Wine Box: Sippers and guzzlers

How much do we judge people on first impressions? Size is always a factor. Being big - 6ft 2in and 18 stone - has advantages. The portion police are always off-duty when I visit restaurants. Plates are piled high and glasses over-filled.

But I'm bored with it. Small amounts of fine food and wine - sliver of foie gras, black truffle, glass of Y'Quem - yep, love it. And small is beautiful in the wine world, in terms of boutique-style wines carefully made, sipped in small quantities and enjoyed with all those poncy gestures - sniffing, twirling, decanting.

But which are the best wines in the world? It depends if you're a 'sipper' or a 'guzzler'. Sippers might argue a classic-vintage, first-growth claret is unsurpassable, while guzzlers seek quality and quantity in affordable, drinkable, convivial wines. Here are two of each to try:

Puligny-Montrachet 1998 Domaine Colin Del?ger (Waitrose Direct, £25). Gently oaked, assertive fruit flavours combine with a deep creamy, buttery richness, this is one to sip with a lobster or three.

Sancerre Rouge La Belle Dame 1998, Domaine Vacheron (Majestic, £19.99). Certainly a sipper at this price but, heck, buy two anyway! Why? With great dollops of strawberry and raspberry, it's too lush and sensuous not to.

35 South Sauvignon Blanc 2001 (Asda, £3.99 until 8 March). Zingy, herbaceous Chilean white. A refreshing, moreish guzzler, I often have a couple of bottles in the fridge.

Goats Do Roam 2001 (Sainsbury's, £4.99). Dreadful pun (although, apparently, goats do wander among these vines), not bad South African white from the stable of winemaker Charles Black. A lively, interesting blend of grapes - Grenache Blanc, Clairette Blanche, Muscat and Viognier - gives peach and lemon-zest fruitiness. More exotic than you'd expect. Definitely a guzzler.

Previously on Wine Box