Be prepared for a boom in sales of the obscure Languedoc white Picpoul de Pinet now that TV wine expert Oz Clarke has enthused about it in his new wine series Big Wine Adventure. Oz and James discovered on their travels just how well this fresh, crisp muscadet-style wine went with the local oysters.

Having had a house in the region for the past 15 years I couldn’t agree more. It’s always the first thing I fall on when we go down there. I can remember one year, two days before Christmas coming straight off the plane at Montpellier and driving to a little cafe on the coast at Bouzigues where we sat in the sun sipping Picpoul with the local oysters which come from the nearby Etang de Thau. (Hard to believe on this dark December day.) I also recommend matching it, like Muscadet, with sushi.

I’ve also spotted it on a number of smart restaurant winelists recently so let’s hope the price doesn’t shoot up. It’s one of the wine world’s great bargains!