Esk Valley, Rosé, 2020, New Zealand
This is one of the best rose wines I have tasted this year and best of all its under £10 a bottle. Its dry, light with good length and decent flavours of strawberries and redcurrant.
It’s the perfect summer rose that you can drink without a hefty price tag.
Rinomata Cantina, Tombacco, Rosso Piceno, 2020, Italy
Madd with Montepulciano and Sangiovese grapes with red wine from Tombacco in central Italy is just great. Reasonable bold, dry but with lots of black and red fruit flavours and aromas. There are underlying notes of chocolate and tobacco and our earthiness which is very very subtle it makes this wine superb to go with red meat or to sip on its own. At £12 a bottle it’s excellent value
Aldi, Pierre Jaurant, Bordeaux Blend, 2020, France
At times Aldi delights the wine drinker with a cheap wine that does what it’s meant to do, allow you to enjoy it without thinking about it and this Pierre Jaurant, Bordeaux Blend does that.
It’s a half decent dry red wine with firm tannins and lots of black fruit flavours. It’s uncomplicated and meant to just be drunk. At £5 a bottle it’s excellent value.
Villa Sandi, Prosecco Valdobbiadene Superiore, Millesimato, 2020, Italy
Another prosecco that delivers on being easy to drink with decent bubbles and taste. Green apple, melon, lemon, hints of honey and an undertone of minerals make it very enjoyable.
Broken Stone, Pinot Noir, 2020, Canada
Easy drinking Pinot Noir is my favourite style of red wine presently and this one fits perfectly. Reasonable fruit flavours and a fresh lightness make it approachable while good length makes it fell more premium. There’s a bit more red cherry than anything else but it’s a very good wine to have in the garden on a summer’s day or in front of s fire watching TV.
Los Haroldos, Blend, 2020, Argentina
Primarily a blend of Cab Sav and Malbec this house blend has great fruit concentration with red and black fruit in bucket loads. Bold and dry with firm tannins makes this a sipping wine or a wine with food. Usual steak or stew dishes or good strong cheeses to balance those tannins. At about £10 a bottle it’s good value.
Zuccardi, ‘Serie A’, Malbec-Tempranillo, 2020, Mendoza, Argentina
Another really good Argentinan red blend of Malbec and Tempranillo that’s dry, refined, with firm tannins and easy to drink. Good flavours and length make this £12 bottle of wine very good value.
Duca di Salaparuta Calanica, Syrah, 2020, Southern Italy
This southern this southern Italian red wine is really rather good. It’s dry, bold but smooth. There’s plenty of red and black fruit flavours and works well on its own znd with food such as pasta or red meat dishes. At £13 a bottle it’s not bad value.
Calvet, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, 2020, Southern Rhone, France
It’s hard to get a bad Châteauneuf-du-Pape and this one from Calvet is no exception. This good aromas and flavours of black fruits, oak, vanilla, with notes of licorice and coffee. At £10 a bottle it’s a good and well worth trying. Sure there are better ones but at £10 is very good value.
Made in the traditional, just like Champagne this New Hall, Brut Rose is a classic easy drinking sparkling wine from central Essex. There’s hints of strawberries and raspberry. It’s got a good hit of acidity and pretty dry but very drinkable. At a bit over £20 its decent value.
