Good vino doesn’t have to be pricey, as the best supermarket wines are proving, offering excellent bottles for every taste and occasion. Whether you’re after a zesty white wine to serve alfresco (here’s hoping), or a bold red wine for a cosy Sunday roast, plenty of gems can be found on our local supermarket’s shelves.
With feeds full of high-quality, low cost wines, social media is largely behind the boom in accessible wine. From the viral £10.99 “chicken wine” (La Vieille Ferme rosé) to Aldi’s award-winning sauvignon blanc and Asda’s playful alternative to Whispering Angel, Screaming Devil – there are so many bottles that have gone viral and are worth the hype.
TikTok personalities like Lucy Hitchcock, known as @Partnerinwineuk, frequently cause bottles to dry out at M&S and Waitrose, as their recommendations fly off the shelves. While, wine influencers such as Hannah Crosbie and Tom Gilbey are stripping the snobbery around wine, making it feel far more accessible to everyday drinkers.
“Wine is a whole aisle now, as people want more variety as well as value, and supermarkets have wisely chosen to invest in their wine buyers and relationships with producers – because this is how most of us buy our wine,” says Libby Brodie, wine consultant and columnist. The same can be said with supermarket champagne and whisky, where growing demand has led to a wider selection and higher-quality offerings.
According to Sinead Murdoch, sommelier and co-founder of restaurant Tasca, supermarkets are increasingly appealing to more discerning drinkers. “Now top wine buyers are working for supermarkets, and the growing competition is raising the standard of what ends up on the shelves.” This means that shoppers can now find bottles that rival those in specialist wine shops, without having to spend a fortune or hunt for rare finds.
That said, it can still be hard to know which bottles to reach for. To make your search simpler, we gleaned advice from the professionals. Below, seasoned sommeliers and trusted wine influencers share their top supermarket picks – it’s safe to say that your dinner party guests will be taking notes. Read on for the bottles to add to your basket right now.
Read more: We blind taste-tested champagnes and crowned a £35 winner
Dining and Cooking