Made by the same team that produces the world famous St Julien second growth, Château Léoville-Las-Cases, this is a Médoc that really punches above its supposedly lightweight status. It’s a Merlot-dominated blend with 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot for company. Elegant and well balanced, it shows the poise that is typical of the best 2010s, with subtle oak, sweet raspberry and cassis fruit and well-defined tannins.
Food Match: Game
2012 Domaine de la Meynarde Plan de Dieu, Rhône Valley
( £8.99 down to £6.75, 14.5%, Marks & Spencer )If you’re only going to buy one red from this offer, this one delivers the best value for money at its 25% off price. It’s the kind of southern Rhône red that reminds me of my student days in Avignon. It’s a ripe, but not over-ripe Grenache-based blend, made from old vines on the Plan de Dieu plateau, showing serious tannins, backed up by flavours of wild herbs, plum and tapenade. Vibrantly delicious.
2011 Perez Burton Rioja
( £9.99 down to £7.49, 14%, Marks & Spencer )Telmo Rodriguez is a brilliant interpreter of the Tempranillo grape, producing wines that are modern, yet appealingly traditional at the same time. This varietal number from high altitude vineyards around the village of Lanciego, is a very serious red for less than a tenner. Juicy, structured and sweetly oaked, with tannins and concentration that will enable the wines to age further in bottle.
Wynns Coonawarra Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, South Australia
( £15.99 down to £11.99, 14%, Waitrose )Australian Shiraz tends to get a lot more attention than Australian Cabernet Sauvignon, but at its best, the latter is more than a match for the former. This one from the Bordeaux varieties-focused region of Coonawarra is delicious, showing subtle use of oak from winemaker, Sue Hodder, lovely blackcurrant purity, appealing vanilla spice and fine-grained tannins. Long on the palate, this will reward further cellaring.
2013 Domaine du Bourg, Les Graviers, Frédéric Mabileau, Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, Loire Valley
( £13.99 down to £10.50, 12.41%, Waitrose )If you’re a fan of light, charming, grassy Cabernet Franc from the Loire, look no further than this unoaked stunner from Frédéric Mabileau. It’s appealingly scented, with aromas of cut grass, dill and pencil shavings, a supple, charming palate and bright, crunchy acidity. It tastes even better chilled.
2011 Triade Rosso, Puglia
( £8.99 down to £6.75, 13.5%, Waitrose )This is a comparatively unusual southern Italian red, given the presence of one third of Nero di Troia alongside the more widely planted Primitivo and Negroamaro in the blend. It’s also quite light by the toothsome standards of some of the region’s high octane reds, but certainly not lacking in flavour. Plum and damson fruit are underpinned by sweet toasty oak and a refreshing, peppery finish.
2010 Cantina di Negrar Amarone della Valpolicella, Veneto
( £17.99 down to £13.49, 15.5%, Waitrose )Amarone can be something of a one glass wine if it’s too rich and raisiny (at least for me), but this one from the Cantina di Negrar gets the balance spot on. It’s a blend of mostly Corvina, with 15% each of Corvinone and Rondinella, aged in traditional Slavonian casks, rather thas smothered with new oak. Aromatic and spicy, this boasts flavours of plum, raspberry and dark chocolate, with refreshing acidity and the concentration to age further in bottle.
2009 Villa di Vetrice Chianti Rufina Riserva, Tuscany
( £9.95, 13%, The Wine Society )Chaintis from Rufina often have a slightly savoury, even rustic note to them, which distinguishes them from Classico styles. This great value example certainly has a little of that, but it’s offset by sweet red fruits. This is a fairly traditional style, combining Sangiovese with Canaiolo, with fairly sturdy tannins and a lift of volatile acidity. A pasta-bashing red.
2011 The Curator, The Swartland
( £6.95, 13.5%, The Wine Society )By the hot house standards of the Swartland, this is a light and comparatively elegant red blend of mostly Shiraz with some Mourvèdre, Cinsaut and Viognier. It’s a scented, unoaked style with some pepper spice, raspberry and red cherry fruit and refreshing acidity.
2011 Tanners Douro Red, Douro Valley
( £7.95, 13%, Tanners )Produced for Tanners by the impressive winemaking duo of João Portugal Ramos and José-Maria Soares Franco (who used to make Portugal’s most famous red, Barca Velha) this is an impressively well balanced Douro red at an attractive price, with subtle, spicy oak, good minerality and acidity and tarry, brambly fruit. Half bottles at £4.45.
2009 Finest* Chianti Riserva, Tuscany
( £7.99 down to £5.99, 13%, Tesco )An unoaked, modern meets traditional style Chianti Riserva from Piccini which blends a dash of Merlot with 95% Sangiovese. This is a medium weight, savoury red with good focus and acidity, some sweetness from the Merlot and fine, filigree tannins. A superior red to go with your bowl of pasta tonight.
2011 Kooyong Massale Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula
( £16.99, 13%, Morrisons )This is one of the best value Pinots, not only in Australia, but the entire world. It’s just as good as plenty of village level Burgundies that would cost two or three times more. Subtle and refined on the nose, with aromas of wild flowers and a hint of earthiness, it’s fresh and persistent on the palate with impressive length, bright minerality and sweet and savoury notes. An Aussie Saivgny-lès-Beaune.