Every year we collect the listings of best buys from the various national wine journals, compile them into a big list, then go shopping. Many of those listings are not available in our area, but we usually find a nice selection of wines under $15.

We talk to the wine merchants to find out what they think are the best buys, then narrow our selection to the top 10. This year there were 106 white wines on our master list; we found only 21 locally available, a much poorer representation than in previous years. Still, there are some splendid white wines out there, of which these are our top 10 white wine best buys:

1. Nobilo Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, Regional Collection, New Zealand, 2006. Nobilo, founded in 1943 by Croatian immigrant Nikola Nobilo, has consistently produced outstanding wines. The Nobilo 2006 Sauvignon Blanc is our No. 1 Best Buy because it is filled with crisp gooseberry, passion fruit and grapefruit flavors and is perfect with appetizers, light chicken dishes and fish. Other New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs selling for much more offer much less. $10-14 at Meijer, Kroger, Metamora Foodland, Oxford Wine & Beverage and Oliver T’s in Grand Blanc.

2. Meridian Santa Barbara Chardonnay, California, 2005. On the list again this year; always one of the best buys in Chardonnay. $9-12. widely distributed, available at most locations.

3. Concha y Toro Casillero del Diablo Chardonnay, Casablanca Valley, Chile, 2005. Also regularly on best-buy lists, an excellent example of the wine being produced in Chile. $10-12; Meijer, Oliver T’s and Oxford Wines.

4. Dr. Pauly Bergweiler Noble House Riesling, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany, 2005. It is exciting to see a Riesling of this quality in this price range. $14; Oxford Wines

5. Sauvion Château du Cléray Réserve Haute Culture Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, France, 2005. Another light, crisp aperitif wine, or perfect with fish, $13-14; at Oxford Wines, Aremia’s of Grand Blanc.

6. Marqués de Cáceres Viura, Rioja, Spain 2006. Yes, a white Rioja not often seen in the U.S. The perfect wine with Paella, wonderful Spanish rice dish. $8-10, at Lapeer Wine & Spirits, Oliver T’s.

7. Pepperwood Grove California Chardonnay, 2005. Also often on best-buy lists and consistently highly rated. $9-11; Kroger, Oliver T’s, Lapeer Wines

8. Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris, Columbia Valley, Washington, 2006. Pinot Gris is French, Pinot Grigio is Italian — but it’s the same grape. $12-14; Meijer, Oliver T’s.

9. Pepperwood Grove California Pinot Grigio, 2005. Get both No. 8 and No. 9 and do a comparison tasting; both good, but quite different. $8-10; Meijer, Lapeer Wines, Metamora Foodland.

10. Veramonte Chardonnay Reserva, Casablanca Valley, Chile. 2006. Another excellent Chardonnay from Chile. $12-14; Oliver T’s, Metamora Foodland.

That’s it for our Top Ten Best Buys in white wines for this year. In the next column we’ll bring out our Top Ten Best Buys in red wines with some exciting new wines you’ll have to try.

Dave Ethridge is a nationally known wine writer, certified wine judge, and the Director of the Lapeer Chapter of Tasters Guild.

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