Villa Blanche Terret Blanc 2016

From - Languedoc, France
Grape - Terret Blanc
Alcohol - 12%
Available from - Waitrose (selected stores)
Price - £8.49

Appearance - Clear, medium- intensity

Nose - Clean, medium+ intensity, herbal (nettle), green fruit (apple, gooseberry), citrus (lemon), mineral (smoky). Youthful.

Palate - Dry, medium alcohol, high acid,  medium+ length, medium+ intensity medium+body,  medium+ length.  As above, emphasis on the fruit.

Drink now.  Very good quality.

What excites me most about wine is the variety.  And this is something genuinely different.  Waitrose believe that this is the first varietal Terret Blanc widely available in the UK for a very long time.

It has a great nose, surprising complexity and pleasing length.  It is easy on the alcohol, and I think would appeal to drinkers of acidic, aromatic varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc.  I really enjoyed it, and I think it delivers a lot for the price.

Here is the (empty) bottle next to a Chameleons album with which it shares similar artwork!

Domaine Begude Terroir 11300 Organic Chardonnay

From - Limoux, France
Grape - Chardonnay
Alcohol - 13%
Available from - Waitrose,
Price - £9.99

Appearance - Clear, medium intensity, golden.

Nose - Clean, medium intensity, youthful, green fruit (apple and pear), stone fruit (peach), minerality (stone)

Palate - Dry, medium+ acid, medium+ body, medium  alcohol, medium+ length.  Green fruit (apples and pears), citrus (lemon), minerality (stone).

Organically produced Chardonnay from a relatively cool part of the Languedoc, which allows slow ripening, and retention of acidity.  This is a classy one and ideal for an aperitif.  Really good, and well worth a tenner.