I THOUGHT I would do the unthinkable and suggest some decent wines for under a tenner this week. Yes, I did say under a tenner rather than the old three-for-a-tenner deals but one must maintain some standards.
Actually, I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of several of the wines available under a tenner but the closer I got to £7, the wines definitely became thinner and less satisfying. It's probably no surprise when I tell you that Australia came out on top for the quaffing wines with some real delights coming from South Eastern Australia. Beware though as some of their winemakers are producing Merlot and Shiraz wines for under a tenner that are literally just alcohol and rich fruit juice with no discernible tannins and, to be honest, if there's ever a zombie apocalypse, I can heartily recommend filling your stolen Range Rover up with them. Other easy drinkers from the land down under include the Tyrrell's Old Winery Series, the Normans Holbrook road range and Leasingham’s Jam shed Shiraz which is simply divine for the price.
Chile came a close second but mainly with two grapes, Merlot and Carmenere. Chile has long since mastered Merlot and they produce some of the plumiest styles you can find in the bargain bucket but Carmenere with its silky, alluring fruit has become my guilty pleasure. It remains a surprise to me that many of the bargain bucket wines consumed in the UK still come from France because everything I've tried in the recent past under £10 has been as rough as a badgers backside. Pip pip.
Tempus Two Silver Series Cabernet Sauvignon, Australia
I've long been a fan of Tempus Two and their premium Pewter range but this was my first foray into their bargain end and I was delighted with the find. Rich and exceptionally smooth brambly fruit with a long, soft finish.
Waitrose £7.99
Valley Way Barossa Shiraz, Australia
A rich, lively nose with heaps of soft black fruits on the palate. A really lovely quaffer for the price, just don't put it up against a steak.
Aldi £6.99
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here