Cape Point Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

As those of you who read my column in the Guardian will know I’m not a huge fan of Sauvignon Blanc but this is a wine I’m more than happy to make an exception for.

Made by Duncan Savage at Cape Point Vineyards on the coast at Noordhoek just outside Cape Town the fruit comes from highm exposed vineyards that get blasted by the wind until the leaves shrivel and brown. But the fruit is pure and stellar - more citrus than gooseberry and - most impressive of all - it ages. Under cork.

We tasted a 2000 - one of only 4 that were left (so thanks, Duncan, for generously sharing one of them) - that was still showing quite magnificently: completely fresh and fruity with just an added roundness and fullness indicating its age. There’s generally no oak, just an added dash of semillon which varies from vintage to vintage

We polished off the remainder of the bottle at Harbour House on the Waterfront in Cape Town where it went brilliantly with a plate of oysters.

The 2012 was showing well too. In the UK Swig has the current vintage for £14.50 while the 2014 is widely available for around £12.50-£15. SA Wines Online has it for £12.89 and Butlers Wine Cellar for £13.50. Buy some, drink some and lay some down as I plan to do. And that for a sauvignon sceptic is saying something.

Wine of the week: Daniel-Etienne Defaix Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2010

If you’re a fan of mature Chablis - or are looking for a special white for Christmas - this is a marvellous bottle from one of Chablis’ most idiosyncractic and interesting winemakers

Defaix makes his Chablis the traditional way with natural yeasts and ages them for much longer than conventional producers.

Normally the price would be around £18* but at the moment Booth’s is only charging £15.79 for it which I think is a steal for a wine of this age and provenance. (Sometimes they have a 3 for 2 offer on wines over £10 which would make it better value still)

I’d drink it with a good piece of grilled flat fish like sole or brill though it would obviously go with other seafood suspects like scallops, salmon or with a simply roast chicken or guineafowl with a creamy sauce.

While you’re in Booths which has branches all over the north-west of England I suggest you also pick up a bottle of the deliciously peachy Domaine de Vedilhan Serica Pays d’Oc Viognier 2014 which is currently on offer at £7.99 rather than £9.99

*You can also buy this wine from Tanner’s and Laithwaite’s

Joseph Drouhin Rully rouge 2012

The dilemma for us wine writers is when to recommend a wine we're really excited about. Do we save it up for a round-up of the best wines we’ve tasted in that category or tell you about it straight away on the basis that every other journo will be pushing it too?

Well I’m going for the latter course of action because delicious affordable red burgundies are few and far between. It was shown at the Waitrose tasting this week and comes from one of the region’s most reliable growers and negociants Joseph Drouhin and from one of the lesser known and therefore better value Burgundy appellations, Rully.

There’s a white and a red - both good - though the red, a lovely delicate ethereal pinot, is only available in 18 branches while you can find the white, a premier cru, in 231. The red, which is also organic, is made by head winemaker Veronique Drouhin using natural yeasts (no, it isn't remotely scary!)

If you feel £15.49 is still a fair bit to pay my guess is that Waitrose will almost certainly have one of its 25% off deals over the next few weeks so you could hold on. But if you spot some on the shelf of your local branch I’d grab a bottle to try or include a couple of bottles if you're ordering online. It’s also stocked by winedirect.co.uk for £16.50 (or £15.83 if you buy an unsplit case) or £125 in bond from Justerini & Brooks.

The red should easily keep 2-3 years.but would be lovely right now with game like simply roast partridge or pheasant, with calves liver, rack of lamb or with seared tuna

Mon Vieux Hell’s Heights Sauvignon Blanc 2013

It’s always a bit hairy doing a live food and wine pairing if you haven’t had a chance to have a run-through first - and even if you have some variable, usually the food, invariably changes.

So I was hugely relieved to find the both the wine and the cheese I showed at the Three Wine Women session with Kate Goodman and Jane Dowler at the Manchester Food and Drink Festival yesterday evening struck sparks off each other.

The wine, which was supplied by local Manchester wine merchant Hanging Ditch (thankyou, guys!) was a lush sauvignon blanc from Boutinot called Mon Vieux Hell’s Heights and comes from 535 metre high vineyards in South Africa’s Banghoek district which lies between Stellenbosch and Franschoek. It’s not as herbaceous as New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc with more of a tropical fruit than a gooseberry character and is very rich and textured thanks to being aged in oak for 6 months and left unfined. At 14.5% it’s quite high in alcohol but doesn’t seem at all heavy or cloying. For the price (Hanging Ditch is currently offering it for £12.50 a bottle or 3 for £30) it’s a real bargain. Other stockists are already on to the 2014 vintage which I haven’t had the opportunity to taste but which has picked up several medals - check wine-searcher.com for prices.

I paired it with a rich crumbly Vernieu goats cheese log from Booths and that was perfect but it’s also recommended with spiced seafood, octopus with parika, pasta arrabiata with clams (sounds good!) and “rich oily mediterranean dishes”