La Grange des Combes 2013, France, 14% (£9.99 when you buy 6, Majestic) If you like your reds a bit funky, this is a bargain. Strictly speaking, this Grange des Combes is AOC St-Chinian-Roquebrun, a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre. It’s peppery, meaty and full of...
Bouchard Aîné & Fils Pinot Noir 2014, France (£6, Sainsbury's or use Wine Searcher) It's rare to find a decent Pinot Noir* under a tenner. So for £6 this Bouchard Aîné & Fils Pinot Noir is a rare bargain. I featured it on Saturday Kitchen as an accompaniment to a...
Parker Favourite Son Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2014, Australia (£7.49, Waitrose) What to recommend when the great Pierre Koffmann is cooking venison with raspberry and bitter chocolate sauce on Saturday Kitchen? I went for the hedonistic rather than the classic option. Both had their merits (the classic being a...
Guaspari Vista do Chá Syrah 2012, Brazil, 14% (£56.50, Hedonism (UK) - US$ 47.27 Baccos, Vino Mundi (Brazil)) A wine from off the radar. I first tried this ground-breaking red when I visited Brazil earlier this year, in the company of renowned local wine journalist Jorge Lucki....
Wine Atlas St Chinian 2013, France (£5.79, Asda) A really savoury and serious red for the price level. This was my Saturday Kitchen choice to match Rosie Birkett’s carpaccio with panzanella – not an easy job but this wine really brought out the Mediterranean feel of the...
Toscana Rosso IGT 2014, Italy, 12% (£4.50, Tesco) This easy-going, food-friendly red is quite simply one of the best value reds we've come across in quite a while. Snap it up! Susie recommended this on Saturday Kitchen to go with rack of lamb with gnocchi and Provençal...
Gusbourne Pinot Noir Boot Hill Vineyard 2014, England, 11.5% (£22-23, Honest Grapes, Hennings, Buon Vino) The recent English Wine Producers tasting is an annual event that gets palpably more exciting and delicious every year. There were far too many exciting wines to be able to recommend them...
Thymiopoulos Xinomavro 2012, Greece, 13.5% (£10.50, Marks & Spencer) We are huge fans of Greek wine and this is a brilliant buy. I recommended it on Saturday Kitchen to a typically inventive dish by chef Michael O'Hare (of The Man Behind the Curtain in Leeds) but which...
Beefsteak Club Malbec 2015, Argentina, 13% (£8.79, Waitrose) At the Waitrose spring wine tasting there were plenty of wines I could have recommended but the sun was shining as I headed home and the idea of a weekend BBQ more than a little tempting. With this in mind,...
Taste the Difference Barbera d'Asti 2014, Italy, 14% (£8, Sainsbury's) So Italian - full of the fragrance of cherries and wild herbs, very stylish too. I matched this on Saturday Kitchen to pasta dish by Joe Hurd which incorporated nduja (spicy sausage) and tomato sauce. Show co-host Gennaro...