Is Tesco Finest wine any good? UK supermarket own-label wine vs the brands
Every supermarket wants you to buy its own wine. It gets the eye-level shelf, the nicer label, a name like "Finest" or "Taste the Difference", and often the best promo.
The pitch is simple: the supermarket buyer has done the hard work, and you get a better bottle for less. We wanted to know if that's true. So we compared the own-label wines at each shop with the branded wines sitting next to them, using Vivino ratings from real drinkers.
The short answer
At Tesco, Sainsbury's and Waitrose, own-label wine rates slightly worse than the brands. At M&S and Morrisons, it's level or slightly better.
To keep it fair, we only compared wines priced between £6 and £15. That way a £60 Champagne doesn't drag the branded average up.
| Shop | Own label (average) | Brands (average) | Own-label wines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesco (Finest and Tesco) | 3.59 | 3.66 | 42 |
| Sainsbury's (incl. Taste the Difference) | 3.62 | 3.70 | 53 |
| Waitrose (incl. No.1, Loved & Found) | 3.62 | 3.71 | 29 |
| M&S (via Ocado) | 3.68 | 3.65 | 143 |
| Morrisons (The Best) | 3.71 | 3.64 | 10 |
Ratings are Vivino averages. Morrisons has only 10 own-label wines in this price range that we could match, so take its result loosely. Aldi and Lidl are almost all own label, so there's nothing to compare against there.
A tenth of a point doesn't sound like much. But most supermarket wine sits between 3.5 and 3.9 (we explain why here), so 0.1 is a real difference.
Why might own label lag?
We can only guess, but two things seem likely.
Own-label ranges have to cover everything: a Pinot Grigio, a Rioja, a Malbec, a Prosecco, a Chablis. Brands that make it onto the shelf have usually earned their spot by selling well, so they're already a filtered list.
And own label is where the supermarket makes its margin. The promo price is often the real price.
Where own label is great
It's not all bad. Some of the best value in the whole dataset is own label, and there's a pattern: Italian reds, especially Amarone and Ripasso.
- Tesco Finest Amarone Valpolicella, £21.50, rated 4.2 (1,281 ratings)
- Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Amarone, £18 with Nectar (£23 shelf), rated 4.1 (1,580 ratings)
- Lidl Amarone della Valpolicella, £16.99, rated 4.2 (116 ratings)
- Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Valpolicella Ripasso, £13, rated 4.0 (517 ratings)
- Waitrose No.1 Primitivo di Manduria Riserva, £16, rated 4.0 (198 ratings)
And some cheaper stars:
- M&S Koha Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc Rosé, £7.50, rated 4.1
- M&S Found Feteasca Alba (a Romanian white), £8, rated 4.1
- Aldi Mimo Moutinho Vinho Verde, £4.69, rated 4.0
- Aldi Freeman's Bay Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, £6.99, rated 4.0
- Waitrose Blueprint Vinho Verde, £7.50, rated 3.9
Sainsbury's Amarone Red Wine, Taste the Difference£18.00 with Nectar at Sainsbury's★ 4.1 on Vivino · 1,580 ratingsSee it at Sainsbury's
Amarone is normally expensive, so a decent supermarket one at £17 to £21 is a real saving.
Where to be careful
These are the lowest-rated own-label wines with at least 100 ratings behind them:
- Sainsbury's House Merlot, £5.25, rated 2.8
- Aldi Grapevine Spanish Sauvignon Blanc, £3.93, rated 3.0
- Tesco Finest Pinot Grigio, £7.75 with Clubcard, rated 3.1 (from 1,204 ratings)
- M&S Puglia Rosso, £7, rated 3.1 (from 2,169 ratings)
- Lidl Primitivo di Manduria, £5.99 on Lidl Plus, rated 3.1
- M&S Classics Marlborough Pinot Noir, £12, rated 3.1
- M&S Prestige Cava Brut, £9, rated 3.2
- Tesco Finest South African Chenin Blanc, £8.75, rated 3.2
The Tesco Finest Pinot Grigio one stings, because "Finest" on a label does a lot of work. 1,204 people have rated it, and they mostly weren't impressed.
So should you buy own label?
Treat the "Finest" or "No.1" badge as marketing, not as a guarantee. Check the score like you would for any other bottle.
If you're after an Italian red, the own-label versions are some of the best deals on the shelf. If you're after Pinot Grigio, look elsewhere.
How we did this
We collected every wine listed on eight UK supermarket websites on 11 and 12 November 2026 and matched each one to its Vivino page. We counted a wine as own label when its name carries the shop's brand or range (Tesco Finest, Taste the Difference, Waitrose No.1 and so on). The comparison table uses 75cl wines between £6 and £15 with at least 25 Vivino ratings. Prices use the loyalty card price where there is one and will have changed since. Asda's own-label wines didn't match to Vivino well enough to include.