THE DRINKER
EAT - DRINK - BE MERRY
WAITROSE 2017 TOP WINES IN PRICE CATEGORY
SUMMARY
Far more wines recommended here than any of the other major retailers, partly due to the huge number of wines at their tasting and partly due to the brilliance of their wine team in selecting so many great quality and good value wines. If in any doubt go for the Waitrose own brand labels which never seem to fail. This list really has everything.
Please bear in mind that not all of these wines are available in every store - but they can all be found here at Waitrose Cellar also prices are subject to variation.
KEY
The reds are written up in this colour
The whites in this colour
Pink in this colour
The fizz in this colour
Fortifieds in this colour
Up to £5
Eva's Vineyard c. blanc, p. grigio, kiralyeanyka(Hun) £4.99 88
Floral, aromatic, apple, orange blossom, good acidity, great value
Cuvee Pecheur (Fra) £4.99 87
Simple, uncomplex, gooseberry notes, good price, easy drinker
Waitrose Fresh and Zesty French White 2014, Vin de France £4.99 89
Lovley forward fresh green fruit, zippy acidity, straightforward, well priced
Il Venti Rosso (Ita) £4.69 88
Forward fruit, very well made, bargain, big wine great value
El Guia Rosado, (Spa) £4.79 87
A very pink rose, looks confected but had a nice, dry fruity palate
Up to £10
Thorn-Clarke Pinot Grigio (Aus) £8.99 89
Classy P. Grigio, white flowers and stone fruit, has real character
Tuna Club Verdejo Sauvignon Blanc £7.99 89
The first rule of Tuna Club.... Seaside and ozone nose, bright, fresh wine
Arnegui Viura Blanco Rioja £7.99 89
White stone fruit, peach and pear, lovely fresh easy white
Les Collines de Luzanet, Cotes de Gascoigne £7.99 89
Lovely open floral nose, fresh gooseberry, aromatic sauvignon
The Waterfront Chardonnay/Viognier, South Africa £7.99 88
Great value fresh white, green apple and citrus, zippy acidity, smasher
Sandiford Road Pinot Grigio, California £8.99 90
Very floral, more gris than grigio, peach and blossom, off dry, well made
Corbello Cataratto/Inzolia (Ita) £7.99 90
Only 11.5% alcohol, soft and easy drinking style, light white fruit, lovely
La Chandelle Bergerac (Fra) £5.99 88
Light sauvignon nose, gooseberry, fresh acidity, fruity, simple, easy
Moncaro Verdicchio dei Casteli di Jesi Classico (Ita) £5.99 89
As good a sub £6 as you'll get, great house/party wine, uncomplex but v pleasing
Waitrose Dry German Riesling £7.99 88
Good aromatic wine, floral, perfumed, solid acidity on palate, white blossom
Domaine de Sainte Rose Coquille d'Oc Blanc (Fra) £7.49 89
Lovely peachy nose, fresh acidity, good forward green fruit palate
Sous le Soleil du Midi Chardonnay Vin de France £5.99 88
Very approachable, easy drinking party wine, good straightforward white
Vignale Pinot Grigio (Ita) £5.49 87
Good peachy pinot G. Blossom and acidity in balance, good price
Hilltop Estate Pinot Grigio (Hungary) £6.99 89
Lovely fresh citrus bite, good aromatics, zippy acidity, lovely at the price
The Menagerie Exotic Collection (NZ) £7.79 89
Off dry, peach and white blossom, good holding acidity, white pepper finish
Yalumba Organic Viognier (Aus) £9.99 89
Hint of blossom, floral nose, good minerality, clean lines, crisp, great value
Secret Cellar Pinot Grigio Western Cape (SA) £7.79 89
Good, well priced, floral nose, tropical fruit palate, beauty
Le Grand Ballon Sauvignon Blanc (Fra) £8.99 89
Lime and minerality, grassy and green apple, lovely fresh acidity
Hen Pecked Picpoul de Pinet (fra) £7.99 88
Lovely fresh green and white stone fruit, great summer house white at price
Calvet Limited Release Sauvignon Blanc (Fra) £6.99 88
Light hint of elderflower, green apple and zest, pleasing body, well priced
Waitrose White Burgundy (Fra) £8.99 89
Green apple and peach blossom nose, light oak, buttery, lovely
Cowrie Bay Chardonnay (NZ) £6.99 89
Melon on nose, good body, tropical and citrus palate, lots of wine at great value
Boekenhoutskloof Procupine Ridge Sauvignon Blanc (SA) £7.99 88
Fresh zest sauvignon, not too floral but the right amount of fruit to acidity
Waitrose Gavi (Ita) £7.99 89
Good fresh acidity sitting under lovely citrus fruit notes, hint of melon
Waitrose Californian Chardonnay (USA) £6.49 92
Soft peachy nose, creamy palate, lovely citrus finish, classy
Pujalet Pays de Gers (Fra) £5.49 89
Grapefruit nose, zesty party wine, pleasing citrus finish
Teruzzi & Puthod (Ita) £8.99 89
Full, fresh and vibrant, good holding acidity and bags of green fruit character
Tenuta Rapitala Nero d'Avola/nerello Mascalese (Ita) £8.99 89
Soft, sweet, ripe black fruit, black cherry palate, spice and oak
Camel JosephVilla Blanche Pinot Noir, Pays d'Oc £8.99 90
Classy looking wine, lovely summer red, red berry character, easy tannins
Malbec de Balthazar, Pays d'Oc £7.99 89
Violet nose, soft blueberry and a touch of black pepper, lovely
Heredad del Rey Monastrell/Syrah Seleccion Reservada, Yecla £7.99 88
Soft spiced bramble nose, good fruit driven red, well priced, mouthwatering finish
Maree d'Ione Nero di Troia, Puglia £8.49 90
Lovely soft approachable fruit palate, rich vanilla oak, BBQ bargain!
