The gourmet get-together

This crowd care a lot about what they eat and drink, and enjoy ferreting out the canniest supermarket buys as well as picking up bottles from independents. They like to support family domaines and try unusual grapes or blends but, since this is a party, they still want drinkability. They may not have a huge budget but, since flavour is a priority, they’re willing to pick up some slightly more expensive bottles.

SUPER TO SERVE

Waitrose Blanc de Noirs Brut Champagne NV, France (12.5%, Waitrose, £26.99)

Boy, this is good. A friend who opened it alongside a bottle of Bolly, which sells for almost twice the price, said he preferred it – and so do I. It’s 100% pinot noir and made by Champagne Alexandre Bonnet; think biscuity notes, a suggestion of black cherries and the smell of fresh winter air.

Famille Lieubeau La Fruitière Vignes Blanches 2022, Loire, France (12%, Haynes, Hanson & Clark, £13.30)

A calm but also bright and crystalline white, this blends the grassy freshness of sauvignon blanc (40%) with a lithe chardonnay. From a family producer, it unusually comes from muscadet country: the western part of the Loire, near the city of Nantes.

Semeli Feast Red 2022, Nemea, Greece (13%, The Wine Society, £9.95)

A deeply juicy, surprisingly silky, medium-bodied red that is a much more civilised-feeling expression of the Greek grape agiorgitiko than you usually see. Think red cherries and stewed damsons with a hint of grilled herbs and blackcurrant buds. There’s no oak here, just vivid fruit.

Pentire Coastal Spritz (0%, Master of Malt, £22.80 for 50cl)

A Cornish company set up by surfloving Alistair Frost, Pentire makes a beautiful range of non-alcoholic drinks. I particularly like this bittersstyle aperitif made with blood orange, sea rosemary and oakwood, which you mix with tonic or soda to make a sophisticated spritz. Serve over ice with an orange slice.

GREAT TO TAKE

Scorpo Noirien Pinot Noir 2021, Mornington Peninsula, Australia (13.5%, Haynes, Hanson & Clark, £25.60)

A good pinot noir from Australia or New Zealand will always go down well and this one, grown close to Melbourne, is excellent. If it’s out of budget, go to Asda to get Extra Special North Canterbury Pinot Noir 2020, New Zealand (13.5%, Asda, £10.25) which is impressive for the price.