There's no shortage of white wine out there. The hard part isn't finding a bottle but finding one worth drinking. After years in the industry, we've tasted through a lot of mediocre stuff to get to the good bottles, and the selection we carry at Givino reflects that. We specialise in Spanish and Portuguese wines, but we also stock exceptional bottles from South Africa, Greece, and elsewhere — wherever quality and character lead us. These are the whites we'd actually buy ourselves.
The White Wines Our Team Actually Recommends
After tasting through more bottles than we'd care to count, these are the white wines that earned a spot on our shelves.
1. Babylonstoren Chardonnay 2024
Babylonstoren Chardonnay 2024 doesn't always get the credit it deserves. After tasting this ourselves, we'd put it up against a decent white Burgundy without hesitation.
It's matured in a split of 50% new and 50% second-fill French oak, so you get the texture and structure without the wood taking over. The citrus notes are subtle rather than sharp, and there's a creaminess to the palate that rounds it all out nicely.
It's not a mid-week bottle; it's the kind of wine you open when the occasion calls for something genuinely impressive.
Pair it with creamy pasta, roasted hazelnuts or a decent piece of sushi. It's drinking well now and will continue to develop for another four to six years.
2. Bodegas Binifadet Blanc 2024
Menorca doesn't show up much in conversations about Spanish wine, which is exactly why the Bodegas Binifadet Blanc 2024 bottle is interesting. Binifadet farms on calcareous soils in the south of the island, and that soil shows in the wine. There's a freshness here that's hard to replicate.
No oak, no malolactic fermentation. Five months on lees in stainless steel gives it texture without weight. The nose opens with stone fruit (peach, nectarine), then shifts to dried herbs and a floral note that lingers into the finish.
On the palate, it's full without being heavy, with a persistence that punches above the 13.5% ABV. Grapes are harvested by hand and vinified at 17°C, which preserves the aromas cleanly.
It's a great introduction to island wine-making, and one we regularly recommend to customers who want something a bit off the beaten track.
3. Bodegas Binifadet Tanca No. 12 Blanc Roure 2022
The Bodegas Binifadet Tanca No. 12 Blanc Roure 2022 is the Binifadet Blanc's older, more considered sibling. Where the Blanc 2024 is fresh and immediate, the Tanca No. 12 takes its time, fermented in French oak and rested on lees for nine months in barrel, followed by a further nine months in bottle before release.
That process builds real density. The ripe stone fruit that defines plot 12 integrates with toasted spice from the wood in a way that feels earned rather than imposed. It's a powerful wine – dense, long on the palate – and it has enough structure to work alongside both delicate dishes and richer preparations.
If you've enjoyed the Blanc and want to see what Binifadet does when they're not pulling their punches, this is the bottle.
4. Quinta da Pedra Milagres Alvarinho 2021
Alvarinho, the Portuguese name for Albariño, grown on granite soils in the Atlantic-influenced Vinho Verde region, is one of the most distinctive white wine experiences you can have. This one from Quinta da Pedra Milagres is among the finest examples we've come across.
Fermentation begins in stainless steel, finishes in old French oak barrels (over ten years old), and then the wine spends a full twelve months in barrel on its lees with regular bâtonnage to build richness. It's then bottled and aged for a further two to three years before release. That's a long road for a white wine, and it shows.
The nose is bright and expressive, with stone fruit, yellow flowers, and something faintly mineral. On the palate, the acidity cuts cleanly through the ripe fruit without dominating it, and the finish is long and silky.
5. Pazo Señorans Seleccion de Añada Albariño Rías Baixas 2015
Most Albariño is made to be drunk young. Señorans decided to find out what happens when you don't, and the Seleccion de Añada is the result. Aged on its lees in small stainless steel tanks for over 30 months, this wine demonstrates an ageing capacity that most people don't associate with the variety.
The estate sits close to the sea near Meis, planted on acidic, sandy soils over granite bedrock. The vines producing this wine are over 45 years old and come from a four-hectare single vineyard around Los Bancales.
Marisol Bueno and Javier Mareque have been instrumental in shaping the Rías Baixas DO since they purchased the estate in 1979, and the Seleccion de Añada is the wine that best shows why.
Conclusion
These seven wines cover a lot of ground, from the volcanic limestone soils of Menorca to the granite of northern Portugal, from a revived Greek variety to a South African Chardonnay that belongs in any serious conversation about the grape.
What they have in common is that we've tasted them all and genuinely rate them as the best white wines on the market.
At Givino, we take a straightforward approach: stock wines we believe in, at prices that make sense. We specialise in Spanish wines and Portuguese wines, but we'll always stock something outstanding wherever it comes from. If you're not sure where to start, any of the bottles above will serve you well.
