Time to get savvy about savvy

Now is a great time to stock up on sauvignon blanc.

They're almost giving it away in some of the supermarkets.

There are two interconnected reasons for this - apart from the buying power and routine discounting of the food barons: first, the 2009 vintage is fast coming onto the market which, second, means that any leftover stocks of 2008 will soon be surplus to requirements.

But you all thought wine got better with age (and therefore more valuable)? Yes, well, that depends on the kind of wine you are talking about.

Many oak-aged red wines are built to last.

Your pinot noirs and cabernets and syrahs and bordeaux-style reds.

Good chardonnays will often develop complexity and depth as they lie a few years in the bottle; well-made riesling, likewise, can acquire wonderful smooth limey/peachiness and a fullness of flavour only hinted at a few years earlier.

But some wines are made to drink young and, with the exception of a few notable labels, one or two of which I've alluded to in the past, sauvignon blanc is among them.

And as I said, just now wine-makers and retailers are keen to make a splash with their new arrivals, and those that still have stock from past years will be falling over themselves to get rid of it.

This includes some of the most respected labels.

So at the moment, for the savvy-lover, and I count myself among them, it's Christmas out there.

The only problem is - which to choose.

Well, again, this doesn't have to be rocket science.

Sauvignon blanc is grown in regions apart from Marlborough, but in my view, if it's not from Marlborough then it falls more into the curiosity camp than the sure thing.

Most self-respecting labels have come round to this and even Central Otago sauvignons will generally be made with grapes sourced from somewhere in the vicinity of Blenheim.

So nine times out of 10 I'd go for the trademark regional wine that put the New Zealand industry on the map.

And mostly I'd go for the newer model: the perfect vin de table - economical, comparatively light (in both alcohol, tannins and other complex flavour components), fruity but not sweet, refreshing, undemanding.

It could be the viniferous equivalent of the airport novel, though it would be a mistake to equate their simplicity for a lack of breeding or class.

A bit like judging a book by its cover, actually.

The point is that the young, vital, zingy sauvignon blanc is now recognised as a classical, and classy wine.

And, provided the fruit is half-way reasonable to begin with and the winemaker is competent, it's not a complicated wine to make.

So, again, you don't have to aim for the top to get some top wines - it's the most "democratic", and least temperamental of all our grape varieties

The other day I picked up the just-released bog-standard Marlborough Montana Sauvignon Blanc 2009 for about $11.

At that price I should have bought a case - or two.

Very pleasant, easy-drinking wine, with the familiar grassy, gooseberry-ish characteristics.

Likewise the entry-level Saint Clair Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009.

If the most basic of their range is this good, then watch out for their "better" ones.

The Recommended Retail Price on this one is closer to $20, as is the Sacred Hill 2009 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, another excellent example of the genre.

But shop around.

Get out there and look around for those specials - Dashwood, Allan Scott, Hunters, Stoneleigh, Villa Maria, Drylands, Astrolabe, Selaks, Vidal, Shingle Peak.

You can't go too far wrong.

And don't turn your nose up at the 2008s either.

Some of these are currently on the shelves at under $10 - and that is a serious bargain.