Lamb is one of the easiest dishes to match to wine. It works well with claret (red Bordeaux), Rioja (Spanish Tempranillo) and relatively full bodied new world blends. If you’re simply cooking a roast leg of lamb for Sunday lunch, any of the above wines would sit nicely alongside. A spicy lamb tagine or a tasty curry would require a bit more thought, but you’d still be looking at a rich, full red. I’m particularly fond of a good Gigondas from the Southern Rhone with a lamb tagine as the earthy notes in the wine complement the spice in the dish perfectly.
Claret is the original classic partner to lamb, and is also my preferred choice when cooking mutton. I think the older meat deserves an older bottle, as the softer tannins in the wine will partner the earthier notes in the meat. Older bottles require a trip to a proper wine merchant as opposed to a supermarket, unless you happen to have a well stocked cellar at home. The supermarkets tend to feature the most recent Bordeaux vintages which would either need to be kept for a few years before opening, or alternatively matched to spring lamb as opposed to mutton.
Buying older bottles requires a bit of research, and it’s best to have a few facts up your sleeve before heading out to make your purchase.
The quality of the vintage itself is important as you don’t want to pay a premium for a sub-standard year. The best of the recent vintages were 2016 (although it needs cellared), 2015 (as above), 2010, 2009 and 2005.
2010 was a very decent year throughout the Bordeaux region, with the wines of Margaux, Pauillac and Saint-Emilion doing particularly well. 2009 was a once in a lifetime perfect vintage and the wines are phenomenal. 2005 was exceptional, with most of the wines nicely hitting their stride right now.
As with all great vintages, wines from these years will continue to improve and develop for a few more years to come, but they’d also all work well with the mutton on your dinner table this weekend.
My current favourite, and one you should really try before it runs out is the Clos Canon Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2010 (Inverarity One to One, £35.99). This is a superb example of what the region can produce from a top quality property in a great vintage. Chateau Canon is owned by Chanel, so they have plentiful resources to make the best wine possible. The Clos Canon is their second label, which means you’re getting an absolute bargain which you can hide away for a few years or enjoy immediately if instant gratification is your thing. Enjoy!
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