Here are my top 20 white wines to try this Christmas - Christine Austin

There is another reason why it is best to stock up early and that is called “the global supply chain disruption”, which means that there are stocks of wine in various parts of the world that should have arrived here but haven’t yet.

There is plenty of wine available, but it might not be exactly the wine that you wanted.

So, to help you be flexible in your choice of wine this year, here are 20 white wines that will provide perfectly good drinking over the hols, for the run-up to the festivities, the main event and through into New Year.

I’ll have an equally flexible list of reds next week...

Pierre Jaurant Viognier 2020, Aldi, £4.49: Fabulous flavour for money with soft peaches and apricot fruit and enough crisp freshness to make a good wine for neighbourly gatherings.

Mystery Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2020, South Africa, Marks & Spencer, down from £10 to £6.65 until January 2: The only mystery about this wine is how they manage to get so much flavour into the bottle for the price. Bright, fresh, pineapple and lime fresh flavours with a beach pebble crunch.

Baron Amarillo Rías Baixas Albariño 2020, Spain, Aldi, £6.99: There’s a decent helping of apricot aromas and flavours in this wine, with peach and lime zest adding interest. Good as an aperitif, then team with chicken or fish.

The Best Vermentino 2020, Sicily, Morrisons, £6.75: Fresh, dry, fragrant flavours of ripe pear, pineapple and lemon with a food-friendly texture. Try it with shellfish, salads and grilled sea bass.

La Belle Angèle Sauvignon Blanc 2020, France, Majestic, £9.99 or £6.99 on a mix-six deal: A soft, rounded style of Sauvignon, with creamy gooseberries and crisp apples. Perfect to open while cooking and enjoy right through to the last drop. Great value.

Finest Stellenbosch Chenin Blanc 2021, South Africa, Tesco, £7.50: Bring some South African sunshine into your glass. This is packed with sun-ripe yellow fruit, crunchy apple and a hint of honey. Team it with baked salmon or herby lemon-scented chicken.

La Mia Strada Falanghina 2020, Italy, Co-op, £7.50: It may be dark outside, but you can bring back the taste of summer with this light, herb-dusted fresh apple and pear-filled wine, with nutty complexity. Team with creamy pasta.

Taste the Difference Gaillac Blanc 2020, France, Sainsbury’s, £8: Local grape Loin de l’Oeil grows almost exclusively in Gaillac, near Toulouse, making wine full of apple-fresh flavours, with pears and lemon zest. Big enough to pair with a Boxing Day buffet.

The Best Bush Vine Grenache Blanc 2020, Morrisons, £8.25: We are used to red Grenache grapes in Rhône blends, but the white version does particularly well in South Africa, giving succulent apricot and peach notes with citrus, herbs and ginger on the finish. Full flavoured with savoury depth.

Alcesti Grillo 2019, Sicily, York Wines, £9.25: Grillo is a local Sicilian grape known for its flavours of floral, lemony fruit with herbs and a rounded texture. Totally refreshing.

Loved and Found Petit Manseng 2019, Jurançon, France, Waitrose, £9.99: Waitrose has this new range of wines from almost-lost grapes which provide a whole new range of flavour profiles. This is definitely dry, with apples, lemons and tangerine zest flavours. A good food wine.

Silene Limoux Chardonnay 2020, Languedoc, France, Co-op, £10: With a little imagination and handiwork, you can turn the strange face on the label to Father Christmas and make this into a festive bottle. It comes from the cool hills of Limoux and has peach and ripe pear flavours with a firm, crisp finish.

Pouilly-Fumé Les Clos du Matin 2020, Loire, France, Waitrose, down from £15.99 to £10 until December 14: Part of the quick-fire Waitrose offer. This has all the fresh, green aromas of Sauvignon Blanc, but there is lemon zest and a hint of nectarine with a definite streak of smoky minerals.

Classics Alsace Gewürztraminer 2020, France, Marks & Spencer, £10: A soft, aromatic, lightly spiced, peach blossom and Turkish delight style of Gewürz. Try with ginger-garnished scallops or with the unpasteurised Old Roan Wensleydale cheese available at Courtyard Dairy in Settle. Martinez wines also stocks Courtyard Dairy cheeses.

Villa Wolf Pinot Gris 2020, Germany, Field & Fawcett, £10.30: Move away from the Grigio and try Pinot Gris – the same grape, but with more flavour. It has

creamy ripe pears, nectarine and clear fresh acidity. Perfect with any spice-edged food.

The Dot Austrian Pepper Grüner Veltliner 2020, Martinez Wines, £11.19: Austrian Pepper tastes of crisp apples, ripe pears and citrus zest, with a twist of white pepper on the finish. Terrific with curried left-over turkey.

Kumeu Village Chardonnay 2019, Booths, £12: This small estate makes wines that give white Burgundies a good run for their money. Elegant, restrained, full of pure, mineral-backed fruit and fresh on the finish. Step up to the “Estate 2020” for greater depth and complexity (Bon Coeur, £22.99).

Cru Smith and Sheth Wairau Sauvignon Blanc 2019, Marlborough, New Zealand, Tesco, £17: Seriously good Sauvignon from Marlborough Master of Wine Steve Smith. With old vines, ecological viticulture and expert winemaking, he has produced a wine full of juicy, gooseberry-edged, lime and nectarine-filled wine.

Yves Cuilleron Viognier 2020, Les Vignes d’à Côté, Rhône, France, Roberts & Speight, £17.99: As close as you can get to Condrieu without a second mortgage. Honeysuckle aromas, with nectarine fruit, and a fine balance of flavours and freshness.

Giant Steps Chardonnay 2020, Yarra Valley, Australia, Harrogate Wine £24.99: These grapes were on the vines when I was last in the Yarra. It was a cool year and yields were down which means the grapes were small and full of flavour. This is bright, crisp and full of melon and citrus fruit. Stylish, refreshing and perfect with fishy starters.