The great whites

We drink just as much white wine as red, but for some reason the red gets all the attention. This is a shame, because there are so many great white wines being made today – and in general you don’t have to wait long before they’re ready to drink. Here are 25 of my favourites. Some stockists insist on minimum orders of 12 assorted bottles. More details on JancisRobinson.com. See winesearcher.com for more stockists.

De Martino, Cascara Chardonnay 2010 Limarí Valley

Great value unoaked answer to white burgundy from an admirable Chilean producer and vines from an up-and-coming wine region that are cooled by the nearby Pacific. 13.5%

£7.99 Marks & Spencer

Lavradores de Feitoria 2010 Douro

Much cooler-tasting than most whites from Portugal’s port country. A successful and distinctive blend of local grape varieties made by a co-op based at the palace featured on Mateus rosé bottles. There the connection ends. 12.5%

£8.50 The Wine Society

McWilliams, Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Semillon 2006 Hunter Valley

Unusual to find any white with this much bottle age on a retail shelf, let alone under £10. Hunter Valley Semillon is an Australian, low-alcohol classic that demands bottle age. From one of the great names of the Hunter. Tangy lemon and beeswax. I suspect we are benefiting from the sluggish domestic market with this wine. Really refreshing and will keep. 10.5%

£8.99 Sainsbury’s

Moraitis, Sillogi 2010 Cyclades

An equal blend of fine, organically grown Greek grapes Assyrtiko and Malagousia on the island of Paros. Marine and very satisfying. Lightly nutty and with lots of fruit and interest. 12%

£9.95 The Wine Society

Ch Rouquette sur Mer, Cuvée Arpège 2010 Languedoc, La Clape

Unadorned local grape speciality Bourboulenc from this rocky mass south of Narbonne with 40% Roussanne. Smoky nose and off-dry palate with great sea and garrigue scents and convincing dry fruit. Great stuff. 13.5%

£9.95 The Wine Society

Dom de l’Aumonier, Cuvée Henri Chenin Sec 2009 Touraine

Wonderfully broad yet zesty nose. Chock full of impact, even if not the finest, most austere dry Chenin Blanc. Long, with real crème pâtissière on the finish. Yet overall this is a dry wine that should stand up very nicely to all sorts of savoury dishes, especially those with a creamy sauce. 12.5%

£10.74 Domaine Direct

Bellingham, The Bernard Series Old Vine Chenin Blanc 2010 Coastal Region

Tight green, molten honey character on the nose and lots of bright fruit on the palate in this South African. Enjoyable now, but I bet it will age into something even more subtle and rewarding. This is very young indeed. 14.5%

£10.99 (buy 2 bottles at £8.79 each) Majestic

Cave de l’Abbé Rous, Cornet & Cie 2010 Collioure

Not the sort of handcrafted wine you expect to find on a supermarket shelf. Very rich and heady from the far south west of France’s Mediterranean coast. White peach aromas and some definite oak influence. Too much to serve without food, but very rewarding. 14%

£11.99 Marks & Spencer (100 stores)

Jean-Marie Haag Pinot Blanc 2009 Alsace

Really quite rich and opulent for this variety. Charming because there is lovely tension too. Really exciting for a Pinot Blanc, but very round and ready. 13%

£12.20 Jascots

Dom G & J-H Goisot, Exogyra Virgula Sauvignon 2010 St-Bris

Serious, bone-dry Sauvignon whose structure is almost like the Chablis made nearby. Richer nose than most young Sauvignons. Quite open and expressive aromatically, with attractive tension on the finish. 12.7%

£12.96 Domaine Direct

Julien Brocard, Dom de la Boissonneuse 2008 Chablis

Snap up 2008 Chablis while you can, because they should have a much longer life than the 2009s. The Boissonneuse vineyard is tended organically by Julien Brocard (son of Jean-Marc Brocard). Very correct, razor-sharp wine from organically grown grapes. Racy apéritif? 12.5%

£13.95 The Wine Society

Casa Silva, Cool Coast Sauvignon Blanc 2010 Colchagua

From the new, super cool Paredones area. The driest, most sophisticated Chilean Sauvignon to have come my way so far. 13.5%

£13.99 Wine Rack

Vasse Felix Semillon 2009 Margaret River

Virginia Willcock is doing great things at this classic Western Australian estate. A small proportion fermented in new French oak has yielded a dry, super-refreshing white with real texture and interest. 12.5%

