JUST imagine you were perusing the supermarket wine aisle, in search of a sub-fiver white.

Would you be enticed by a wine labelled with the German moniker for the grape varietal grauburgunder? I wager not, but call the grape by the more recognised pinot grigio and you might just be swayed.

This is just what Moselland, one of Germany’s large co-operative producers, has realised with d:vine Pinot Grigio 2008. It sells for a recession-friendly £4.98 a bottle, with a trendy, non-German looking label.

I don’t care for the often characterless pinot grigio very much, but the d:vine example is surprisingly good, despite the incredibly tacky brand name. It’s fresh as a daisy and bone dry, with hints of green apple, pear, lemon, honey and white pepper. From the chalky soils of Germany’s Pfalz region, it will give any similarly priced Italian pinot grigio a good run for its money.

Actually, any white wine can seem characterless. If it is over-chilled, the wine’s aromas and flavours do not become apparent until it has warmed a little. This would certainly be the case with the following recommendations, both of which fall into the category of aromatic. If a wine seems very cold, warm it by wrapping your hands around the glass until the character floods through.

Most sauvignon blanc devotees I know would enjoy wines made from the Spanish grape verdejo, which is similar in a way and often a better bet at the lower end of the price spectrum. Cuatro Rayas Verdejo 2007, from the Rueda wine-producing region northeast of Madrid, is a musky perfumed, fresh, dry white, with ample amounts of lemon and tropical fruit flavour.

Finally, something different from Chilean producer Errazuriz. I was fascinated to try Errazuriz Single Vineyard Gewürztraminer 2006, grown in the Casablanca Valley where white grapes tend to do well.

Gewürztraminer is the speciality of Alsace, but I often find the intensity, texture and sweetness of Alsatian gewürz to be too rich and overpowering – after half a glass I’ve had enough.

I’m glad to say the Errazuriz is lighter, fresher and dryer in style but still manages to pack in all those rose petal, lychee, lime and floral flavours and aromas. One to savour with Thai curry I think, a match made in heaven.

• d:vine Pinot Grigio 2008, £4.98 at Asda 17/20

• Cuatro Rayas Verdejo 2007, £5.99 at M&S 17/20

• Errazuriz Single Vineyard Gewürztraminer 2006, £9.99 or £6.66 when you buy three at Thresher, Wine Rack 17/20