I normally champion independent wine merchants in the column but a chat with an old friend the other day reminded me just how big a role the supermarkets have played in making wine a normal part of our lives.
I should, however, give an even bigger shout out for three wine champions without whom the supermarkets would still be focused on some of those 1980s wines that never ever passed muster.
The 1980s were the golden age for wine in the UK with a combination of fruit-driven and bargain-priced New World wines, flying winemakers and the rise of a new phenomenon, the wine celebrity. The three wine champions were Jilly Goolden, Jancis Robinson and Oz Clark.
Jilly and Oz brought fun to the wine world and gave us all the confidence to “find” apricots, tropical fruits, leather, cigar boxes and all manner of autumn fruits in our glass. Without them, I dare say, the descriptions on the back of wines today would be far more boring.
If you haven’t been to one of Oz’s tastings, by the way, then add it to your bucket list. They are fabulous.
I can’t do justice to the combination of humour and knowledge that Oz gets across during an event.
Jancis is a fellow Cumbrian like myself and she made us fall in love with the idea of wine travel with her TV series in the 1990s with her easy, relaxed manner.
They all made wine drinking normal for everyone, not just the rich, and the rise of the supermarkets created the ideal delivery vehicle for the masses.
So, without further ado, let’s raise
a glass to the supermarkets and the three musketeers!
Odd Lot, USA
A cracking blend of Petite Syrah and Petit Verdot with all the juice and power you can imagine from that heavyweight pairing. It’s full-on but really fun as well and a whopping 15%. Well played Aldi!
Aldi £9.99
Lockkeepers Shiraz, Australia
Soft, juicy hedgerow fruits with a
really soft mellow palate. A fabulous mid-week quaffer.
Marks&Spencer £9
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