£7.09 @ Hatch Mansfield

With many of our Chablis and Chardonnays ruling themselves out because of price, it’s perhaps no surprise that our winner here was this well-priced Kleine Zalze Chenin – a wine that has done well down the years in the Sommelier Wine Awards.

‘You have sweetness and salt in the scallops, but the Zalze has the texture and acidity to cope,’ said consultant Ronan Sayburn MS.

‘It’s quite a fresh, subtle wine,’ added consultant Martin Lam, ‘and the food brings it out.’

£11.54 @ Bibendum

£6.52 Berkmann Wine Cellars

For this classic dish, our team found two excellent matches, one red and one white.

For the white, there were two rivals. The well-priced Elephant Hill Chardonnay 2013, with its good fruit and savoury notes, was edged out by the texture, structure and spice of the Newton Johnson Chardonnay. ‘It’ll soak up whatever the chicken is cooked in, and add a bit of class too,’ said Hakkasan Group’s Christine Parkinson.

The red, too, was praised for its elegance. ‘It’s substantial enough, but not aggressively structured, so it’ll work with the chicken, but also many other flavours that it might be cooked with. A good all-rounder,’ said consultant Martin Lam.

£8.50 @ Greene King

Our tasters were inches away from plumping for the Diren Kalecik Karasi Turkish red here, which would have been great if the salmon were cooked with tomato. In the end, however, they went for the superbly priced Reh Kendermann instead.

‘As an £8.50 wine it’s stonking!’ said Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest. ‘It’s got a lovely mature Riesling nose, with some RS to tone down the acidity. It’s voluptuous and complex – you need that with salmon – but it finishes clean and fresh.’

£9.17 @ Majestic Wine Commercial

This was remarkably problematic. Our tasters tried everything from English fizz to Kiwi Sauvignon and Greek whites before settling on this attractive Grüner.

‘It’s got the weight to be able to handle the weight of the fish and any mushy peas,’ said Hakkasan Group’s Christine Parkinson.

‘And there’s a lovely iodiney kick to the wine that just takes you right back to the sea,’ added consultant Ronan Sayburn MS.

£7.19 @ Eurowines

£9.87 @ Matthew Clark

We’ve frequently had a joint red/white match here, and it was the same again this year.

‘The Verdicchio lifts the tomato and the herbal notes while the acidity cuts through the richness,’ said Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest. ‘Combine that freshness with the herbal oregano, lemon notes and you have a great match.’

This terrific red also had a slight herbal character. ‘There’s a crunchiness to the fruit that’s a good contrast to the pizza, so it works texturally, and the acidity is refreshing,’ said consultant Ronan Sayburn MS. ‘There’s a nice leafy, herbal character that goes with the oregano.’

£9.90 @ Eurowines

Another good result for Italy in a section that has given us problems in the past. ‘It’s quite raisined, but it really works with the earthiness of the risotto,’ said consultant Martin Lam.

‘The fruit sits alongside the sweetness of the dish, but this is quite an earthy, truffly risotto. If you had more Parmesan you’d probably be better off with a white,’ added Hakkasan Group’s Christine Parkinson.

£11.26 @ Bibendum

Another dish that has veered between red and white in the past saw our panel going for white this year, with a classic Pinot Gris match – only from the New World rather than Alsace. Something that proves how good New Zealand can be with this grape.

‘It manages to add succulence to what can be quite a dry meat,’ said Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest, while consultants Martin Lam and Ronan Sayburn MS both liked the richness.

‘Veal is quite plain and the wine bulks it up and adds richness and complexity,’ said Sayburn.

£11.63 @ Crown Cellars, Grape Passions

Another success for Pinot Gris – this time from Alsace, with the wine standing up beautifully to a decidedly non-Alsatian dish.

‘It totally stands up to the sauce,’ said Hakkasan Group’s Christine Parkinson. ‘The sugar takes care of the sauce, and the wine holds its flavour. Plus it’s quite textural. It works really well.’

‘Even if you had a smoky, sweet, American style, it would still work,’ added consultant Ronan Sayburn MS.

£7.99 @ Vinum

With the need for both fruit weight and structure, it’s perhaps no surprise that we found ourselves back in Italy again here, with this attractive Barbera.

‘The freshness and cherry acidity will cut through the fat but still keep it juicy,’ said Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest.

‘Burgers have so much smoky, grilled flavour, and with all the add-ons you need something with body that’s soft and refreshing,’ added consultant Martin Lam.

£11.00 @ Boutinot

Our winner here was universally popular. A great wine that did a great job with a classic dish.

‘It’s so elegant,’ praised consultant Martin Lam. ‘Steaks don’t want massive complexity – you want the wine to play a supporting role, and this does that really well. It’s a smart wine, but well crafted.’

‘It has that combination of savoury notes and fruit ripeness, and the structure is really well integrated,’ added Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest.

£8.65 @ Liberty Wines

Rioja is our classic lamb match, but this juicily fruited Shiraz/Viognier did a similar job.

‘Lamb’s juicy and fatty, so it needs good acidity. This is a cooler-climate Shiraz so it has that, and the combination of red and black fruits is great with the soft sweet flavours of lamb,’ explained consultant Ronan Sayburn MS.

‘It lets the lamb flavours speak, but you can still taste the ripe fruit of the wine,’ added Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest.

£7.45 @ Hallgarten Druitt

£8.40 @ Boutinot

Oddly, for what is often a ‘problem’ dish, we found four good matches here from a Pinot Gris and German Riesling to the winning Italian Moscato and Greek Malagousia.

‘Both the wines left the spices without exaggerating the heat,’ said Vinopolis’s Tom Forrest.

‘My personal preference was the Malagousia because it’s more broad-shouldered, but the aromatics on the Moscato are delightful,’ praised Hakkasan Group’s Christine Parkinson. ‘I’d love to see gastropubs around the country listing these. It’s a great chance to put something new on the list.’