£13.99 Marks & Spencer (50 stores)

Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc 2011 Marlborough

Infused with stones? This NZ bone-dry white from Kevin Judd – who used to be responsible for Cloudy Bay – certainly plays the minerality card strongly. His best vintage so far. A fair price for something so well made with a great long aftertaste and a hint of elderflower blossom. 13.5%

RRP £15.99, widely stocked

Florian Mollet, Roc de l’Abbaye 2010 Sancerre

An interesting comparison with the Greywacke perhaps? Wonderfully stinky-flinty on the nose with good precision. This is genuinely superior to most supermarket Sancerres. 12.5%

£15.99 Sainsbury’s

Valdesil Godello 2010 Valdeorras

From a producer who has been shaking up one of the most exciting white wine regions in Spain, in the cool, green, far northwest. Godello is the revitalised local grape variety; 30-year-old vines grown on high, ... slate slopes. Lovely freshness, smokiness and sheer confidence – racy but not feeble. Creamy. 13%

£15.99 Waitrose

Georg Mosbacher, Deidesheimer Hergottsacker Riesling Spätlese trocken 2009 Pfalz

Great to see a supermarket bothering with top-quality dry Riesling from Germany. Honeyed nose and a very broad, peppery palate. Lovely well-balanced wine that is already drinking well and is chock full of fruit but not sugar. Excellent stuff. 13%

£16.99 Waitrose (8 branches)

I Clivi, Brazan 2008 Collio Goriziano

Particularly old vines of the local Friulano variety from a producer I have long admired. Very intense and exciting with no shortage of rewarding fruit. 13.5%

£17.95 Lea & Sandeman

Dom Jean-Marc Boillot 2009 Montagny

Smoky oak and lots of glamour and over-delivery, as usual from this white burgundy producer. You could accuse his wines of being too similar but to give Montagny this much appeal is quite a feat. 13%

£18.50 Lea & Sandeman

Eric Forest, l’Ame Forest 2008 Pouilly-Fuissé

Lift and delicacy on the nose. Really racy and juicy with impressive extract but a certain coolness overall. Firm and with some potential for development. Bracing and clean. 13%

£19 Woodwinters in Scotland, £21.95 Uncorked, £22 Butlers Wine Cellar in Brighton, Good Wine Shop in Kew, Houghton Wine Company in Cardiff

Le Jonc Blanc, Acacia 2008 Montravel

Dordogne blend of ridiculously low-yielding, biodynamically grown Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Smoky nose and off dry palate.

Very unlike most blends of these varieties. Tangy and blossomy. Very attractive and intriguing wine, even if the label looks rather cheap. 13.5%

£20.00 Aubert & Mascoli

Reichsrat von Buhl, Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Grosses Gewächs trocken 2008 Pfalz

Really good wine, as it should be given its long name. Dried grasses on the nose and just the right amount of fruit on the palate. Great balance and already delicious. Creamy textured, off dry white that could go well with a wide range of foods. Real vibration on the finish. With a hint of spice. Definitely Pfalz, but the 21st century svelte version. 13.5%

£25 Laithwaites

Dom Rapet Père et Fils, Les Combottes 2009 Pernand-Vergelesses

Very appetising. Green fruit dominates the merest hint of butterscotch on the palate. Good to see such an authentic yet approachable white burgundy on the high street. Neat. Pretty forward, but undeniably useful. GV 13%

£25 Marks & Spencer (150 stores)

Dom Fernand & Laurent Pillot, Noyers Brets 2008 Puligny-Montrachet

Very reductive, smoky nose. Creamy and rewarding. Lots of fruit, yet structure too. Very reliable smart white burgundy at a fair price. 13.5%

£30.95 Lea & Sandeman

Dom Vincent et François Jouard, Morgeot, Les Fairendes Vieilles Vignes Premier Cru 2008 Chassagne-Montrachet

Solid, savoury, something to get your teeth into. Just what white burgundy lovers love; all you have to do is decide whether it’s worth £35. But it has none of the common faults of white burgundy. Peristent. Just the ticket. 13.5%

£35 Laithwaites

.......................................................................

Jancis’s top 100 festive wines

Don’t miss our world-renowned critic’s four-part series on what to drink over the festive season, updated on www.ft.com/robinson. Next week, the best sweet and strong wines