeasty character all held together by a spicy acidity, and a lean mineral salinity. Serious integration, sheer quality.

Great wine! Great everything! Some residual sugar, but everything else is perfect! Long finish, balanced, nectarine, petrol. Just a super wine especially considering the price.

Dry-ish Auslese is a real specialism for this superb, mother-and-daughter estate, especially in the rare cases when they release some mature stock - what a treat! So hard to describe as it doesn't conform to classic Mosel idiom. Firstly it's the most amazing pale green, more silver than gold. The nose teases with all manner of unexpected notes, from sage to fennel, lilies and blossom (in a 30-year old wine, how, how?) and a palate of equally unexpected complexity, where perhaps more of the Mosel notes are apparent: ripe lime, slate, mint. The texture is feather-light, the length astonishing. Rather madly, it's just as good after a week open. Like a wine from another world.

Parker 93+ "Picked at 110° Oechsle and with 30% to 35% botrytis... offers dusty raisin and grapefruit aromas on the nose. Lush and concentrated on the palate, it is an elegant, mouth-filling and piquant Auslese with a creamy texture and long, salty-piquant, slatey finish."

Classic Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc from a declassified 3ha plot in Pouilly-Fumé. Fragrant, with pure juicy fruit and a slight grassy edge. Grown and made by David and Shirley Maudry at their dynamic young estate, Maison Lispaul.

This modern, crisp white demonstrates bright citrus characteristics on the nose, while offering deliciously vibrant apple fruit flavours and a zesty twang courtesy of the Sauvignon Blanc on the palate. A long clean finish with hints of grapefruit.

Introductory price of £19.99 Named after the emblematic cedar tree that dominates Quinta do Noval's terrace, Cedro do Noval is an authentic expression of the Douro. It is made at Quinta do Noval using carefully selected grapes 100 % grown on the highest steeply terraced vineyards of Quinta do Noval, in the heart of the Douro Valley, in Northern Portugal. Made from traditional Douro white grape varieites, 65% Viosinho, 35% Gouveio, this wine was fermented in oak barrels, 20% of which were new, and then aged in oak for a further 6 months. The wine undergoes no malolactic fermentation leaving a high, fresh, searing acidity on the palate. The aroma is intense, fresh, slightly mineral with layers of fruit, floral notes and oak undertones. On the palate it is full and bright.

It shows a lovely pale yellow colour with greenish tinges. Fresh and expressive on the nose, with superb notes of pink grapefruit, mango and some slightly toasted hints. Its fine balance on the palate is remarkable, with a lot of roundness and body, as well as pure, elegant freshness. The flavours of Sauvignon are delicate and persistent, giving this wine length and vibrancy.

90-93 from Bob Parker "Attractive, subtle smoky notes blend beautifully with the broad, honeyed character of this complex white Bordeaux. Aromas of beer nuts, tropical fruit and caramelized grapefruit emerge from this impressive, medium to full-bodied wine."

A blend of 60% Chardonnay, 30% Chenin Blanc and 10% Mauzac, this is a bright and lively white, with attractive aromas of white flower, clover, pear flesh and lightly grilled peach. The medium-weight palate is remarkably balanced, with ample acidity to lift the ripe apple, pear and citrus flavors, finishing with a kiss of sweet spice.

Charbonnière has 12 hectares of prime vineyard in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and 4.5 hectares in Vacqueyras. This is a top quality domaine making rich, succulent wines of great style. Michel Maret has now handed over the running of the property to his daughters. Their white is now one of the best in the region, made from 40% Roussanne, 40% Grenache Blanc and 20% Clairette.

A wild ferment, aged in old French oak.

JancisRobinson.com: “Dry-farmed at 480 m in Alagni, central Crete. Skin contact for 10 hours for 5% of the grapes that are harvested early and fermented separately. Fermented in tank at 17–19 °C and aged 4 months on lees. TA 5 g/l, pH 3.33, RS 2.18 g/l. Intense aroma of bayleaf and rosemary, dramatically herbal without being green or unripe. The small percentage that had skin contact has given this a brilliantly judged texture, just a very slight grip, so it is not just about the aromatics. Moderate acidity, but freshened by that grip and the low pH. Wonderfully aromatic and so true to the variety, without being a caricature. (Julia Harding). Drink now-2021.” 16.5 points