Waitrose

Diemersfontein Pinotage 2004 Wellington, South Africa
This is a remarkably forward, modern, classy Pinotage that totally succeeds in taming the funkier aspects of this grape. It’s dark coloured and has an alluring nose of smoky, roasted dark fruits. The palate is savoury, spicy and quite rich with a nice stucture and more of that roasted character. Chocolatey richness, too. A crowd pleaser. (£6.99 Asda, Waitrose)

Château Cazal Viel Cuvée des Fées 2003 Saint Chinian, Languedoc, France
Fantastic stuff. A perfumed, open ripe nose shows beguiling notes of earth, herbs, spice and meat with real savoury warmth. The palate is ripe and rounded with minerally, spicy fruit. A brilliantly expressive wine for current drinking and just begging for a steak, roast lamb or even meaty sausages to accompany it. (£6.99 Waitrose)  

Fetzer Valley Oaks Syrah Rosé 2004 California
Perfect for summer. It’s a very deep colour for a rosé: almost a light red wine. Very full, weighty nose with lots of bright cherry fruit. The palate is fresh, fruity and rather appealing. A big, fruity rosé. (£5.99 Oddbins, Thresher, Unwins, Asda, Sainsbury, Somerfield, Tesco, Waitrose)

Anakena Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé 2004 Rapel Valley, Chile
Rosé used to be frighteningly unfashionable – almost on a par with Sherry, but now it’s hip. Rosé’s are ‘situation’ wines: imagine sitting at a seafront restaurant on the Côte d’Azur, glass in hand watching the yachts in the marina. This example is fresh, full and fruity. Light cranberry and strawberry fruit flavours dominate: a well balanced wine. Serve well chilled. (Waitrose £4.99)

St Hallett Gamekeeper’s Reserve 2004 Barossa, Australia
Three rich, ripe reds this week. First, an unoaked blend of Shiraz, Grenache and Touriga Nacional. It has a lovely, immediate nose of sweet ripe raspberry jam, with some subtle, darker, spicier notes keeping it from being too jammy. The palate is rounded and quite spicy but the dominant theme is lush, forward fruit that is defined by some spicy structure. (£5.99 Waitrose, Co-op, Majestic)  

Vergelegen Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2003 Helderberg, South Africa
Sauvignon Blanc is a white grape that, over the last five years, has emerged as a bit of a star in the Cape. This first wine is expensive, but worth it. It has a bright, complex, taut nose with some classy, seamless fruit and even a bit of minerality on the palate. (£11.99 Sainsbury, Majestic, Oddbins)

Cave des Clairmonts Crozes-Hermitage 2003 Northern Rhône, France
I’m sorta undecided about the 2003 vintage in the Rhône, in both north and south. It was hot, yes, which normally would be good. But this time, I think it was too hot: harvest began here on 20 August, for goodness sake. But it was by no means a disaster across the board, and this is one of the success stories. It shows forward, sweet raspberry fruit on the nose, and the palate is supple with lovely forward ripe fruit character. There’s savoury structure underneath this forward Syrah fruit, reminding us where we are. (£7.49 Waitrose) 

Excelsior Viognier 2004 Robertson, South Africa
Viognier is fast becoming the new Chardonnay. It used to be a niche grape – a curiosity – resticted to the northern Rhône, but now people have woken up to its unique capabilities. And of late, even inexpensive Viogniers are tasting like the real deal. This is a brilliant example, showing peachy, rich fruit with a lemony edge. Perfumed and open. It has a rich, broad, fruity palate with more of that peach character; flat without being flabby, and absolutely delicious. (Waitrose £5.99) 

Rustenberg Chardonnay 2002 Stellenbosch, South Africa
South Africa does these sorts of Chardonnays really well: they are rich without being overdone, and although the oak makes an impact, I find they are rarely dominated by it to the point that it’s a problem. This has a deep colour and the nose is sophisticated and rich, showing herby, nutty fruit. The palate is very rich, but there’s a nice integration of the oak with the herby fruit, creating a very rounded wine. (£9.99 Waitrose)

Château Cazal Viel Cuvée des Fées 2003 Saint Chinian, Languedoc, France
Fantastic stuff. A perfumed, open ripe nose shows beguiling notes of earth, herbs, spice and meat with real savoury warmth. The palate is ripe and rounded with minerally, spicy fruit. A brilliantly expressive wine for current drinking. (£6.99 Waitrose, currently on offer at £5.59)  

Palacio de Bornos Verdejo 2003 Rueda, Spain
This is one of my favourite inexpensive whites. The 2003 is a little plumper than the preceding vintage, but still very nice. It shows an appealing, rich, grassy/herby nose which leads to a rich, rounded fruity palate with lovely fruit and a savoury finish. (£5.49 Waitrose)

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