"KNOWING THAT I'VE spent many years collecting, tasting and drinking wine, and have enjoyed annual visits to wineries in France, Spain, Portugal and Italy, many people ask me what is my favourite wine," says Hilary Hough.
"They seem surprised when I say that I enjoy them all, even the ones that I don't like. For me, wine is all about new flavours and aromas, tasting and comparing them with others, and detecting the variations coming from the terroir or from the skill of the winemaker.
I am a chauvinist when it comes to white wines. With a few exceptions, such as good Chardonnay from Meursault, I treat them as a pleasant aperitif. My quaffing wines will always include Sauvignon Blanc. Having been a fan of many Sancerres and Pouilly Fumés, I was seduced by the crisp tartness and intense aromas of the newly arrived and much more sensibly priced New Zealand sauvignons.
They still offer excellent value, and one of my favourites is Lawson's Dry Hills Sauvignon Blanc. Produced by husband-and-wife team Ross and Barbara Lawson, this has lots of intense, mouth-watering, grassy flavours.
In recent times, I've found myself going back to the Loire for their more restrained and elegant features. I recently particularly enjoyed Pouilly Fumé Michel Redde La Moynerie 2006.
My absolute favourite white would have to be Riesling. In a very delicate way it combines the finest features of Chardonnay and SB. Cave de Turkheim Riesling Reserve 2005 is a very fine and reasonably priced example. A more sophisticated variation is Domaine Zind Humbrecht Riesling Clos Windsbuhl 2001.
If you can overcome your resistance to German Riesling, by far the best value I've recently tasted is Dr L Riesling Dr Loosen 2006. This wine is available at about €10 a bottle! One last favourite is Viognier which is now being grown in the Languedoc-Roussillon area and increasingly in other parts of the world. An excellent example at a very competitive price is Vin de Pays d'Oc Viognier Domaine de Terre Megere 2006.
For red wines, I'm an unapologetic traditionalist. Bordeaux and Burgundy top my list with an odd addition from other regions of France and a smaller number from Spain and Italy. Bordeaux and Burgundy span all the tastes, aromas and styles you could ever want in a red wine. In Burgundy, Pinot Noir reaches heights of delicacy and flavour never even dreamt of in Sideways. The small producers regularly produce the best. I am currently enjoying the beautifully crafted Le Tres Girard 1999 from Michel Magnien in Morey Saint Denis, a contrast to more burly Pinot 1995 from Chateau de Pommard.
To constantly stimulate my interest and provide regular bargains, O'Briens in Donnybrook is hard to beat.
Château Lagrange, St Julien 2001, €30.We're currently enjoying the beautifully fruity and smooth 1998, which demonstrates St Julien's finesse and delicacy."
Stockists:Try your local wine shop or fine wine merchants such as Greenacres in Wexford; Searsons in Monkstown; Berry Bros. & Rudd in Harry St or Jus de Vine in Portmarnock.
• Hilary Hough is an accountant, a former executive of Bank of Ireland, a non-executive director of a number of Irish companies and an international lecturer in finance. He holds a diploma in wine from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust