Nogara 2023

Hundred-year-old vines in a ten-euro white.

Ben: Rueda at this price is usually supermarket wine from a big tank. This one is a blend of two vineyards at 850 metres — one of them planted over a hundred years ago — and it rests eight months on its spent yeast, which is where the creamy side comes from. The blend is decided by tasting, not by recipe.

In your glass: A white with two sides: creamy from those eight months on its spent yeast, quick and fresh from high-altitude Verdejo. Middle weight, zero sugar, a zippy finish. Pick it when a Sauvignon feels too sharp but a buttery Chardonnay feels like too much.

Serve it: An hour in the fridge.

You’ll probably love it if: Your weeknight white should carry a little more than usual — hundred-year-old vines in a ten-euro white.

Skip it if: Want wilder and sharper at the top of the range → What Time Is Too Late To Go To Bed (€19.50). Want the same money in red → the red Bilaire (€9.90).