Top 10 wines in the UK press

Vouvray Sec 2011 Domaine Vincent Careme

Rose Murray Brown MW, writing in The Scotsman, recommended a number of Chenin Blancs which she said was one of her “favourite white grapes” which she describes as tasting of “wet wool, damp straw and a hint of honey.”

She said: “One man who really understands the Chenin Blanc grape is winemaker Vincent Careme. He only began his business in 1999 with rented vines; his parents were cereal farmers. He is an interesting example of a new generation of growers in the Loire (he also runs a small negociant business buying in grapes) who looks beyond the confines of his appellation for ideas and influences.”

Of this 2011 Vincent Careme, she said: “With a light honey colour, and nose with flowers, fennel and pear skins, in the mouth this wine has that magic balance between honeyed notes, a waxy texture, lovely racy acidity and dry minerally core – with a lingering length. STAR BUY.”

Price: £17.95, Berry Bros & Rudd

Vouvray, Cuveé de Perruches 2012 Domaine des Ambuisieres

Brown also recommended this 2012 Vouvray from Domaine des Ambuisieres.

She said: “A well priced introduction to Loire Chenin Blanc. The nose is very subdued, but there are wonderful honeyed and appley flavours with a nippy-sweetie acid-freshening dryness to the finish.

“This is drier than Sainsbury’s example, with just hints of residual sweetness on the palate.”

Price: £8.99, until 28 April, Majestic Wine

Domaine de l’Ecu Cuvée Classique Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, France 2011

It was all about bio-dynamic wines for David Williams, writing in The Guardian this week, who picked three wines that prove biodynamic winemakers are on to something.

He said: “With their baffling talk of cosmic “energies”, their astral calendars and fetishistic fascination with the burying of cow horns, biodynamic wine producers are easy to lampoon as new-age nuts. But the stereotype rarely fits with the biodynamic practitioners I’ve met, and the prevalence of high quality biodynamic wine suggests there must be something in it.

“This estate in the western Loire was an early adopter, and continues to outshine its local peers, quite literally in this brilliant, piercingly fresh white, with its tang of sourdough bread, apples and minerals.”

Price: £10

Domaine Zind-Humbrecht Zind, Alsace, France 2010

Williams also recommended this “intricately layered and resonant Chardonnay-based” wine from Alsace.

He said: “If you’re keen to get a handle on the ideas behind biodynamics, a couple of recent books – Brit Monty Waldin’s Best Biodynamic Wines and Burgundian vigneron Antoine Lepetit de la Bigne’s What’s So Special About Biodynamic Wine? (both Floris Press) – present the case with admirable clarity. I still bristle at some of the contentions, but then I haven’t spent my life observing the minutiae of vineyards in the same way as, say, the talented Olivier Humbrecht, maker of intense and varied Alsace whites, including this lushly textured, intricately layered and resonant chardonnay-based white.”

Price: £16.99, Waitrose

Jasper Hill Occam’s Razor Shiraz, Heathcote, Victoria, Australia 2009

Williams’ third recommendation was this Australian red from biodynamic winemaker Ron Laughton.

He said: “Ron Laughton was an early Australian convert to biodynamic practice at the estate he started with his wife Elva in Victoria, both on the family’s own wines and those they make in the same region in tandem with arguably the world’s best-known biodynamist, Michel Chapoutier from France’s Rhône valley.

“As a former food scientist, Laughton comes across in interviews as distinctly unstarry-eyed about the more mystical aspects of biodynamics, but his wines are cosmically good – deep and dark in fruit and spice but characterised by a luminous freshness and aromatic lift.”

Price: £25.50, Yapp Bros

Collection’ Premium Italian Chardonnay 2012

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Fiona Beckett, writing in The Guardian, took a look at some good value “everyday wines” including some of the best stocked by supermarket Aldi.

She said: “If you’re looking for an equivalent house wine to have in the fridge or wine rack at home, you could do worse than head for Aldi, which manages to deliver decent quality at a consistently low price. The low-cost Italian white that I would go for there is, in fact, a chardonnay – the’Exquisite Collection’ Premium Italian Chardonnay 2012 – but don’t let that put you off: it’s not an oaky one, but fresh and smooth, rather in the Gavi mould.

“Aldi also has two Chilean reds that would hit the spot if you like yours bright and fruity: the smooth, easy-drinking Andara Merlot 2012 and Estevez Cabernet Sauvignon/Carmenère 2011, which is a little softer than I would personally choose, but an extraordinary deal for a wine that comes from a named region, Maule. (Carmenère, by the way, is a grape akin to merlot, and was once mistaken for it in Chile.)”

Price: £4.99, Aldi

2010 Left Field, Merlot Malbec Blend, Hawke’s Bay

Matthew Jukes, writing in The Daily Mail, picked six of his favourite wines from New Zealand, including this Merlot Malbec blend from Hawke’s Bay.

He said: “Made by the brilliant Te Awa Estate this is a classically dimensioned red wine from the perfectly suited gravel soils of Hawke’s Bay.  Without the weight or sappiness of Chilean Merlot but with more purity and blackberry juice than most French version of this price this is a jaw-dropping wine.”

Price: £16.99, Last Drop Wines

2012 Ara, Select Blocks Pinot Gris, Marlborough

Sauvignon Blanc pictured

Jukes also recommended this 2012 Pinot Gris from Marlborough.

He said: “Marlborough is the most well known regions in New Zealand. Situated at the north end of the South Island it is home to oceans of Sauvignon Blanc, but more recently other grapes like Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris have been hitting the high notes. Here is a stunning and great value, pear juice-kissed PG to hypnotised your palate.”

Price: £12.00, reduced to £10.80 for 6 or more bottles, Free Run Juice – www.freerunjuice.co.uk.

Heinrich Red 2011, Burgenland, Austria

Jamie Goode, writing in The Express, showcased some of his favourite Austrian wines this week. Among his recommendations was this 2011 red from Burgenland.

He said: “This superb wine is a blend of Austria’s top three red grapes: Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt and St Laurent. It is beautifully pure, with sweet raspberry and black cherry fruit, subtle notes of herbs and a meaty edge. A knockout bottle.”

Price: £12.50, slurp.co.uk 

Loimer Grüner Veltliner 2012, Kamptal, Austria

Goode also recommended this 2012 Grüner Veltliner from Kamptal.

He said: “Textured and rounded, this attractively packaged gruvee has sweet pear and apple flavours, plus a hint of fresh greenery that matches the label very well. It’s a lovely wine from one of Austria’s best winemakers, Fred Loimer.”

Price: £13.60 each for six bottles, slurp.co.uk