Five wines you should try now

Sauvignon Blanc is the essential grape variety to have in your fridge at all times. It works well on a Friday evening as an after-work sipper; it is great as an aperitif, and it goes really well with fish and salads. But this Sauvignon is different from many others on the shelves.

Over several generations, South Africa’s political problems meant that some sections of the community missed out on opportunities, but all that is changing.

This wine comes from an all-women collective, helped by a long-established family business which decided to share out its assets to its workers.

The wine is crisp and refreshing with passion fruit, pineapple and lemon zest flavours, and it is Fairtrade, which means that everyone in the workforce benefits from every sip you take.

Think of Spain and you might imagine hot sunshine and very little rain, but Galicia, in north west Spain is totally different. The steep hillsides of this region are green, there is almost as much rain as Manchester, and there is often a breeze blowing in from the Atlantic.

This is the home of the Godello grape, a variety that almost died out 50 years ago but now it has been rescued and replanted.

It is a gentle, floral style of wine, with creamy melon and ripe pear fruit flavours, ending clean and fresh. It is a wine to enjoy as an aperitif, or just anytime friends come round.

Rosé wine used to be enjoyed just in summer, but now the season has extended throughout the year, heralding sunny days and warm weather.

Rosés can cover the colour spectrum from the palest of pale pink to deep, almost red wines, each one bringing a selection of red fruit flavours that can be enjoyed with or without food.

This rosé is full of juicy raspberry and strawberry fruit and is made from grapes grown in Bordeaux, the premier wine growing region of France.

The difference with this wine is that there is an Australian winemaker behind it. David Hohnen created New Zealand’s famous Cloudy Bay wine, and he has brought a lift of freshness and a purity of style to this Bordeaux rosé wine.

Enjoy it chilled, straight from the fridge, but in high summer there is enough flavour to withstand an added ice cube or two.

Wine from Romania? Is it any good? An understandable question, but just try it. This comes from a modern, cutting-edge winery close to the historic city of Timisoara on the western border of Romania, where Austria and Serbia meet.

It took the combined talents of an entrepreneur from Bristol to discover it and an Australian winemaker to shake up an old communist winery and, with a massive amount of investment, transform it into a top-class estate.

The rolling hills surrounding the winery are now planted with local and international grape varieties.

This great-value Pinot Noir has black cherry and raspberry fruit, a soft, supple style and it goes well with all kinds of foods. It is particularly good with grilled duck breast, roast chicken and pâtes, as well vegetarian choices especially when there are mushrooms on the plate.

There is never an occasion when a glass of pink, frothy, fruity fizz is the wrong choice. For a weekend brunch, an afternoon sipper or a pre-dinner aperitif, Prosecco rosé goes down well with everyone.

This version is Brut, which is a touch drier than most Prosecco wines. Try it with a couple of raspberries bobbing around in the bubbles.