Wine to dine

NEDERBURG 56 HUNDRED CHENIN BLANC, 2016, £5.75 (TESCO)

There are lots of flavours and textures at play in this crab dish and so we need a well-structured wine that can complement the food, yet still shine in its own right. I love the fresh acidity in this wine, which will cut through the richness of the avocado ice cream, while there are plenty of fruity, green apple and peach flavours to balance the heat of the sriracha. Chenin Blanc is a grape that’s so often overlooked, yet in the right hands it can make some deliciously refreshing white wines – and offers great value too.

DOMAINE L’ORANGERIE PETIT VERDOT, 2016, £9.59 (GREAT GROG)

Great Grog’s recent wine tasting at the Voodoo Rooms in Edinburgh was full of fascinating wines, but this rich and intensely-flavoured red stole the show for me. You don’t often see Petit Verdot being bottled on its own – it’s usually an ingredient for blends in Bordeaux or the South of France. Here, it really sparkles, with blackcurrant and cream aromas on the nose and then really intense black fruit flavours on the palate. It’s rich and soft, making it an ideal pairing for the melt-in-the-mouth texture of the ox cheek.

MAISON CASTEL JURANCON, 2014, £5.00 (MORRISONS)

Chef is really spoiling us with a mix of flavours, from lemon curd to chocolate and then Earl Grey jelly. A good all-rounder is called for and a sweet wine from Jurancon in South-West France is just the ticket. The twist of lemony acidity will match the curd but also balance the sweetness of the wine and stop it from sticking to the roof of your mouth.

For a look at not-so-ordinary claret, check out Peter Ranscombe’s blog, The Grape & The Grain, on the Scottish Field website at www.scottishfield.co.uk/category/grapegrain/