Spring Reds

Round & About

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Wine columnist Giles Luckett gives us his recommendations for spring red wines. From Pinot Noir to Malbec, these red wines will put a spring in your step

Hello. Having delved into some spring whites last time, I thought I’d plump for some spring reds as, like wine, I’m all about balance. As the weather continues to break all records for all the wrong reasons, I’ve plumped for wines that will work as well with cool evening suppers as sunny day solo sippers. So, whatever the weather brings, with these you’ll be full of the joys of spring.

First up one of four Pinot Noirs. I could happily have filled this, and several other columns, with recommendations of great Pinots. But out of concern for R&A’s bandwidth, not to mention my liver, I’ll stick with these pretty Pinots for now.

Hurrah Pinot Noir

I’ve often said that Chile is a vine’s idea of heaven; not too hot, not too cold, with ocean views and poor, well-drained soils. OK, so it’s not my idea of heaven, but I’m not a vine. Put its location together with one of the most talented winemaking teams in the southern hemisphere and you have somewhere that even this notoriously fickle grape can feel at home.

The Errazuriz Reserva Pinot Noir (Amazon £11.90) is a great example of how good Chilean Pinot Noir can be. Mid-red, the bouquet offers fresh strawberries and raspberries with a hint of jam, rose petals, and mint. Medium-bodied, but with good intensity, there are plenty of red berry fruits with highlights of citrus and underlying oaky creaminess that’s punctuated by pepper and spices. This was lovely with lamb, but I can see it working well with everything from pizza to pasta, or as a solo sipper with salty nibbles.

I’ll stay in the southern hemisphere for my second choice, the Vila Maria Private Bin Pinot Noir (Tesco £13). This hails from Marlborough, a region best known for its thrilling Sauvignon Blancs, and while this is a very different kettle of fish/bottle of wine, the region’s signatures are in evidence. Rose petal red, the nose is zesty, fresh and positively leaps out of the glass in its eagerness to please. On the palate, this energy continues to show as an abundance of summer berries, rhubarb, and cherries burst forth, followed by pepper and savoury minerals. This is great fun and for the money, it’s great value. Serve this with red meats, pork or pink fish – the acidity means it will work as well as a white.

Staying in New Zealand but heading south we come to Central Otago. Central Otago was the world’s most southerly wine region for many years, but that crown’s been lost to Chubut in Argentine Patagonia. What hasn’t been lost is Central Otago’s ability to craft world-class Pinots such as the Central Otago Pinot Noir 2019 (Adnams £19.99). Getting a Pinot of this quality with some bottle age at this price is a real find. Deeply coloured with a nose that’s dominated by brambles, with touches of black cherry and vanilla smoke, it has a lovely mouthfeel with plenty of glycerine. The dominant tones are blackberry, and boysenberry, with sour cherries and spices coming in at the finish. They’ve not tried to force the extraction, and that gives it a lovely flow and a refined, elegant profile.

France knows a thing or two about great Pinot Noir. And while the wines of Burgundy can fetch eye-watering sums – Leroy’s Musigny 2015 is £144,000 a bottle – brilliantly compelling examples can be enjoyed by us mortals too. Take the Château de la Terriere Pinot Noir Sauvage 2019 (Edencroft Fine Wines £24.35). This full-throttle Pinot Noir, with great depth of flavour that comes from the Coteaux Bourguignons (Burgundy Hills). Strawberries, black cherries, loganberries and savoury-tinted raspberries are all on show, as is a touch of liquorice, spices and cream to the finish. It also contains no added sulphur, which is good for people for whom red wine can give them headaches.

Marvellous Malbec

It was world Malbec Day on the 17th April – so I thought I’d suggest a couple of Malbecs that have recently brought a smile to my lips. The first is the Adnams Malbec (Adnams £8.49). The thing I like about this is that it’s a stripped-down, fresh honest representation of Malbec. It’s not been oaked into submission, they haven’t tried to over-extract it or do something clever, rather they’ve let the grape do the talking. Plump black cherries, damsons, blackberries and an overtone of violets make for a joyful glassful.

