If you want an affordable alternative to one of the classic wines of France, Andrew Catchpole's guide will simplify the selection process

If I could drink the wines of just one country, it would, without hesitation, be those of France. At the top of the scale, French wines are unbeatable. Why, then, do I spend time looking elsewhere?

At the more affordable end of the spectrum, the quality of many bottles sold under famous French names can be disappointing. Every year I taste my way through a sea of overpriced, under-par wines labelled Chablis, Bordeaux and Sancerre. In the £5–£10 price bracket, the quality of many of the wines is substandard.

The good news is that many producers outside France's best-known regions have interpreted the classic styles with impressive results. If you love the great French wines but are often underwhelmed by what is in the bottle, then here are some suggestions for great alternatives.

Bordeaux/Claret

Although a great Bordeaux represents the pinnacle of fine wine, at the sub-£10 end of the pecking order there are oceans of poor wines cashing in on the Bordeaux name. Fortunately the big guns of Bordeaux, the noble Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes, along with side-kicks Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, travel well.

Leave the cult Californian wines such as Screaming Eagle or Harlan Estate to people with cash to burn and look instead to South Africa, where estates such as Rustenberg, Rust en Vrede and Vergelegen are making sumptuous Bordeaux-style wines.

The combination of ample sunshine and French influence is also working wonders in Chile, an unrivalled source of bouncy £5 to £10 blackcurranty Cabernets and juicy Merlots. Look out for Concha y Toro, Montgras and Errázuriz wines, which put many a cheap Bordeaux to shame.

From over the Andes, another winning Bordeaux alternative is Malbec, a neglected French grape that flourishes at Argentine wineries such as Catena, Alta Vista and Norton. These rich, berry and chocolate-infused wines are a new classic.

Finally, lovers of big, ripe flavours should try Australian Cabernets from the famous Coonawara. They have the boisterous spirit of a boxing kangaroo.

Red Burgundy

Burgundy's allure lies in decadently sensuous Pinot Noirs. Superb at best, the wines can also be a notoriously expensive, hit and miss affair. Bargains are few and far between. Between £5 and £20, it is well worth exploring reliable Pinots from elsewhere.

New Zealand is the best place to start. Young producers such as Blair Walter of Felton Road in Central Otago, resplendent in shorts, sunglasses and baseball cap, are obsessed with achieving the elegance of great red Burgundy. The cooler Antipodean vineyards of New Zealand, along with Victoria and Tasmania in Australia, produce pure, generous wines. Under £10, wines such as Tasman Ninth Island Pinot are among the best value Pinots in the world.

South Africa has finely honed examples from Bouchard Finlayson and Hamilton Russell. These show supple depth and class, thanks to the cooling effects of the ocean breeze. California produces fruity, rounded Pinots in Sonoma, but the best are from a clutch of crazily dedicated Pinot-philes in the wilds of Oregon, though these are hard to find.

Again, Chile is a place to watch, with Errázuriz and Concha y Toro crafting affordable, if straightforward, expressions of Pinot Noir.

Chablis

Chablis, which is made from unoaked or lightly oaked Chardonnay, is prized for its steely, graceful qualities and greeny-gold hue. The grape is the versatile vinous chameleon behind all great white Burgundy. Premier cru and grand cru Chablis are unbeatable partners for shellfish and firm-fleshed white fish, but prices for decent examples begin at £12 and rise to more than £20. There are decent Chablis for under £10, but most, along with Petit Chablis, are thin, bitingly acidic travesties unworthy of the name.

Try the cooler sites of South Africa, Chile, New Zealand and even Italy for affordable Chardonnays with poise and restraint. Avoid anything that smacks of an overdose of oak.

Unoaked Chardonnay from cool Friuli and Alto Adige in northern Italy, young Mâconnais from Vire, Clesse or St Véran in southern Burgundy, or a fruitier unoaked Chardonnay from New Zealand, Chile or a cool site in South Africa are your best bets.

Sancerre

For the unmistakable herbaceous, flinty-mineral bite of top Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé, expect to pay £10 to £20 or more. Top producers in neighbouring communes such as Menetou-Salon, Reuilly and Quincy can be excellent alternatives. So, too, can simple, grassy-fresh Touraine Sauvignon from farther down the Loire, and Burgundy's white odd-ball: the rapier-like Sauvignon of St Bris.

Outside France, Sauvignon has been globetrotting in a fuller, fruitier shape, for quite some time. New Zealand is the obvious choice. It tends to be loved or loathed for the pungently aromatic, gooseberry and asparagus exuberance of its Sauvignons. Cloudy Bay is legendary (and expensive), but Brent Marris at Wither Hills and John Stichbury at Jackson Estate make typically thrusting Sauvignon Blanc.

South Africa, led by producers such as Vergelegen and Springfield, is proving a rich source of excellent, mineral-scored Sauvignon Blanc halfway in style between New and Old World. Australia also gets a vote for cooler climate Sauvignons such as the stylish Geoffrey Weaver and Hill-Smith wines from Adelaide Hills.

For £5 or £6, Chile is a great source of tropical fruit-laden styles and Spain's Sauvignon/Verdelho blends from Rueda are also excellent.

Rhône

The mighty Rhône is famed for the robust, perfumed, almost rustic power of its reds, which are designed to be served with rich stews, roast meats and game. In the north, Hermitage and Côte-Rôtie express the dark concentration of Syrah, while the famous southern vineyards of Châteauneuf-du-Pape blend aromatic Grenache with Syrah, Mourvèdre and up to 10 other grapes. Fortunately for Rhône lovers, these styles, and especially Syrah, are currently being championed around the world.

The Australian version of Syrah - Shiraz - tends to be synonymous with big, spicy, mouth-filling wines. The best ones include those by Stephen Henschke and the Hungarian-born Rolf Binder at Veritas, both of whom have vineyards in the Barossa Valley.

There is greater restraint to South African Shiraz, or Syrah, whose ripe and peppery wines are positioned somewhere between France and Australia in style. Try Stellenzicht, Boekenhoutskloof and Fairview. And keep an eye out for the increasingly good Syrahs from Chile.

Wine of the week

Château Salitis 1999 `Ultime Vendange', Vin de Pays d'Oc Doux, France (£9.65; Jeroboams, 020 7259 6716 ). Imagine hints of orange and rich raisin flavours bound in a sumptuously decadent yet refreshingly moreish glass of sweet wine. Superb with sticky cakes and puddings such as tarte tatin, but even better as a liquid dessert in its own right.

Case history

Springfield Special Cuvée 2003 Sauvignon Blanc, Robertson, South Africa (£7.99–£8.49; Sainsbury's; Thresher; Waitrose). The grassy-green fruit and mineral bite of this wine are all the proof you need that South African Sauvignon can give Sancerre a run for its money. Try it with a warm goat's cheese salad, a Thai-spiced curry or just about any kind of seafood.

Vacqueras 2001 'Cuvée St. Roch', Domaine le Clos des Cazaux, France (£9; Jeroboams). This southern Rhône wine has plenty of supple, gamey, spicy ripeness, as well as aromatic nuances of red berryish fruit. An excellent alternative to the much pricier Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Perfect with herby Provençal dishes and rich stews.

Norton 2000 Privada, Argentina (£9.99; Waitrose; Oddbins; Safeway. For the 2002 vintage, call the Telegraph Wine Service, 0800 856 2140). This bold and juicy blend of Bordeaux varieties fills the mouth with ripe currants and plums, making it a supercharged version of its better-known French cousin. Generous fruit is tempered with a firm backbone that calls out for hearty meat such as roast beef.

Home • Up