Sandiford Road Pinot Noir, California £8.99 90
Ripe pinot noir, touch jammy in a good way, lots of American oak
Dark Horse Cabernet Sauvignon, California £8.49 89
Spiced cinamon and pepper, light violet, big but refined, hot finish
Valle de Viento Old Vine Carrignan (Spa) £6.49 89
Full oaky spice, very well made, easy tannins, full fruit, great value
Beefsteak Club Malbec (Arg) £8.79 88
Fantastic malbec, everything it should be, forward fruit, good firm tannins, well made
De Bortoli Daydream Pinot Noir Tasmaina (Aus) £9.99 89
Super soft tannins, could be chilled, fruit driven cool climate pinot noir
James Irvine Signature Selection Merlot (Aus) £7.99 91
Classy wine, great look and palate, intense damson, generous
Storm Tree Shiraz (Aus) £5.49 90
Big fruit driven nose, plum and blackcurrant, menthol note, hot finish, lovely
Atkins Farm Shiraz (Aus) £9.99 90
Tobacco, spice and pepper nose, black fruit palate, big wine, very good
Domaine Saint Martin Merlot/Cab Sauv (Fra) £7.49 90
Good deep inky wine, intense plum and blackberry, easy tannins, great value
Triade Negroamaro/Primitivo/Nero di Troia (Ita) £8.79 90
Black cherry nose, ripe easy tannins, good full on fruit, really big and interesting wine
Tanuda Hill Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot Barossa (Aus) £8.99 91
Layered complex nose, deep and nintense, plum and cedar, hint of pencil box, top wine
Sous le Soleil du Midi Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot (Fra) £5.99 89
Everyday drinking, forward fruit, soft tannin, make a great party wine
Tinto da Anfora (Por) £9.99 91
Open violet nose, layered, spice and oak on palate, intense, lovely
Anda Tempranillo/Syrah (Spa) £7.99 90
Soft, spicy wine, warming and generous, full on black fruit, spicy autumn wine
Valdivieso Casa de Piedra Merlot/Carmenere (Chi) £7.79 90
Good easy red, black fruit and tobacco, easy tannins, wood smoke
Waitrose Reserva Carmenere (Chi) £7.49 88
Black pepper and bramble nose, spice, wood smoke, BBQ wine
Chateau Les Martins, Blaye £8.49 89
Good affordable Bordeaux, green pepper and bramble, nice tannins, well made
Blason du Rhone, Cotes du Rhone Villages £9.49 89
Lovely soft, sweet, ripe black fruit, intense with lovely firm tannins
Domaine de Sainte Rose Coquille d' Oc Rose (Fra) £7.49 89
Light raspberry on nose, young, fruity dry, party wine
Le Grand Ballon Rose (Fra) £8.99 89
Easy drinking rose, hint of redcurrant, refreshing acidity
Vignale Pinot Grigio Rose Blush (Ita) £5.99 88
Lovely fresh BBQ wine, light strawberry, zippy acidity, bring on the summer
Luis Felipe Edwards Cab Sauv/Merlot Rose (Chi) £6.99 90
Lovely open peachy nose, well balanced, very well priced, top stuff
Valento Prosecco (Ita) £6.99 90
Soft, fresh and easy, classic prosecco, little hint of sweetness, lovely
Up to £15
Kilkanoon Grenache/Shiraz/Mouverdre £10.99 90
Open spice and bramble, touch medicinal, big, bold, open, menthol
Yalumba Galway Shriaz, Barossa Valley £12.99 90
Eucalyptus and black cherry, inky, black currant leaf, long hot finish
Brazin Old Vine Zinfandel (USA) £13.99 88
Fresh rain on a hot day, plump ripe stewed fruit, good tannin
The Hedonist Shiraz (Aus) £13.99 91
Tobacco, spice and black pepper, full on powerful stuff but elegant with it
Stobi Winery Barrique Syrah (Macedonia) £11.99 91
Full on intense wine, powerful alcohol, inky, concentrated fruit compote
Recanati Shiraz, Upper Galilee (Israel) £14.99 92
Big burnt oak nose, full on fruit, intense, very well crafted wine, deep