My second Malbec is the Los Olivos from Malbec masters, Zuccardi (Taurus Wines £13.75). The weighty bottle is a forerunner of what’s to come. Very dark and inky, the nose offers classic Malbec aromas of blackcherries, damsons, and white pepper. The powerful palate is saturated with stewed black fruits with lowlights of prune and mulberry, given a lift by cranberry, raspberry liqueur, vanilla, and a long, smoky finish. I had this with a steak and it was excellent, but it would be lovely with cheese or roasted vegetables.

Old and New World Classics

As you may know, France is quite a big place. I looked it up on Google Maps the other day, and it completely filled the scree, it’s that big. Being big it can fit a lot of wine regions into it, some of the lesser known of which can yield fantastic wines for sensible money. Take the Château de Sabazan 2018 (The Wine Society £16.50). This hails from Saint Mont – turn left at Toulouse, you can’t miss it – and is made from Tannat, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Pinenc. The light, sandy soils give elegant wines full of refinement and nuance which need some time to open up. This is just starting to blossom and is showing blackcurrant and bramble fruit with a touch of leaf tea and brown spices. Give this a couple of hours open and serve with the Sunday joint, mushroom roast, or a cassoulet.

I’ll end with a vintage of a wine that’s become a staple in our house, it’s the Yalumba Old Bush Vine Grenache (Latitude £18.50). Australian Grenache has come a long way in the past few years. Once planted for its love of heat and ability to produce abundant harvest, by giving this noble variety the respect it deserves, quality-focused producers such as Yalumba have unlocked Grenache’s fine wine potential. Mid-red, with a lovely, intricate bouquet of red cherries, raspberries and cedar, this soft, yet rich wine, is full of cherry and strawberry fruit, with violets and almonds adding complexity. As good on its own as it is with dishes such as spaghetti Bolognese, falafel salad, or a pizza, it never fails to impress.

Well, that’s it for now. Next time out I’ll be talking fizz with a producer profile of the mighty Graham Beck.

Cheers!
Giles

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Best New Zealand wines for 2023

Round & About

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Discover more about New Zealand wines as Round and About’s columnist, Giles Luckett, shows there’s more to offer from the islands than Sauvignon Blanc…

Hello. I’ve been on a voyage of wine (re)discovery over the past few weeks. As you may remember from school geography lessons, the world is a pretty big place. And amongst this pretty big place are an increasing number of wine-producing countries. So many in fact that even the hardest drinking, sorry, tasting, wine professional can miss things. Regions you once followed closely slip into the periphery only to draw you back with a wine so startlingly good that you discover it anew. This is what happened to me a few weeks back when I was asked to sample some new-style New Zealand wines, including an unexpected and breathtaking Syrah, which has prompted me to create this top ten New Zealand wines list.

New Zealand: A Brief History of Wine

When I joined the wine trade in 1993, New Zealand wines – particularly Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc – were everywhere. Cloudy Bay had launched in 1985 and its full-throttle, super-intense “cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush” style led Oz Clarke to deem it the world’s best Sauvignon. The drew everyone’s attention to the wines of this cool climate land. Soon other regions on the North and South Island became known, and everything from buttery Chardonnay to strikingly elegant Pinot Noir became the biggest things from New Zealand to hit the UK since Crowded House’s Woodface.

Sauvignon ruled the roost. Harrods sold Cloudy Bay on allocation to a (very) select few, and other leading estates such as Wairau River, Esk Valley, Villa Maria and Te Mata also became hugely sought-after. Inevitably, over time tastes and fashion changed, and just as Australia had its ABC (anything but Chardonnay) backlash, so New Zealand saw the rise of the ABS (anything but Sauvignon) league.

A fire had been lit, however, and while Sauvignon’s star burned less brightly, the amazing possibilities of this emerging wine nation weren’t going to be left to wither on the vine. New varieties were planted, site selection explored, and winemaking innovation deployed to produce a crop of wines that were as exciting as those early Sauvignons.

