Wine of the week: an enchanting vintage Champagne

2002 Asda Extra Special Vintage Champagne, France (£20.17, reduced to £18.00 until 31 December, Asda).

I have been fortunate enough to be your wine scribe for nearly six years and I have never written up a wine from the hallowed aisles of the great purveyor of popular victuals, Asda. I am now putting this right. As always, at this special time of year, I hunt down the finest value Champagnes for your delectation.

This means wading through oceans of dire fizz and it's not only the supermarkets who churn out the overpriced, underwhelming stuff: the famous houses often do too. As usual, there is a handful of reliable brands that will never let you down (Billecart-Salmon, Bollinger, Gosset, Jacquesson, Pol Roger, Louis Roederer and a host of small growers), but these wines are often dear. So when it comes to party planning, or just some downright excellent value, where on earth do you turn?

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The 2002 vintage was a classic one. I have been banging on about it forever, but most wines have moved on to 2004 and even 2005! This wine is made by Chanoine Frres for Asda and it has spent seven years in the bottle maturing in France. It is definitely the best value Champagne of the year and it thoroughly deserves the Extra Special' moniker. Try to ignore the dull label and concentrate on the contents. For 18 quid, this is a thoroughly enchanting wine.