9. light whites

These are all wines which are on the lighter, nimbler and crisper side. They are aperitif-style wines with enough talent to move into starters. If you fancy tasting wines outside of the familiar sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio, these three will shock you with their purity of flavour and also extraordinary value for money.

2018 Taste the Difference Gavi di Gavi, Piemonte ITALY (£12, reduced to £10 until 1 January, Sainsbury’s)

I met winemaker Claudio Manera more than 25 years ago and he has never stopped making firstclass wines. In the UK we love the ultrafashionable Italian style gavi and Sainsbury’s have chosen the right chap to make their elite version this year because this wine was a unanimous winner. Fine, cool, calm and gently citrus-kissed, this is a very pretty wine indeed.

2018 Voyage au Sud Vermentino, Pays d’oc

FRANCE (£5.99, Waitrose) I am overjoyed to report another sub-£6 wine has made it into this pantheon of greats. Made from 40-year-old vermentino vines in the Saint Chinian area, this is a wine which I fell in love with at first sniff. Light, dry, zesty and pure, I know the price might not seem like it could result in a really meaningful wine, but please believe me that the panel and I can vouch for its excellence, hand on heart.

2018 Picpoul, Les Figuerettes, Languedoc FRANCE (£8, Marks &

Spencer) We all love picpoul and there are loads of them about, but most are a little dilute and dull. So when I chose Les Figuerettes for the line-up I was hoping the panel would pick it out of the group. Hoorah! This is the best picpoul in the shops, it only costs £8 and the expert judges absolutely adored it.