After a bit of a summer break, we're back with some of the best value wines to get into as we all get used to being back at work for the new year.
Aimery Grande Cuvee 1531 Brut, NV, France
This is a Cremant de Limoux - what that means is that you get a wine with all the dryness and complexity you'd want in a tasty champagne, made in the same way, but without the huge price tag. This wine is generally available for under $25 - but with its attractive bottle and label and the excellent wine inside, you are not going to feel like a cheapskate if you pop it out on the table while enjoying pre-dinner snacks with friends. Cremant makers have to follow rules just like champagne makers do - but the rules are less tight. This wine is a mix of chardonnay, chenin blanc and the much lesser known mauzac grape.It grows in the south west part of France this wine is from and is known for its ability to retain acidity - making it perfect for sparkling wine. This is a bright bubbly that's spent a decent amount of time on lees, giving it some of the bready complexity you'd expect to be paying a lot more for.
La Rosca Cava Brut, NV, Spain
Staying with the theme of "How do I get to live a champagne lifestyle on my budget...?" - cava! Cava is made in the same method as chamgne, it generally has the same yeasty, bready complexity to the flavour. Its usually dry - though depending on the grapes used it can taste fuller and fruitier than some champagnes. There are premium cava - but you don't need to pay a fortune to have a really classy bottle of bubbles. This is Barcelona's favourite cava - pop the cork and you'll see why. Its dry, there's plenty of acid and crisply fragrant apples, its got great bubbles in the glass but you're not being asked to think too much about it. For around $20 you've got the perfect kick back in the sun on a Saturday afternoon quaffer. With the added bonus that it will stand up to the kind of strongly flavoured snacks you might be nibbling on much better than a fancy champagne will.
Vandal Gonzo Militia 2021, Marlborough, NZ
I've had this wine waiting to be tried for a few weeks. It comes with a rather charming yellow wax cap - as is the trend in lots of wineries doing more natural or low-fi wines. This tells you its a white wine - but one look at the label and you know that something a little odd is waiting in the bottle. Its made from Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Viognier, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Riesling and Tempranillo. Yes, all of those, together. Vandal's slogan is Things Never Got Weird Enough. They may have with this wine. Its a lovely salmon orange in the glass and has the fruity vibrancy and texture you'd expect from a big rose - though this isn't a rose wine. Its got a lot of structure from the chardonnay and a touch of tannin. The berry flavours and fruity character mean it goes down well with strong food - I had it with a south east asian curry and it stood up well. You'll find this for under $30 and its definitely worth the money for a fairly unique, but really tasty wine experience.
Mtavruli Alazani Valley Semi-sweet red, Georgia
Its no secret that I love Georgian wine - and the Saperavi grape in particular. This wine is one of the labels from the award winning Teliani Valley winery. Each bottle features a different letter from the Georgian alphabet and is a celebration of the 8000 year old wine making tradition. Saperavi is a grape high in tannin that produces very bright, vibrant red wine with deep fruit flavours. This is plums and wild raspberries with lots of spicy notes. It calls itself semi-sweet - don't be put off - that sweetness is more about a lovely, fresh fruitiness than anything sticky or sugary. It makes for a very food friendly and quaffable wine. Saperavi is a wine perfect for big grilled steaks - this lighter version of the big red would be great with a charcuterie platter and some strong, hard cheese. A nice way to enjoy a catch-up with friends.
Septima Obra Reserva Malbec 2020, Argentina
I have it on good authority that this is the perfect Malbec for a homesick Argentinian. But don't just buy it for your friends missing authentic asado and the other tastes of home. This is classic and classy Mendoza malbec. Its big, its fruity, its unapologetic. And it definitely wants you to drink it with some BBQed meat. There's lots of black fruit - blackberries and plum in particular. But some lighter notes of red fruit and a little vanilla as well. At around $30 its a wine that will definitely impress if you pop it on the table at your next BBQ.
Comments