Ara Single Vineyard Pinot Noir (NZ) £11.99 91
Red cherry and cinamon nose, earthy, deep, spiced oak, red currant finish
Rustenberg John X Merriman (SA) £14.99 89
Deep intense spice and black fruit, very concentrated, good wine
Waitrose Douro Valley Reserva Quinta da Rossa (Por) £10.99 89
Bottle looks so good, full ripe plum and damson, lovely hint of bitterness, classy
Chateau Souverain Chardonnay, California £10.99 90
Good lees body and complexity, grass, vanilla, oak, fabulous wine at the price
Waitrose Chablis, Cave des Vignerons (FRA) £12.79 87
High standard Chablis for the price, good acidity and minerality
Terredora Greco di Tufo (Ita) £12.99 89
Lime and floral nose, good body and acidity, lovely generous fruit palate
Lindauer Special Reserve Brut Cuvee Rose NZ £13.99 88
Soft and interesting, light redcurrant, very well made and a great price
San Leo Rosato (ita) £10.49 90
Light raspberry nose, persistent mousse, soft in mouth, great value
Over £15
Orovela Saperavi (geo) £16.79 88
Big damson and plum, heavyweight wine in heavyweight bottle
Recchia Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva (Ita ) £34.99 92
Full on spicy pipe tobacco nose, complex, deep pencil box, really very good
Louis Latour Volnay Premier Cru En Chevret (Fra) £47.50 93
Great example of how age affects red Burgundy, developing savoury fruit and settled tannins
Coeur de Rochevine, Saint Joseph £28.99 93
Big heavy bottle, big heavy wine, spiced fruit and oak, forest floor development, proper wine
Domaine de la Pousse d' Or Chambolle Musigny £50.00 92
Lovely developing pinot noir nose, bramble and forest floor, nice structure, Christmas Day wine
Blason du Rhone Chateauneuf du Pape £20.99 90
Generous spice, b;lack pepper and cedar, subtle fruit but powerful, mouthwatering stuff
Cave de Tain Hermitage £27.99 92
Deep and inky looking, complex blood, soil and gravel, full on fruit, wonderful
Frei Brothers Reserve Chadonnay, Russian River Valley, California £17.99 91
Deep and complex nose and palate, creamy apple and vanilla, class act
Louis Guntrum Oppenheimer Sacktrager Riesling (Ger) £16.75 90
Fresh floral, white blossom aromatics, green stone fruit, dry but with good body
Domaine Gerard Thomas St Aubin Premier Cru (Fra) £23.99 92
Depth on nose, mineral and fruit, green touch on palate, melon and apple, classy
Joseph Drouhin Rully Premier Cru (Fra) £18.29 90
Very classy at the price, barrel fermented, retains some lovely yeastiness, beauty
Chorley les Beaune, Domaine Maillard Pere et Fils (Fra) £19.99 92
First rate wine, my ideal for Christmas Day, generous palate, subtle and elegant, lovely hit of oak
Leckford Estate Brut, Hampshire £24.99 91
Lovely creamy nose, soft and light, touch of strawberry and hedgerow
Ridgeview Merret Bloomsbury (ENG) £26.99 91
Serious yeasty nose, cooking apple and savoury palate, really complex
Jansz Premium Cuvee Pipers River, Tasmania £16.99 91
Grassy and green apple nose, classy very well made wine, great value
Hush Heath Estate Balfour Leslie's Reserve Kent (ENG) £24.99 90
Green nettle nose, English meadow palate, lovely long finish, top stuff
Piollot Cuvee 'come des Tallants' Zero Dosage (Fra) £25.99 94
Fresh bread and yeast nose, deep and intense palate, very complex, wonderful
Digby Fine English Leander Pink (ENG) £30.00 90
Lovely classy looking pink fizz, hint of raspberry, classy stuff
Breaky Bottom Brut Sussex (Eng) £24.99 91
Green apple and brioche nose, soft mouthfeel, world class fizz
