Christmas & New Year: A summary

I think that I'm a lot kinder to white wines than I am to reds. Generally speaking, and all things being equal, I will predominantly opt for the latter's darker charms and sleeker nuances over the lighter, brighter delights of a decent bottle of vin blanc. This is not to say that I am not a huge fan of white wine (quite the opposite actually: I am of the school of thought that believes many whites are actually much better suited to food than the traditional reds), however given the perfect set of variables, I would sooner slurp on a sleek, juicy Claret than a seductive Sauvignon Blanc. Which is why, over the festive season, a worrying trend in my drinking preferences struck me: that I am generally a lot more favourable towards white wines than their similarly-priced red bedfellows.

Two wines that were the bearers of this disturbing news were the supple and elegant Alain Grignon Sélection Vieilles Vignes Carignan 2013 (Majestic, £5.99 down from £7.99 - separate blog on the way) and the beautifully balanced Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Verdicchio Classico 2013 (£6 down from £7.50). Both wines brought a little bit of their own magic to my December proceedings: the freshness and vivacity of Sainsbury's Italian number went down very well with BBC Four's brilliant two-part Queen documentary 'Days of Our Lives', whilst the well-poised Languedoc soother rounded of a joyously lazy January day on our annual family winter getaway. However, I became aware that whilst I was drinking the Carignan I was constantly searching for more from the wine, and ignoring the attractive redcurrant and soft cinnamon flavours present in what can sometimes be a very tricky grape; yet with the Verdicchio I was prepared to let myself be amazed by what was admittedly a very good Italian white. In truth, both bottles represented excellent value for money, and my choice between them in the future would simply be a question of the food I was trying to match. Yet, the uncomfortable truth is that this constant search for more in already perfectly good reds seems to be systematic in my drinking experiences. Am I unjustly scrupulous when drinking reds? Does my palate harbour stronger feelings towards white grapes than I have heretofore been able to admit? Or, is it perhaps a case of better value on the white wines shelves at my normal pricepoint (£10 and under)? Whilst I mull over these troubling self-revelations, here is a round-up and tasting notes of my Sainsbury's Christmas wines in order of personal preference (See blog 13/12/14):

• Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Verdicchio Classico 2013: A top wine as mentioned above, handsomely bottled with a real 'verde' tint. The nose is characteristically Italian (dry and restrained white fruits), with apples, pears and lemon peel freshness and acidity on the palate. A well-balanced wine that is simply delightful as an apératif, but which would also marry extremely well with creamy spinach and ricotta ravioli.

•  Kanonkop Kadette 2012: A ruby-red Pinotage dominated blend, inspired by Bordeaux and which does a fairly good job of imitating it too. The nose is a pleasant array of plum, blackberry and oh-so-delicate banana, leading to an uncharacteristically un-South African elegant palate suggestive of stone fruits and white pepper. The oak treatment results in cedar rather than vanilla, and the absence of fruitiness on the mid-palate is reassuringly plumped out with a European-esque savouriness. A difficult one to match with food, but after a mouthful of this moreish Stellenbosch red, you probably won't care anyway.

•  Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Chilean Pinot Noir 2012: From the Pacific region of Chile's Valle de Casablanca comes this inviting 'rosado'-coloured Pinot, brimming full with a nose of cranberry, redcurrants and cedar. These flavours are carried through on the palate, where they mingle happily with notes of vanilla. A wine with good length and an easy-going nature which makes for a good quaffer, but whose oak-aging is slightly too overdone for my palate.

• Sainsbury's Winemaker's Riesling 2013: I feel slightly harsh giving fourth place to this eager, fruit-forward, bouncy Riesling, whose nose of fleshy green apple and flavours of sweet orchard fruits and syrupy melon shame many more expensive Teutonic counterparts. Nevertheless, unfortunately the wine is overly sweet for my palate (Off-dry on the label is very generous) and I can't help feeling that many more like me in our nation of dry white drinkers would feel likewise. A very good match with the dry heat of an Indian curry, however!