My recent reappraisal of New Zealand wines proved revelatory, and here are my top ten New Zealand wines. And you know what, there’s not a varietal Sauvignon in sight…

Top Ten New Style New Zealand Wines

First up, a Riesling, the Adnams Marlborough Riesling (Adnams £9.99). Marlborough is a cool climate area on the northern tip of the South Island. While it’s best known for its Sauvignons, it’s varieties like Riesling that are now getting the wine world juiced up. Adnams’ is made in the European style and weighs in at just 9% alcohol. This leaves some residual sugar which serves to balance the bright, lemon and lime acidity, and green apple and white currant fruit. Delicious on its own, it’s even better with poultry, white fish, or seafood.

Staying on the South Island, but moving to the edge of the Tasman Bay we have the small region of Nelson. This is another home for vines that like cooler climes and it’s given us the Waimea Estates Grüner Veltiner 2021 (Majestic £10.99). Gruner is Austria’s most acclaimed white grape, one that’s finding flavour in California, Australia and, excitingly, here in New Zealand. This too has been left with a little residual, and here it gives a tropical fruit tone with a tangy, fresh, rhubarb and lemon finish. I thought this was lovely on its own, but I can see it being superb with oriental dishes.

My next pick is the Esk Valley Artisanal Albariño (Noble Grape £12.99). Hawkes Bay lies to the east of the North Island and is best known for its red blends – if you ever get offered a glass of Esk Valley’s Terraces (£95), a blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec grab it, (and the bottle if you can). It’s amazing and worth every penny. Esk Valley’s Albariño is pretty special too. While Albariño is most closely associated with Portugal and Spain where it’s favoured in celebrated seafood restaurants, it’s made itself at home in New Zealand. Classically styled, it has masses of freshness, is clean as a freshly polished whistle and boasts flavours that range from grapefruit and lemon to melon and stone fruit with a yeasty, savouriness to the finish. A superb aperitif, this is a wine with hidden depths. Give it a couple of hours open and it will bring out the best in creamy cheese dishes and poultry such as guinea fowl as a peachy, apricot tone adds depth and complexity.

And so we come to the first two rosé wines. The first is the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc Blush (Asda £8). I said there was no varietal Sauvignon and the addition of Merlot to give this colour has saved my blushes. While there’s a lot of Sauvignon character, it’s softened and rounded out by the plum, rose petal and cherry notes from the Merlot. Beautifully coloured, bright, and bursting with energy, this is great fun and was made for good company in the sunshine.

While Cloudy Bay’s Sauvignon always got the plaudits (for the record I think the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are better wines), the real star in Cloudy Bay’s firmament is the Cloudy Bay Pelorus Rosé (Majestic £23.99). New Zealand has perfect conditions for making world-beating sparkling wines and this is a world-class wine. Pale salmon with amber lowlights, the nose is a complex, evolved mix of strawberries, raspberries, and red cherries, cut with citrus, creamy yeast, and a hint of cranberry spice. It’s a class act. One that goes surprisingly well with food including fish pate, salmon or lamb.

And so to the reds.

No article on the best New Zealand red wines would be complete without Pinot Noir, as Pinot Noir has a mystique about it. The best New Zealand Pinots are up there with the best of the New World, and while they share some characteristics with other regions such as Australia’s Mornington Peninsula or South Africa’s Western Cape, theirs tend to be more European in style.

Take the Villa Maria Private Bin Pinot Noir (Noble Green £14.50). This is a Pinot worth getting excited about. Mid-purple, with a nose of sun-warmed fruits of the forest with raspberries and creamy oak, it’s a cheery, inviting opening. In the mouth, there are more black and red fruits wrapped in a soft, velvety body with a hint of just-ripe red cherry keeping it fresh. At first, it’s quite sedate, but as you sip so the flavour builds and it offers a persistent shot of very pure, spiced berry fruit with a citrusy edge that’s beguiling. Try it with red meat or tomato-based dishes.

With its marginal climate and free-draining soils, many regions in New Zealand have successfully produced Bordeaux blends. A fine example is Pask’s Gimblett Road Cabernet Merlot Malbec (House of Townend £14.95). Hailing from the Gimblett Gravels wine district in Hawke’s Bay (which isn’t technically a district but a brand – I know, because wine really needs to be made more complicated) the gravel, silts and clay soils force vines to dig deep for nutrients as they do in Bordeaux. The result is a deeply coloured wine with a nose of cassis, green peppers and blueberries. The palate is fresh-tasting and elegant, with abundant black berry fruits offsets by flavours of vanilla, plums, and a savoury, smoked red berry freshness.

