JUNE WINE BLOG – SUMMER BARBEQUE REDS
Summer has definitely arrived, barbeques
are being dusted down, cleaned and lit. Food is being prepared for grilling and
charring and you need some good gutsy but smooth reds to wash down the burnt
offerings and impress your friends on the warm summer evenings ahead. Here’s a few bottles which will guarantee a great evening and won’t
hurt the pocket too much, as they start at £4.50.
ASDA Argentinean Malbec - ASDA £4.50
Looking for an up and coming wine
which will go perfectly with a big juicy burger or chilli con carne then look
no further than Argentinean Malbec from Asda. Coming from Mendoza, the
country’s top wine region, this is a young fabulously easy drinking, rich &
full bodied red with forest fruit flavours. This gorgeously rich Malbec packed
with basketfuls of wild bramble flavour and is ideal for strong flavoured meats
charred over a white hot barbeque.
Telegraph Station
Cabernet Merlot 75Cl – Tesco £5.99
Highly recommended last weekend by a well
respected Paisley wine connoisseur Telegraph Station Cabernet Merlot is
a great find. This fruity red wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon
and Merlot grapes grown in South Eastern Australia with flavours of ripe
blackberries and plums. This is definitely one to enjoy either at a barbeque or
on any occasion. You can also try the Shiraz Cabernet also at £5.99, which is a
bit more full bodied. For something lighter try the Telegraph Station Pinot
Noir which is a beautiful example of a new world pinot, available from Tesco at
£10.99 but is regularly on offer.
Zilzie Shiraz Viognier 2011 – ASDA £5.50
I enjoyed this beautifully
rounded Aussie red at a friends house recently. It came as no surprise as the
Australian wine guru James Halliday gives Zilzie 4 stars and wrote ‘The wines
consistently far exceed expectations, given their prices.’ This wine from South
Eastern Australia is a blend of Shiraz with a touch of Viogner grapes aged in oak for 6 months. The 2011
Zilzie Shiraz Viognier is vibrant and deliciously juicy. Layered with mulberry
and dark cherry fruit, a hint of spicy vanillin oak and velvety tannins that
linger. Easy to drink on its own or with food and guaranteed to impress.
Montes Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon – 2011 – MORRISONS £5.99
*** Star Buy***Montes are one of the top winemakers from Chile and they know about value and putting quality wines into the bottle. There are plenty of Cabernet Sauvignons out there but for under six quid, it’s hard to beat this gem. It has great flavours of cherry and blackberry and hints of gentle spice. Apart from being big on fruit it has a lovely smooth finish. It’s completely yummy sip after sip after sip. Enjoy with a well grilled steak or keep it in your cellar for another year or two. Morrisons are holding this price for only another week before it returns to £9.99 per bottle.
Penfolds Rawson’s Retreat Shiraz Cabernet 2010 – ASDA £6.48
Penfolds produce some of Australia’s
best red wines including the legendary ‘Grange’. Penfolds entry level red wine
is Rawson’s Retreat Shiraz Cabernet which yields a mixture of ripe blackcurrant
fruit and soft, spicy flavours. Combining the warmth and spice of Shiraz with
the fruity richness of Cabernet Sauvignon and tempered with some soft merlot
and is ideal to drink now. Previously recommend by me, and normally retailing
between £8 and £10, this is on special offer again at Asda.
Piccini Chianti Reserva 2010 - Morrisons £5.49
If you are looking for something
a bit lighter to go with grilled lamb chops then look no further than this
Italian wine made from the Sangiovese grape. Piccini Reserva, thanks to its
ageing in wood, is a well structured, elegant, rounded and velvety wine from
Tuscany. There is a nice balance of fruit with strawberry overtones and hint
of cedar wood. Although only 3 years old
it pairs particularly well pork, lamb and chicken and is brilliant with pasta dishes. On offer for the next week only.
Peter Lehmann Barossa
Shiraz 75cl – Waitrose £9.99
This wine is a rich, smooth and
spicy Shiraz from one of the Barossa's top growers. It is a classic Barossa
Shiraz which is smoky, smooth and succulent in youth. It will mature
gracefully into a complex full bodied classy wine. This is a big wine with loads
of rich fruit, complexity, buckets full of flavour and a great finish. It
matures well and is particularly good at 4 or 5 years old. It goes well with anything from a
barbeque and its powerful flavours compliment grilled sirloin, roast lamb or perfectly
pink duck breast.
