Some of us prefer our apples tangy and our chips doused in vinegar. These wines are all about refreshing, zingy, crisp and clean flavours. Sure, some Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Grüner Veltliner can be made in richer styles (firmly in Mellow Yellow territory) but here we’re talking about the bright, vibrant, un-oaked versions.
What to drink them with? Food with clean, punchy flavours from all things green (think asparagus, lime, fresh herbs) to goat’s cheese, seafood, curry, tomatoes…
Find out more about matching food to these wines and the key wine styles in this category. Meanwhile, below are our top tips in the Fresh & Racy category.
Brancott Estate Living Land Series Organic Sauvignon Blanc 2018, 12.5%, New Zealand (£9, Tesco) This is a wine that wears its virtuous side very firmly on its sleeve. If the ‘Living Land Series’ branding doesn’t get the message across then the ‘Organic and Vegan Wine’ banner on the...
Bin #003 Ribolla Gialla 2018, Italy, 12.5% (£9.50, The Wine Society) This is the third edition of the Wine Society’s new experimental ‘Bin’ range dedicated to quirky varieties and wines and it’s the most successful to date. Ribolla Gialla is an ancient but little known white variety grown...
Chapel Down Bacchus 2018, 12.5%, England (from £12, Sainsbury's, Ocado, Waitrose) Bacchus is a fascinating grape. It's originally from Germany but the UK seems to have co-opted it as its own and now it's England's answer to Sauvignon Blanc - aromatic, tangy and seemingly able to capture...
Flint Vineyard Bacchus 2017, 11.5% (£15.99 from the winery or £16.95 at BBR) The 2018 vintage will be a game-changer for many reasons in English and Welsh wine. This was the joint warmest summer on record, with beautiful weather from June to August, and then a very gentle...
Adnams Riesling 9% (£9.99, Adnams) ‘Seriously, what’s the point of wine with no alcohol in it?!’ Such was the reaction of a good friend when we told her we’d been doing a tasting of low-and-no-alcohol drinks. (The category is known in the industry as ‘low-and-no’.) On one level, the...
Morandé Gran Reserva Sauvignon Blanc 2016, Casablanca, Chile £13-14, The Drink Shop, Corking Wines or via Wine Searcher Earlier this year I had the misfortune to participate in one of the most depressing Decanter panel tastings ever. We had 62 Chilean Sauvignon Blancs. The overall standard was thoroughly...
Casa Silva Lago Ranco Riesling 2016, Chile, 11.5% c £20, Field & Fawcett, Portland Wine co, Randalls, Jackson Nugent Vintners I've tried this wine twice recently and both times it has impressed. The first was in Chile in February with the winemaking team. Then, it stood out for...
Baron de Guers Picpoul de Pinet 2016, France, 12.5% (£6.50-£8, Sainsbury's) I'm a sucker for a good seafood stew so I was very excited to find a Saturday Kitchen wine to go with Rick Stein's take on Cioppino. His delicious version of this Italian-American fisherman's stew featured monkfish,...
Saint Mont 2015, France (£9, Marks & Spencer) This was my choice of invigorating white to pair with a dish of pan-fried mullet with rosemary and a cabbage salad by Marianna Leivaditaki on Saturday Kitchen. It's a great bargain, this white, and also consistently food-friendly. We've recommended it...
The Originals Washington Riesling 2016, USA (£9 on buy 2 save 25% or £12, Marks & Spencer) Pineapple - while undoubtedly delicious - is never an easy fruit. Not to peel. Not to juggle. Not to eat. Certainly not to pair with wine. So Ching He Huang's dish...
Ara Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2016, New Zealand, 12.5% (£10.59 but down to £7.94 on multi buy, Waitrose) We are big fans of chef Freddy Forster in this household. He's not only a lovely man but also a brilliant cook - witness his utterly delicious, dangerously moreish Saturday...
Colinas de Uruguay Albariño 2016, Uruguay (from £8, Sainsbury's) This refreshing Uruguayan Albariño was my wine pairing on BBC1's Saturday Kitchen for Freddy Bird's wonderful squid and carabineros prawns with bomba rice and aioli. It may seem an odd choice - but bear with me. Freddy's a big fan...
Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Riesling 2017, Clare Valley, Australia (from £10.99, Majestic) We're big fans of South Australian Riesling in this household and the Lodge Hill is a lovely wine - dry, tangy and invigorating in its limey, green apple purity but also softening wonderfully when...
