Named after one of Martinborough’s pioneers, John Martin, this is a wonderfully bright, tangy, graceful Pinot Noir from one of New Zealand’s best North Island regions. Fresh, tangy and focused, Â with nicely understated oak, it has a beguiling garnet hue, goji berry and wild strawberry fruit and a top note of crushed rose petal. Beautifully balanced.
Food Match: Game
2023 Zuccardi PolÃgonos Paraje Altamira Malbec, Uco Valley
( £26, 14%, Sainsbury's )Part of a very strong range under Zuccardi’s PolÃgonos brand, this comes from cooler, south-facing vines at 1,100 metres in Paraje Altamira, one of the finest sun-regions of Argentina’s high-altitude Uco Valley. Markedly influenced by its limestone soils, it luxuriates in violet and wet stone aromas, lovely zip and acidity, chalky minerality and intense plum, damson and blackberry fruit flavours.
2023 Taste the Difference Côtes du Ventoux, Rhône Valley
( £11.50, 14.5%, Sainsbury's )I always tend to drink more southern Rhône reds at this time of year. This one caught my eye at the recent Sainsbury’s press tasting, partly because it was every bit as good as the supermarket’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which retails at nearly twice the price. Syrah based – unusual in this part of France – with 22% Grenache and 4% Carignan – it has aromas of tapenade and mountain herbs, a palate of mulberry and blackberry and impressive texture, grip and palate weight. Perfect with a winter stew.
2023 A Pie de Tierra Fuerza Bruta Vino de Paraje, Valle del Alberche, Sierra de Gredos
( £27.60, 13%, Parched Online, The Sourcing Table )So pale it could almost be a rosado, this is a refined, ethereal Garnacha from vines planted on granite soils at 500 metres. Fermented with stems for texture and perfume, it’s a subtle, layered, haunting red from young winemakers Aitor Paul and David Villamiel, with aromas of ginger, Turkish Delight and forest floor, graceful, caressing tannins and a savoury finish of wild strawberry and clove.
2022 Carinus Family Vineyards Syrah, Polkadraai Hills, Stellenbosch
( £14.95, 13.5%, The Wine Society )Over the last decade or so, the Polkadraai Hills in Stellenbosch have emerged as one of the best places in the world to grow Syrah. It’s a region that produces wines that can go toe-to-toe with the best of the northern Rhône. This wine from Danie Carinus’ own vines, vinified by superstar winemaker Lukas van Loggerenberg, is crazily good value for money. It has enticing clove, lavender and white pepper aromas, tangy blackberry and tapenade flavours and a whisper of oak. Delicious.
2024 Famille Bougrier Les Terrasses Cabernet Franc, Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil, Loire Valley
( £11.50, 12%, Tesco )Asked to compile a list of my favourite five red grapes, I’d definitely include Cabernet Franc – and not Cabernet Sauvignon. This fresh, typically medium-bodied example from Saint Nicolas de Bourgueil is wonderfully bright and appealing,  with rocket, coriander and graphite aromas and a tangy, unwooded palate of black cherry and red pepper framed by granular tannins.
2012 Weinert Cavas de Weinert, Mendoza
( £27, 14% )Weinert is one of the most proudly traditional producers in Argentina, making wines that are squirrelled away for years in large wooden casks before release. This is a seamless blend of equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with 20% Malbec. It’s ripe, intense and savoury with mature, autumnal aromas of leather, incense and fallen leaves and a palate that combines structure and backbone with sinewy tannins and flavours of red berries, cassis and a spicy, balsamic twist. Great value at under £30.
2021 Ca' Leando L'Arenal Monastrell, Valencia
( £18.50, 14%, Noel Young Wines )I tasted this wine as part of a six-pack that my friend Noel Young offered to customers who wanted to support the winemakers of Valencia after the terrible floods last year. And I loved it.  It comes from a small 2.6-hectare vineyard called Lloma Rasa, which benefits from being at 550 metres. Made entirely  with Monastrell, the best local red grape, it has hints of clove and tobacco leaf from partial whole bunch fermentation,  flavours of wild thyme, fennel and rosemary, savoury tannins and a core of plum, strawberry and redcurrant fruit. Quintessentially Mediterranean.
2021 Cono Sur 20 Barrels Pinot Noir, San Antonio
( £18, 14%, Tesco )Cono Sur makes a greater range of good Pinot Noirs than any other producer in the world, offering impressive value for money in the process. Like the bodega’s other higher end wines,  20 Barrels is now sourced from coastal San Antonio rather than the Casablanca Valley. Aged in a combination of foudres and partially new oak barrels, this is sappy, bight and well structured, with plum, black cherry and rasperry fruit flavours and a sheen of vanilla spice. Hard to beat under £20.
2021 Domaine du Bel Air Jour de Soif, Bourgueil, Loire Valley
( £22, 13%, Berry Brothers & Rudd )Loire Valley Cabernet Francs are some of my favourite reds in the world, with just the right combination of freshness, perfume and acidity. This unwooded example from Bourgueil, an appellation which can often be among the earthier expressions of the variety, is wonderfully sappy and thirst-quenching, with aromas of violets and cut grass, bags of crunchy acidity and a palate of black cherry and raspberry framed by graceful tannins.
2022 Villard Grand Vin Le Pinot Noir, Casablanca Valley
( £21, 13.5%, The Wine Society )The best Pinot Noir yet from Chilean-based Villard père and fils, Thierry and Charlie, this is the sort of thing that should have Burgundy lovers reaching for their wallets and purses. Fermented with 10% whole bunches and aged in 20% new wood, it’s sappy and intense, with a waft of vanilla spice, subtle reduction, raspberry and black cherry fruit and a thrilling mineral core.
2021 Umani Ronchi Fonte del Re Lacrima di Morro d'Alba, Marche
( £15.50, 13%, Tesco )Made with the comparatively rare Lagrima di Morro d’Alba grape, this unwooded Adriatic red is one of the hidden jewels in the sprawling Tesco range. Close your eyes and you could almost be smelling a white wine, as aromas of ginger and Turkish Delight waft from the glass. The palate puts you right, though, as it combines plum and black cherry fruit with plenty of underlying grip and acidity. A perfect wine with a plate of fresh pasta.