Wine expert reveals the best bottles you can find for under a tenner

Shut the front door, I think the price tag is a typo. Made by a major Alsatian wine player, Arthur Metz, who makes other scrumptious Crémants but not at this jaw-dropping price.

Prosecco nuts looking for something similar, but different, should give this a spin.

This Portuguese bubbly is made in the same way as Italy’s party sparkling, via the ‘tank method’, and delivers a familiar apple and pear froth with a sideline in peach.

It’s made from two Portuguese grape varieties with a touch of Chardonnay, and a dryer vibe for those who like their fizz more lip-smacking.

White

3. The Garden Route South African Sauvignon Blanc, South Africa, £4.99 (from £7.99), Aldi

As a rule of thumb, I try not to go under £5 for a wine that’s not on promotion, as £2.67 is immovable duty, then there’s shipping costs blah blah.

But this is a special wine, on special, with a dry, crisp profile that will prove a doozy with all the smoked salmon you’ll likely be chomping over Christmas.

4. Expressions Feteasca Regala, Romania, £7.25, M&S

Let this crisp and floral white be the new thing you try. It’s from Romania, more specifically a producer called Cramele Recas, which is practically pumping well made, great value, wines onto our shelves.

The grape is pronounced, fet-asca Re-ga-la, and it has a peppery red equivalent. Here’s a case of unusual countries delivering unusual value.

Orange

5. Gros Manseng Vin Orange, France, £7.50 (from £8.25), Asda

Apple, orange, pear, mango, jackfruit… I’m not just naming fruits, by the way.

Well, I am, but there’s such a smorgasbord of flavours in an orange wine, listing them is my only way of keeping up.

Made by leaving the juice of white grapes in contact with their skins, this process picks up spice and texture in the process for a dry, turbo-charged version of a rosé.

Red

6. Le Moulin Teyroud Châteauneuf-du-Pape, France, £9.99 (from £19.99 on Dec 4-10), Aldi

Oops, I’ve fallen for a deep discount again. In my defence, it’s £10 for a Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a red which won’t usually drop below £20.

It’s a good one too, brimming with bright raspberry flavours. In fact, it’s medium-bodied with a juicy freshness to it, but at the same time, a rich intensity. I love a wine with a dual personality, especially at this price.

7. Alain Grignon Carignan ‘Vieilles Vignes’, France, £7.99 mix six, Majestic

Tell me this is great value, without telling me that it’s great value.

OK, for starters it’s in my great value wine piece, it delivers the juiciest flavours of plums, blueberry and mulberry flavours from vines that are some of the oldest in the business, we’re talking minimum 50 years old, many are over 100.

The yield of juice from each vine is minute, but you’ll find the concentration of flavour is off the chart.

8. Arabella Cabernet Sauvignon, South Africa, £7.99 (£10.99, non-members), Naked Wines (part of the Xmas Came Early Case)

One of Naked Wines’ most popular wines, with 93 per cent of their Angels saying they’d buy it again.

It’s also one of their best-value, and if you buy it in the Metro Drinks Club ‘Xmas Came Early Case’, you’re basically snagging it for £5.40.

The Arabella range is from the Western Cape, home to crowd-pleasing wines like this plumtastic red with a smoothness and generosity of flavour.

Simple and effective, curl-up-by-the-fire fodder.