‘Each one is an absolute cracker’: six bottles courtesy of Armit Wines

We’ve wines from four countries this week – France, Italy, South Africa and New Zealand – with two contrasting Chardonnays, a pair of Pinots and a brace of Bordeaux blends. Each one is an absolute cracker (you also have the word of Mrs Ray on this since, having run out of gin, she decided she wasn’t too busy to help me narrow the selection down to six bottles, after all) and each one is heavily discounted by those lovely folk at Armit Wines – by up to 35 per cent in one instance.

The 2021 Cantele Teresmanara Chardonnay (1) from Puglia’s Salento peninsula in the heel of Italy’s boot, is part-steel fermented, part-barrel fermented and aged on the lees in a mix of new, first- and second-fill oak barriques for eight months. Lightly honeyed on the nose, with hints of lemon and freshly cut pears, it’s supple and rounded in the mouth with touches of grapefruit and lemon cream and a faint hint of that honey again.