The supermarket own-label wines to snap up now – including a brilliant £22 champagne
Picking a bottle of wine you'll love at the supermarket is part art, part luck – not a science. There's no failsafe way to do it. But there are hacks and tips that can point you in the right direction. You're here, reading this from someone who tastes a ludicrous number of supermarket bottles, so that's a start. My best advice for striking gold in front of the supermarket bottle-wall? Head straight for own-label.
Granted, some retailers do own-label better than others; read on to find the supermarkets whose wine ranges I rate most highly. But wherever you shop there are some seriously good bottles hiding behind anonymous supermarket livery. And some of them, like the Sauternes that Aldi sells at Christmas-time (it's from Château Suduiraut) are made by stars of the winemaking world.
I've tasted hundreds of bottles to pick two standout own-label (or private-label) wines from each major supermarket. The selections take into account special offers, as well as a mix of countries, prices and styles (red, white, sparkling). Let me know which own-label bottles you rate.
Aldi
Most Aldi wines are created expressly for the discount store, whether they're so-called private label (brands developed especially for Aldi, such as the popular Veuve Monsigny champagne), or part of Aldi's Specially Selected or Unearthed collections. Aldi sells two seasonal ranges, for spring-summer and autumn-winter; the much-loved Crémant du Jura is part of the A/W range and already gone for this year. It also runs a wine of the week promotion.
What to buy
Asda
Extra Special is the name of Asda's own-label range but, like other supermarkets, it also carries some wines that are made specially for its range and not available anywhere else. I've recommended one of these below since it's a particularly good wine for the price.
What to buy
Booths
Booths' reputation is so good, and its branding so smart, that the E.H. Booth & Co. label has become a stylish selling point, like a mini Fortnum & Mason. The wines are reliable across the range, so if you live near a branch of this northern chain, count yourself lucky. The supermarket does run promotions, but the own-labels are rarely sold on offer: the philosophy is year-round benchmark value.
What to buy
Co-op
Co-op is a very under-appreciated place at which to shop for wine although, for me, the own-label bottles aren't its greatest strength. That said, there are still some seriously good wines in its range, including the Les Pionniers Champagne, which often triumphs in blind tastings against other supermarket fizz. Irresistible is the name of its main range but there are other own-label brands too.
What to buy
Lidl
Many of the best wines in Lidl aren't own-label but found among the so-called 'Wine Tours' – collections that change each month – rather than in the core range sold all year round. As far as own-label goes, I rarely find much to recommend in the Deluxe range that Lidl calls its own but there are some good picks amongst the 'private label' wines, usually simply marked with the name of the wine and no other branding.
What to buy
M&S
Almost all M&S wines are own-label and to help customers navigate the bottles, the upmarket retailer has a number of ranges. M&S Collection is the top tier, Found is a collection of reasonably priced (£7-10) off-the-beaten-track grapes; Classics are representations of favourite styles; while Expressions is an affordable range (with a label that looks like an old MOT disc) of expressions of different grapes.
What to buy
Morrisons
Morrisons' The Best range is highly variable, but for a broad steer head towards Iberia, in particular the Portuguese red wines (The Best Douro and Dão) and the wonderful sherries. In sparkling, the Crémants de Limoux (both the white and rosé) are also noteworthy. The range is frequently promoted, using both multi-buy and straightforward discounting mechanisms.
What to buy
Sainsbury's
Sainsbury's has two own-label ranges. House is the budget option, with bottles priced around £5-6 but there is better value for money (and a lot more choice) to be had by trading up to the Taste the Difference range. Promotions typically last around three weeks with discounts available only to Nectar cardholders.
What to buy
Tesco
Tesco does own-label brilliantly, with a huge range that offers impressive variety as well as high quality at different prices. There are also a number of exclusive brands alongside its Finest and Tesco ranges, many of which are often offered at special prices to Clubcard holders. Picking out just two wines doesn't do justice to the number of good bottles here.
What to buy
Waitrose
Waitrose has a number of own-label ranges, including Blueprint (a pretty reliable set of classic styles at entry-level prices); No 1 (a more premium range); Loved & Found (a collection dedicated to unusual grape varieties) and On the QT (finer, limited-edition wines made in collaboration with star producers).
What to buy
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South Wales Argus
5 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
This 75cl light pink concoction costs £10.99 per bottle and was made as an alternative to Whispering Angel. Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region. It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap. Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado. While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done. Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste. For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost. I compared Whispering Angel rosé wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again. I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated. After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle. The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest) The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview. While the design was very close, how would the taste compare? I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out. In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out. The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest) A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink. After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste. It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature. The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily. There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest) I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be. After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise. What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them. Recommended reading: Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other. Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them. However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
South Wales Guardian
5 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
This 75cl light pink concoction costs £10.99 per bottle and was made as an alternative to Whispering Angel. Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region. It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap. A post shared by Lidl GB (@lidlgb) Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado. While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done. Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste. For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost. As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again. I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated. After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle. The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest) The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview. While the design was very close, how would the taste compare? I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out. In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out. The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest) A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink. After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste. It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature. The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily. There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest) I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be. After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise. What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them. Recommended reading: I tested Aldi's new 'wine of the summer' and almost lost all my street cred The 3 delightful Rosés from Aldi you don't want to miss and the 1 to avoid The own-brand supermarket wines that beat bottles costing hundreds Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other. Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them. However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
The Herald Scotland
6 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region. It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap. Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado. While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done. Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste. For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost. I compared Whispering Angel rosé wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again. I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated. After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle. The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest) The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview. While the design was very close, how would the taste compare? I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out. In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out. The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest) A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink. After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste. It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature. The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily. There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest) I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be. After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise. What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them. Recommended reading: Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other. Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them. However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
