Asda Extra Special Clare Valley Riesling, 2008

Here we are back with our latest venture into supermarket wines. Friends of the Wine Rambler will know that every so often I visit British supermarkets and explore what they have to offer in the cheap price range. So far the likes of Blue Nun and Liebfraumilch have been very disappointing - but here comes an Australian Riesling, from ASDA, that is actually quite drinkable.

Very different from all the cheaper stuff this wine does actually have a decent bouquet: a fresh nose of citrus/lime, mineral and a little paraffin wax or perhaps petrol, which gives it character. On the mouth it is quite zingy and fresh, very dry and quite full bodied with decent fruit. It also had a little bit of rough vegetable, and a finish that hints at liquorice, if you listen carefully to it, but the lasting sensation is the zingy acidity.

13.5% is quite strong, especially for a white wine, but it does not overpower the Clare Valley wine. With the strong, fresh acid and the alcohol I would not want to have more than two glasses without food, but that is a question of preference, I guess. I also miss a certain something in this wine, something to bring the bits fully together and a few times during the split second when the wine moved from the top of my tongue to the back it felt almost watery. However, this only happened a few times and I would like to stress that this is a nit-picky criticism to show you what you don't get in this price range.

For this price, however, it can certainly compete with everything I have seen in a UK supermarket so far. If you like full-bodied, dry Riesling with a bit of acid kick then ASDA may be worth a visit.