March Rogers returns to the supermarket in search of drinkable white wines that won't break the bank.

After last week's venture into the unknown I thought it only fair that I should try four bottles of white wine in the five pound bracket. Back in my local Superquinn, the first thing I noticed was that the selection of white wine you could get for the change in your pocket was much more limited than the equivalent red. In fact one of the four wines only qualified because it was on special offer. Perhaps it's a little unfair to judge a slightly more expensive wine against the three genuinely cheap wines but there's always a chance for the underdog to prove itself.

The cheap end of the white wine market is inevitably dominated by Chardonnay. Chardonnay is cultivated in vast amounts all over the world and can be made into an acceptable bottle of plonk with only a minimal amount of skill and time. Since white wine doesn't benefit from aging to the same extent as red wine does the year of the wine isn't as clear an indicator of value, so look for good labels, good colour and even quality corks - if it's made out of black plastic, be afraid!

The four bottles I tried were one from Italy, one from France and two from Chile. Once again the selection of Eastern European wine was very limited so I stuck to Western Europe and South America. I had hoped to pick up a bottle from Australia but nothing jumped out at me for less than eight pounds. I asked a few friends to help me out with the tasting in order to get a variety of opinion and to have someone around to help me if I was poisoned. Please note that the scoring is relative and takes into account the cost of the wine. None of these wines could compete with a twenty pound bottle of Riesling but you get what you pay for.

Santa Helena Gran Vino, Chardonnay, Chile, 2000: This was the first bottle we tried and at £4.95 it was the cheapest of the four. It had deep golden tones and looked to be a luscious full-bodied wine. It tasted overwhelmingly of alcohol and perfume. It had a slight sweetness that faded almost instantly and left an aftertaste that was not particularly. In general, a passable, unremarkable white wine that was quite drinkable considering its company. Rating, 2/5.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild Pays D'oc, Chardonnay, France, 1998: This wine was on special offer and although I picked it up for £5.89 it usually retails at £7.49. Once again it contained the characteristically deep colours of Chardonnay but had very little scent to it. The initial sharpness of taste was compounded by the catch of alcohol at the back of the throat followed by floral flavour with a long fruity finish. The strongest flavour was definitely alcohol making me think that it might have been quite a sweet wine left in the bottle a little too long. The special offer was beginning to make sense. My fellow tasters suspected it might have been cut with vodka. Rating, 3/5.

Frascati Superiore Via Romana, Blend, Italy, 1999: This was the only non-Chardonnay of the bunch and it cost £5.44. It had the colour of pale straw and stood out beside the deeper Chardonnays. It had no particular aroma, or should I say warning. This was definitely the worst wine of the bunch. It had a complex yet deeply unpleasant flavour and left a lingering aftertaste at the back of the mouth, as if to remind you of what you'd done to yourself. One of my friends actually expressed concern that it was eating his tongue. Don't go near it. Rating, 1/5.

Cono Sur, Chardonnay, Chile, 2000: From the same wine producers as last week's Rapel Valley Merlot this bottle cost £5.43, making it a penny cheaper than the Frascati and significantly less noxious. It continued the trend of deep coloured Chardonnay and had a perfumey aroma. Its flavour was quite sweet with a floral perfume. It had a fast, faint finish and didn't imprint a particular memory. Rather reminiscent of the Santa Helena wine, its Chilean cousin, it was about as unremarkable. One of my friends suggested it had a slight hint of mangos, so I told him to be quiet. Rating, 2/5.

It seems that you get less value for money from the low-end whites than you do the low-end reds. The French wine, of which I had a second glass, came out on top of its compatriots but to be honest I don't think I'd bother buying it again. As you may have noticed I don't recommend going near the Italian Frascati.

March Rogers