Tesco May 2013 Sparkling and White

Jamie's Prosecco NV £9.99
Glera
11%vol
Very little aroma, which is a good thing for me since Prosecco is usually terribly pear droppy. Pleasant, fruity and easy.

Tesco Cava Brut NV £4.99
Xarello, Parellada, Macabeo
11.5%vol
Apple aroma. Slightly biscuity taste. Short, but not unpleasant.

Tesco Cava Reserva NV £6.99
Macabeo, Parellada, Xarello
11.5%vol
Much fuller, more savoury nose. More tasty, fuller flavour.

De Vallois Champagne NV £21.99
Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Nice fresh fruit on the nose. Very inviting. A nice bit of grip. Good. I'd buy this.

André Carpentier Brut NV £24
Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Quite a dark colour. Rich, brioche nose. Full-flavoured and grippy, with a grapefruit finish.

Nicolas Feuillatte Brut NV £29.99
Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir , Chardonnay
12%vol
Creamy nose. Green appley taste.

Finest* Premier Cru Champagne NV Brut £19.99
Chardonnay, Pinot Noir
12.5%vol
Nice bakery aroma. Really inviting! Full-flavoured and toasty. Very savoury finish.

Finest* Vintage Champagne 2007 Grand Cru £24.99
Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Deep and biscuity nose. Really lovely, biscuity, toasty taste. I love this.

Finest* Rose Champagne NV £22.99
Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay
12%vol
I know this is rose, but after the vintage it seems rather dumb on the nose. Nicely full-flavoured, with grippy grapefruit on the finish. Good.

Finest* Palomino 2012 £7.49
Palomino Fino, Verdejo
13%vol
Quite perfumed. Wasn't expecting much from the sherry grape, but this smells rather inviting. The alcohol rather leads, which spoils it for me.

Finest* Denbies English White 2011 £8.99
Chardonnay, Reichensteiner, Bacchus, Ortega
12%vol
Appealingly fruity nose and taste. Easy to like.

Finest* Château Palatio Muscadet Sur Lie 2012 £6.99
Melon de Bourgogne
12%vol
Lovely duck egg blue label. Fruity nose. A touch of spritz and lemony acidity.

Finest* Picpoul de Pinet 2012 £7.49
Picpoul
12.5%vol
Rich, ripe nose. As expected, this is spicy and not particularly acidity.

Finest* Vermentino 2012 £6.99
12.5%vol
Light on the nose. Full of flavour. A bit sour on the finish.

Finest* Albariño 2011 £7.99
12.5%vol
Little aroma. Nice and grippy. Rather tangy and lovely.

Finest* Falanghina 2012 £6.99
12.5%vol
Ripe apricot smell. Bitter taste that I don't like.

Finest* Vin de Pays d'Oc Grenache Marsanne 2012 £7.49
Grenache Blanc, Marsanne
12.5%vol
Not much smell. Needs food.

Finest* Sancerre 2011 £11.49
Sauvignon Blanc
12.5%vol
Catty and fresh nose. Same on the palate. Rather summery and flowery. Maybe not for the purists.

Finest* Pouilly Fumé 2010 £10.99
Sauvignon Blanc
12.5%vol
Green and clean but not very expressive nose. However, it tastes right.

Kiwi Cuvée Sauvignon Blanc 2012 £5.99
Sauvignon Blanc, Colombard
12.5%vol
Lightly sauvignon on the nose. A lot of taste. Really vibrant. Not Kiwi at all. Silly name.

Finest* Vin de Pays de Gascogne Gros Manseng Sauvignon Blanc 2012 £7.99
Gros Manseng, Sauvignon Blanc
12%vol
Fresh on the nose. Easy, clean and pretty OK. Very popular with girls, I'd imagine. Including me.

Finest* Tapiwey Sauvignon Blanc 2012 £8.99
12.5%vol
Very little smell. Bitter taste. Nasty.

Finest* Boranup Sauvignon Sémillon 2011 £9.99
Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon
14%vol
Savoury, green nose. Elder and grass in the mouth. Rather nice. Would need to be reduced though.

Flagstone Free Run 2011 (case of six only) £10
Sauvignon Blanc , Semillon
14%vol
Smells lovely. Ripe and with passion fruit and green pepper. Bright, green and exciting. Well worth £10.

Giesen Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2012 £9.69
13%vol
Fragrant and sweet nose - very inviting. I love this wine. One of my fav NW sauvignons.

Finest* Chablis Grand Cuvée 2012 £8.99
Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Very mineral nose, bordering on the reductive. It's a fine line between rain on warm stone and matchbox. The taste is bright, vibrant and exciting.



Finest* Chablis Premier Cru 2009 £13.99
Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Some depth on the nose. Quite a lot of texture on the palate. Not for me. I prefer the Finest.

Finest* Gavi DOCG 2012 £7.99
Cortese
12.5%vol
Not much smell. Off dry and pleasant.

Finest* White Burgundy 2011 £8.99
Chardonnay
12.5%vol
Neutral nose and palate. Not doing it for me, but if you need a dry white wine for lunch, this is perfectly OK.

Finest* Meursault 2011 £19.99
Chardonnay
13%vol
Beautiful nose. Full-flavoured and long. Great balance, plenty of savoury flavour.

Bouchard Ainé Meursault 2007 £23.99
Chardonnay
13%vol
Slightly odd aroma. Not unpleasant, but atypical. Tastes great, though. Apricots, oak, but perhaps missing the butter?

Piccini Memoro Bianco NV £9.29
Viognier, Chardonnay, Vermentino, Pecorino
14%vol
Sweet, ripe nose and dark colour. Very savoury and grown up. Not for beginners. I'm rather interested in it.

Finest* Denman Vineyard Sémillon 2012 £9.99
Sémillon, Colombard
10%vol
Part semillon and part stewed cabbage. I used to like this wine.

Tim Adams Clare Valley Sémillon 2011 £11.49
11.5%vol
Pithy, zesty, waxy heaven. This is very semillon. I love it. Just lovely.



Finest* Tingleup Riesling 2012 £9.99
11%vol
Not a lot of smell. Tangy and tart, with plenty of grip.

Tim Adams Clare Valley Riesling 2011 £10.79
11%vol
Beautiful aroma. This screams Aus riesling. Lime, pith, grapefruit on both the nose and the palate. Delicious. Grapefruit zest on the finish. Yum.



Trimbach Pinot Gris Reserve 2009 £14.99
14%vol
Not a great nose. Off dry and with spice and warmish alcohol.

Laurent Miquel Heritage Vineyards Viognier 2012 £9.99
13.5%vol
Peachy nose and very peachy taste. Good.

Finest* Gewurztraminer 2012 £7.99
13%vol
Aromatic as anything. Really rosy. Sweet and with the right taste, but a little light on weight and length.

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