The words “cheap” and “good quality” rarely go together in the same sentence, especially when you’re talking about wine, but in this instance we’re glad to make an exception.

For the second time in three years, a private label wine has taken out the ‘Best Value Wine under $20’ award at the Winestate Wine of the Year Awards in Adelaide.

Out of a field of 2500 wines, the Story Bay Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2017 was blind taste tested and judged by winemakers, wine scientists and Masters of Wine (dream jobs, anyone?) to be the highest quality for the lowest price.

The Story Bay Semillon Sauvignon Blanc is a private label sold exclusively at Liquorland, First Choice Liquor and Vintage Cellars. Story Bay is what’s known as a ‘phantom brand’, which simply means that the product is a home brand produced by a specific retailer (in this case, Coles), but it’s “in disguise”. Retailer-produced wines and beers now make up around 20 per cent of private label sales.

This has prompted some individuals to compile lists of wine labels that are on sale and made to look as if they are produced by individual wineries, rather than the big supermarket retailers.

Despite some concerns about the lack of transparency around phantom brands, it’s hard to argue with the tasting panel who described the Story Bay wine as having “vibrant tropical fruit aromas including passionfruit, with notes of lime and blossom, hints of herbal tea and fresh cut grass, and a zesty and refreshing acid backbone that provides structure and length”.

It’s hard to fault the crisp notes of the wine, which pairs beautifully with fish, chicken and refreshes the palate after dining on Asian dishes.

Head of the judging panel, Peter Simic, said he was impressed with both the quality and the value of the wine. “It was pretty close but this wine had the highest rating out of all the tastings at the lowest price, it really deserved the trophy,” he said.

“For the amazing value price of $7, plus high blind judging score, this should be everybody’s everyday drinking wine.”

At $7 a bottle, it’s hard to argue with that.