I’ll stay in Hawkes Bay for my next recommendation, the Esk Valley Artisanal Syrah (Noble Green Wines £19.50) though this could hardly be more different. There are relatively few Syrah plantings in New Zealand the quality can be showstopping. Esk Valley’s brilliance shines through, with a wine that offers a bevy of peppered red fruits, black cherries, oriental spices, violets, vanilla, crushed nuts and a lift of berry acidity. This is a glorious take on Syrah, one that is drinking well now but which has the structure and fruit to age and develop.

Next is another Pinot, the Adnams Central Otago Pinot Noir (Adnams £19.99). Central Otago used to be the world’s most southerly wine region – that’s now in Argentina, though ask me in 6 months and it will probably be somewhere else! Central Otago is a great, if challenging, place to make any wine, but trying to tame Pinot here must be like herding feral cats. It is worth the effort though. The Adnams offers a delightful blend of red cherry and strawberry fruit with highlights of cranberry and a suggestion of peppermint tea. Medium-bodied, it’s silky with a creamy vanilla note, and the persistence of flavour makes it feel bigger than it is while remaining elegant and precise.

I’ll finish with another leftfield wine, the Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Tempranillo (Simply Wines Direct £18.99). For the longest time, Tempranillo was only found in Spain. Despite its quality, it remained in Spain, rather like Sangiovese in Italy. Recently I’ve seen it popping up California, Argentina and now here. Plantings are few, but the potential is phenomenal. Juicy, spicy, and packed with bramble, plum, mulberry, and citrus peel fruit notes, there’s more than a whiff of Rioja about this. On the palate, it reveals itself to be very much its own wine, though. Opulently deep, it flashes between the sweet and savoury as blackberries vie with chocolate, liquorice and herbs. This is a must-try with pan-fried liver or strong hard cheeses.

Well, I hope my top ten new-style New Zealand Wines will inspire you to explore New Zealand’s fascinating and fast-evolving wine scene.

Next time I’ll look at another region that’s challenging traditional perceptions as I take a tour of France’s Roussillon.

More soon…
Giles

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Easter wine recommendations

Round & About

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Discover some fantastic new wines for Easter. Round & About’s wine columnist Giles Luckett recommends a clutch of new wines for Easter.

Hello! With Easter in the offing and the prospect of some downtime over the extended weekend, I thought I’d look out for some wines to suit the season and the celebration. I’ve always loved Easter. As a good Catholic boy, it meant a deluge of chocolate (scoffed between seemingly endless trips to Mass), and later in life, it marked the end of Lent and a return to wine. Now, while I can’t claim to have forsworn wine for the forty days – the attempt would have been sworn at – I have made the acquittance of some wines that I’m sure will brighten your Easter break. So, in the spirit of helping my fellow man, here are six of the Easter best:

First up, one of the prettiest rosés I’ve seen in a long time, the Provence Rosé from Adnams (£11.99). While many rosés seem to focus on creating looks so exotic they would put a Versace perfume bottle to shame. Adnams seem to have focused their efforts on the contents – I know, a fresh form of madness or what? It has paid off, however, as the wine is so attractive. Made from Grenache, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon, the nose offers enticing tones of flowers, red berries, and citrus. On the palate, there’s a seem or pure red berry (raspberry, strawberry, and bitter cranberry) that’s deliciously offset by citrus and minerals. If the sun decides to shine this Easter, this will make a superb garden sipper.

“If the sun decides to shine this Easter, this will make a superb garden sipper.”

