I have been fortunate to drink or taste a lot of very good wines this year, I am here to make my annual choice of twelve wines for my case of the year. Apparently the trend generally is towards white wines and I seem to reflect that trend. My top three wines have all been white wines and I could have added quite a few more to the case but wanted to balance it out. Let’s start with two tasted in good restaurants during my trip to South West France in April. The first, from magnum, was a beautifully balanced older Jurancon with lovely fresh acidity and citrus but the typical hint of sweetness too. The Bordeaux Blanc was clean, fresh and complex, if this is an example of why Bordeaux producers are switching to white wine production then it clearly justifies that move, delicious.

The only orange wine in this year’s selection was one I had cellared for a few years, Nando Primorska 2017. Full of deep, nutty, citrus and spice aromas and flavours, textural and growing in complexity with every sip. The Becker Grauburgunder 2021 has appeared here a few times. It is a wine of great complexity for a relatively cheap bottle. Lots of spice and fresh acidity with lingering white fruit notes. Sadly, it is no longer available in Majestic stores.

Two from my travels and both would be on the podium for wine of the year. I had Finca La Terrenal 2020 in Cambrils, Spain. The wine is Garnacha Blanca and the Terra Alta specialises in the grape. A truly complex, balanced wine walking a lovely line of freshness and fruit. The other is a bit of a compromise. A visit to Anton von Klopper’s fabulous Lucy Margaux in the Adelaide Hills with next door neighbour James Madden (see below) involved a fabulous range of excellent wines. My favourite was a Sauvignon Blanc though every wine was outstanding. I think this is the handmade label of that wine before it is stamped with the details of the cuvée. Anton’s American assistant worked with the Tscheppes in Austria who make exceptional Sauvignon Blancs and maybe his influence reached this wine. A fantastic range.

To reds. At the Dynamic tasting in London in February I came across many good wines but the Cosse Blaye 2020 was one which stood out for me. Classically Bordeaux in style (and better than the ones I had in that city two months later) but with added freshness and lifting red fruits, light yet full. A visit to my friends at Mas Des Capitelles in Faugères was another memorable tasting. This is my favourite part of the Languedoc for red wines and the Laugé family make undersung wines full of rich, garrigue influenced red wines balanced by lovely freshness. They deserve more attention, including their patience in ageing the wines before release. Crescendo 2019 comes from 80 year old Carignan vines with Mourvèdre and Grenache too. Buy!!

I very much enjoyed a tasting of Basket Press wines in Edinburgh in springtime and it fuelled an interest (and purchases) of Central and Eastern European wines. There were many good wines, my standouts white and red were made by Vykoukal in the Czech Republic. The standout was the Cabernet Moravia 2021 made from this cross of Cabernet Franc and Zweigelt. Deep, lively red fruits and very persistent, this was a memorable bottle and I have bought a few bottles since. Xingloei 2021 is a wine made from Tannat and Cabernet Franc grapes in the Pyrenees and has typical tannins but they are well integrated and though I’d decant this bottle before drinking it is full of very attractive, spicy plum notes. An unexpected pleasure.

My trip to Australia and New Zealand allowed me to taste several excellent wines and the following two were my standouts, one from each country. Payten and Jones in the Yarra Valley was my favourite winery visited by far and the Nebbiolo 2016 was wonderful, certainly reminiscent of Italian examples but with added Australian fruit. The Pinot Noirs of Otago won me over this year and the best was certainly this youthful 2023 from High Garden made by the excellent Jane Parr, as good as just about any Burgundy that I have enjoyed.

2024 though will be the year of Cabernet Franc for me. I have struggled with the variety for most of my life, put off by too many under ripe Loire examples in the past. Times have changed, for climate and winemaking, and I experienced so many great bottles of Cab Franc wines this year, it became almost embarrassing for me. The Loire visit in April brought lots of good ones, Bordeaux examples too. The white wine made by Bobinet from Cab Franc grapes was the biggest surprise, it was lively and exciting. Maybe it is recency bias but the most memorable bottle was the Amoise Hawke’s Bay 2023 I bought in Napier, rich fruit but with finely judged balancing acidity. Made by a new producer Amy Farnsworth, I’d love to be able to source more of her wines.

Wines with friends. One of the best things about my time with Jeff Coutelou (a decade now!) has been making friends with many visitors to his cellars. I have been fortunate to visit the cellars of two of those this year. I stayed a few nights with James Madden of Scintilla Wines in the Adelaide Hills and he is making lovely, clean, fruity wines with good depth and persistence. The Forrest 2023 Chardonnay was possibly my favourite bottle but he is making many very good bottles. In August I visited Steeve Dejardin in his new Minervois winery, Domaine du Partage. He has just a few hectares of mainly Carignan and Syrah and his first vintage was of a quality much greater than anyone has a right to expect. Nouveau-Nez 2023 is Carignan based and classic Languedoc spice and red fruits. And the maestro of course delivers more great bottles, Classe 2020 perhaps my favourite this year though the white wines are becoming ever more interesting.

To my favourite wine of the year. At Noble Rot’s restaurant in February I ordered a bottle of Savennières Roche Aux Moines 2021 from Domaine aux Moines. It was fabulous and I predicted that it would be unlikely that I would taste a better wine this year. I stick to that. I visited Tessa Laroche in April and that only confirmed that she is a great winemaker and this magnum opened on my last day of vendanges proved it. No wonder I look so happy in both photographs! Chenin Blanc was certainly the white grape which I enjoyed most in 2024, the Loire ruled.