Best known in Beaujolais, Gamay also excels in the Loire, lending juicy strawberry notes, while Cabernet Franc is more raspberry and leafy. After a gentle crushing, the juice was drawn off the skins to ensure a pale pink hue and cool fermented to retain lovely summer berry notes.

Best known in Beaujolais, Gamay also excels in the Loire, lending juicy strawberry notes, while Cabernet Franc is more raspberry and leafy. After a gentle crushing, the juice was drawn off the skins to ensure a pale pink hue and cool fermented to retain lovely summer berry notes.

For quality and value, Abbesse Sauvignon Blanc is hard to beat and an all-time customer favourite. It's from our friends, the Bougrier family, with whom we've worked for the last 20 years. Every year, they search out the best parcels of grapes from Touraine, the Pays Nantais (home to Muscadet) and other regions where the grape shines to get the perfect balance of bright fruit and elegant, citrus zip. They've named the wine in honour of the original Abbesse of the famous Abbaye de Fontevraud nearby, Louise de Bourbon, a major figure in Loire history. This delicious expression of the region’s reigning grape is a fitting tribute to her. Delicious chilled as a glass on its own, it's also a classic with goat’s cheese and all sorts of seafood.

Not at all, but his family had a bit of land in Friuli, with a few rows of vines, that had been theirs for generations. From the grapes of these, they made a simple wine for their own dinner table. All this fascinated Alessandro, and wine became his chosen career. And we're glad it did.

We've known Alessandro since 2002 and love every new wine he sends our way. For this fizz Alessandro carefully selected Glera grapes with a drop of Chardonnay.

In Champagne, this would add to the price – in the Veneto this addition means it can't be labelled Prosecco, but frizzante. Whatever, it delivers citrus, tropical fruit with gentle bubbles.

After all, right across Italy Prosecco is the bubbly of choice and as much a part of daily life as gelato or an espresso.

This wine is from northern Italy's Alessandro Gallici. He knows every grape grower worth knowing, every premium vineyard, and has spent his life making outstanding wines.

We first met him when he was head winemaker at a large winery. Every vintage, he'd impress us, but he was also keen to go out on his own.

We were delighted and promised we'd be his first customer. We're still championing his great wines today.

His fizz is beautifully fresh and, served chilled, makes a tasty aperitivo.