Colinas del Itata Old Vine Field Blend 2015, 12.5%, Chile (£7.50 down from £10 on multi-buy, Marks & Spencer) The joy of great food and drink isn't just that it's delicious. It's also that it gives us something to talk about and share. Stories, in short. This wine...
Chapel Down Flint Dry 2015, England (£10, Sainsbury's or via WineSearcher) We're big fans of Chapel Down's wines, especially their still ones - proving that English wine isn't just about fizz. Their Chardonnay (in particular their Kit's Coty) is regularly outstanding and well worth a try. This one's a...
Miguel Torres Days of Summer Muscat 2015, Chile (from £7.49, Majestic) No shortage of aromatic, grapey flavour with this Chilean Muscat, which just bursts out of the glass in joyous fashion. But neither is it a one-trick pony - quite the opposite. I chose this to partner a cheeseburger with a...
Broglia Gavi di Gavi 2015, Italy (from £9 down from £14.99 until 21.2.2017, Waitrose - or via WineSearcher) At the discounted price, this Gavi is a bit of a bargain. What's more, it's a beautiful food wine to put with food, which is why I paired it with Marianne...
Atlantis Santorini 2015, Greece (£11.50, Marks & Spencer) It's a little more expensive than we normally have on Saturday Kitchen, but this invigorating, succulent, illuminating Santorini white worked so beautifully with Tonia Buxton's lamb koftas with spicy tahini that I just couldn't resist. This truly was a delightful dish....
Fief Guérin Muscadet Côtes de Grandlieu Sur Lie 2015, 12.5%, France (£7.99, Waitrose or via Wine Searcher) Muscadet is enjoying a bit of a renaissance at the moment and this Fief Guérin is not only a pleasantly refreshing, saline-inflected rendition, it also makes a fine match for...
Finest Côtes de Gascogne Colombard Gros Manseng 2015, 11.5% (£6, Tesco) Bit of a bargain, this Côtes de Gascogne. And a really versatile food wine, too. We all know Côtes de Gascogne as a source of affordable, fresh - but perhaps slightly simple whites. This one isn't a...
Puerto Fino Solera Reserva, Emilio Lustau, Spain (£16.50 Fields, Morris & Verdin or use Wine Searcher) As I wandered from table to table at ‘The Great Sherry Tasting’ on London’s Southbank, I began to wonder how on earth I would choose my ‘Top Tip’ out of such...
Royal Tokaji Dry Tokaji 2015, Hungary, 13% (£7.99 when you buy 6+ until 26.9, Majestic) It’s always refreshing to come across a white with a bit of attitude. This Royal Tokaji Dry Tokaji was lurking with intent at the recent Majestic press tasting. The Tokaj region is more...
Morandé One to One Gewürztraminer 2016, Chile, 13% (from £6.99, Majestic) First things first. The Gewürztraminer grape isn’t for everyone. (Even if you can pronounce it properly…) It can be super perfumed and luscious in style, a bit oily and rich, so it can easily put people...
Taste The Difference Riverblock Sauvignon Blanc 2015, New Zealand (£10, Sainsbury's) This was my Saturday Kitchen pairing for crisp fried fish with softened sweet onion by Great British Bake Off 2016 winner Nadiya Hussain. The dish has a fair bit of spice and aromatic scent. Typically, I'd reach for...
Paul Cluver Ferricrete Riesling 2015, South Africa, 10.5% (£9.75 down from £13, Marks & Spencer) I was so impressed by this wine, and how well it went with Wolfgang Puck’s langoustines with charred aubergine and red Thai curry that I couldn’t resist blowing our Saturday Kitchen budget....
Tio Pepe En Rama, Spain, 15% (£15.99, Adnams, The Wine Society, Lea & Sandeman) New initiatives aimed at reinventing certain styles doesn't always work for drinks like wine, so it's wonderful when something does make sense. The En Rama initiative is designed to get people as close as possible...
Mud House Sauvignon Blanc 2015, New Zealand (from £6.50, Tesco) Hard to ignore this eye-catching deal (Majestic also have a similar one running at the moment). But it's not just that - I recommended this on Saturday Kitchen to go with a really fun, flavoursome dish by...
Taste the Difference Godello 2014*, Spain (£8, Sainsbury’s) The Godello grape variety nearly went extinct in the 1970s – it was down to the last few hundred vines, apparently – but it’s since been resurrected, to brilliant effect. It makes succulent, fresh, herb-scented whites that work superbly...