My next recommendation is an Albarino. Albarino is a grape whose class is undeniable, whose wines can be astonishingly good, and is regarded as a national treasure in its native Spain. Think liquid Stephen Fry without the passion for Norwich City, and you won’t be far off. While there are many great ones out there, the Pazo San Mauro (Palmers Wine Store £17.42) is a real treat. Freshness is the keyword here. From the explosive grapefruit, green apple, and herb-tinted nose to the ripe yet tangy pear, peach, melon and lemon palate, this is as clean as a whistle. Look closer, and you’ll find depth and complexity. Nectarine, minerals, a shot of honey. This is made for seafood – literally in Spain – but would be glorious with green salads, chicken, smoked fish, or Good Friday’s fish supper.

Sticking with Spain but moving to the other end of the tasting spectrum, we have the Contino Blanco 2019 (Noble Grape £23.99) – confession time; I’m obsessed with Contino’s Riojas. There’s something magical about this producer. Maybe it’s how they meld tradition with innovation or how they can create so many extraordinary styles from a single estate. Or simply as the wines are often breath-taking.

Breath-taking is the word I’d use for the Contino Blanco. I’ve only had this wine once, so perhaps I’m still in the first flush of infatuation, but it seemed to be love at first sip. Mid-gold, the bouquet is complex, displaying honey, almonds, pears, lemons, and wax. In the mouth, it’s mellow but clean, with layer-upon-layer of orchard fruits, warm spices, honey, lime, and butter. A real show stopper, give this a couple of hours open and pair it with white meats or fish.

Easter Sunday will see us hosting half the western world – pop in if you’re at a loose end; one more won’t make any odds. With recovery Monday the following day and with roast beef a must, a goodly supply of a great value red is a necessity. This year I’ve got some of the Antakari Carmenere Reserve (Laithwaites £8.99). Carmenere is Chile’s signature grape, and this iteration is packed with soft blackberry and blueberry fruit, with underlying notes of chocolate. Easy drinking; it’s a great wine that offers great value.

Back to Spain, we have another Rioja, this time the Vina Real Crianza 2019 (Waitrose £12.40). This is Rioja in exuberant form. Made from Tempranillo, Garnacha, and Mazuelo, it’s red berry-driven, but beneath the surface are richer tones of plum, creamy oak, spices, and orange zest. This is one of those wines that cries out for a food partner, and dishes as varied as cheesy pasta, tapas, roasted red meats, or, weather-permitting, barbecued fare would be ideal.

My penultimate wine is something of a myth-buster. To many, the name Beaujolais conjures up visions of hoorays charging to France in November to bring back Nouveau (why they bothered, I’ll never know) or pretty but forgettable flower-adorned bottles from Dubouef. Real Beaujolais is made from sterner stuff and is Burgundy’s best-kept secret. had the Louis Jadot Beaujolias Villages 2021 (Tesco £12.50) last week, and it was fantastic. My expectations were high as 2021 was a lovely year for Burgundy, and I wasn’t disappointed. With its bouquet of cherries, bubblegum, blackberries, and wildflowers, it’s as pretty as a picture of, well, something nice. In the mouth, there are the same fruit tones, but there are minerals, strawberry conserve, mint and almonds, all presented in a soft, edgeless body.

And finally, fizz. Oh, come on, you didn’t think I’d do a column without mentioning it? Might as well expect the rain not to be wet. Easter is a time for celebration, so here are two gems for you. The first is the Bouvet Ladubay Saumur Rosé (Majestic £10.49). Saumur in France’s Loire Valley was making sparkling wines when the likes of Dom Perignon were getting to grips with their Ladybird Book Of The Catechism. With its marginal climate, free-draining limestone soils, and long growing season, Saumur is a great place to create quality sparkling wines. The pale pink fizz bristles with notes of black cherry, green peppers, apples, peach stones and creamy yeast.

My second is Champagne Taittinger’s Nocturne (Tesco £39). Nocturne is a ‘sec’ Champagne, which means it’s not as dry as a brut. This wine demands time, one to sip after a meal or into the evening. The classic, elegant Taittinger style is there, but the extra residual sugar extenuates the peaches in syrup tone to give a champagne that, while far from an off-dry demi-sec, has a certain richness and silky, tropical edge to it. It’s a marvellous accompaniment to good conversation and gives a fresh view of this historic wine.

Well, that’s it for now. Next time, I’ll look at some wines from that bastion of brilliance, the Rhône, but until then, have a great Easter.

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