It wasn't the best wine I tried last year but it stood out. It was challenging, not so much in the way it tasted, more the way it made me think about where good wine might come from, and what we might be drinking in the decades to come.

The wine in question, Changyu Cabernet Gernischt 2011, reminded me of the better reds at the cheaper, less pretentious end of Bordeaux. At £9.99, it was possibly a bit pricey for what it was, but still the kind of mid-weight red that works well with food. What made it remarkable was where it came from: the Ningxia region, about 1,000 miles west of Beijing, making it the first Chinese wine to be stocked by a UK supermarket, Waitrose, not to mention the first Chinese wine (in my limited experience) that I'd consider drinking.

I shouldn't have been surprised. China has taken to the grape in a big way in the past decade, and is now the fifth-largest producer in the world. It has also been winning acclaim: picking up medals at London's most respected international wine competitions. He Lan Qing Xue's Jia Bei Lan 2009 won the International Trophy for best red Bordeaux varietal over £10 at the 2011 Decanter world wine awards.

It's not just China. I've been taken aback by the quality of wines from countries I hadn't taken seriously before. Waitrose, which, along with Marks & Spencer, remains the most adventurous British supermarket, has been responsible for more than its share, giving temporary listings to a pair of decent if unexceptional Indian wines and a creditable Brazilian sparkling rosé (Miolo Cuvee Tradition Sparkling Rosé Brut).

I've also tried my first Armenian wine (the swish, Italianate red Zorah Karasi Areni Noir 2010, £19.80, slurp.co.uk), a handful of delicious Turkish wines (Armit Wines has recently taken on the smart, if somewhat expensive, Urla winery), and some graceful Japanese whites (such as the Grace Winery Koshu Hishiyama Vineyard, at Hedonism Wines in Mayfair for just shy of £20).

If you're prepared to look around, there are currently more good wines from countries that are generally lumped together in the "rest of the world" chapter of guides than I can remember. My favourites include the aromatic whites of Slovenia and Croatia and the Rhône-style reds of the Lebanon (thewinesociety.com and tanners-wines.co.uk stock both old favourite Château Musar and up-and-coming Massaya).

There's also been a small producer-led renaissance in eastern European staples of the supermarket bargain basement, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania, as well as some excellent newcomers from the ancient wine-producing country of Georgia.

I have my doubts whether any of these countries will "do an Australia" and break into the mainstream – prices are often high, production often low, and the bigger supermarkets are for the most part unwilling to take too many risks.

Even Waitrose's Chinese experiment, which it says sold well, was confined to a single consignment, and it has no plans to repeat it for the moment.

So it may be a while before Chinese Cabernet Gernischt slips off the tongue as readily as New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. In the meantime I'm looking forward to some more new discoveries.
I've yet to taste anything yet, but I have it on good authority that the next big thing in wine is Peru.

Six of the best

Cramele Recas Paparuda Pinot Noir, Romania 2011 (£5.70, Adnams; £6.50, Tanners)
STAR BUY
Given that it's hard to find decent pinot noir for less than a tenner, this bright, light, juicy, Beaujolais-like red has to be a contender for the UK's best-value wine. A complete gem from a country that has the terroir, if not always the infrastructure, to make great wine.

Alain Graillot Tandem Syrah, Morocco, 2009 (£11.50, The Wine Society)
Based in Crozes-Hermitage, Alain Graillot is one of my favourite northern Rhône producers. This busman's (or cyclist's) holiday red from his Moroccan venture has more in common with the southern Rhône: rich, concentrated and sweetly spicy.

Pheasant's Tears Saperavi, Georgia 2011 (£12.50, Les Caves de Pyrene)
Georgia has good claim to be the birthplace of wine around 6,000 BC, and the tradition of fermenting in clay vessels known as kveri is still widespread, as in this dark but brisk, earthy red with its flavours of black cherry and twist of bitterness.

Puklavec & Friends Sauvignon Blanc, Slovenia 2011(£8.99, Waitrose)
This whistle-clean, aromatic and pure sauvignon blanc full of crisp, lip-smacking grapefruit is a great introduction to the pristine whites of the most northerly of the ex-Yugoslavian states. Drier and so much more restrained and drinkable than many of the OTT Kiwi sauvignons currently on UK supermarket shelves.

Anfora Trio, Aegean Region, Turkey 2010 (£7.49, Marks & Spencer)
Part of Marks & Sparks' ambitious and generally delicious range of wines from the Eastern Mediterranean introduced last year, this hearty red blend of the local kalecik karasi with cabernet sauvignon and shiraz is loaded with succulent dark fruit.

Kozlovic Malvazija, Istria, Croatia 2011 (from £11.49, greatwinesdirect.co.uk; nywines.co.uk; corkingwines.com)
Malvazija (or malvasia) from the Istrian peninsula is one of my top discoveries of the past couple of years. If you enjoy the richly aromatic whites of Friuli in northeast Italy, you'll love this mix of herbs, minerals, apricots and almond from the impressive Kozlovic.