JUICE AND DUST

Summer Road Old Vine Grenache 2019 Riverland, Australia (14.5%, Waitrose, £8.49 in

221 branches) Riverland is Australia’s biggest wine region, situated to the east of Barossa and following the curves of the Murray River. Made from the fruit of old vines, this is a rich, roiling grenache with plenty of juice and a bit of dust to it as well.

Château Paret Castillon, Côtes de Bordeaux 2016 France (14%, Haynes, Hanson & Clark, £9.40/10.65 by the case/single bottle price) Haynes, Hanson & Clark says this red bordeaux has been flying out of its stockroom and it’s easy to see why. Made in an excellent vintage from mostly (80%) merlot, it’s juicy and moreish while retaining a sense of place.

Thymiopoulos Xinomavro Jeunes-Vignes 2018 Naoussa, Greece (13%, The

Wine Society, £10.95) Native to Greece, the xinomavro grape often resembles nebbiolo but this one is unexpectedly juicy too. It has a supple, silky feel, a voluble fragrance of wild strawberries and then a quinine-like twist. A huge hit.

Vignerons Ardèchois Basalte du Coiron Syrah

2018

France (14%, Yapp, £11.95) Vignerons Ardèchois is a cooperative of 1,000 family growers that makes stupendously good value wines, like this dark, smoky, bloody, peppery syrah made from grapes grown on the edge of the Coiron mountains.

Barón de Ley Graciano Rioja

2017

Spain (14%, Co-op, £12) Graciano is Rioja’s unsung grape and it makes seductive, spicy wines with a broad, open texture. This one’s aged in American oak and smells of brambles, mace, sweet cedarwood and orris root. Great with slow-cooked lamb.

Domaine Clavel Le Mas 2018

Languedoc (14%, Tanners, £12.70)

This is a syrah, grenache and carignan blend aged in concrete (no oak), that is cleancut but also has a very gently chargrilled feel, with a whiff of sun-dried herbs and spice.

Vergelegen Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 Stellenbosch, South Africa (14%, thedrinkshop.com, £17.50, Roberts & Speight in Beverley, £14.99)

This is cut like a good suit. Think roasted peppers, vetiver, cassis, roasted plums and a sweet perfume.

Fattoria di Magliano Morellino di Scansano 2016 Italy (13%, Lea & Sandeman, £14.50/15.95 mixed case/ single bottle price) Morellino is the name given to sangiovese in the coastal region of the Maremma, where this is made. It’s very different to a central Tuscan sangiovese – like roasted and stewed damsons with hints of thyme. Gorgeously juicy.

Domaine Chevalier Métrat Côte de Brouilly Les Grillés 2018 Beaujolais, France (13%, Lea & Sandeman £12.95/14.50 mixed case/single bottle price)

A family domaine making superb wines. This is gloriously perfumed with a sappy vitality. Pop it in the fridge for half an hour before opening to give it a bit of edge.

Ca’ Viola Dolcetto d’Alba Vilot 2019

Italy (13.5%, Haynes, Hanson, Clark, £13.80/15.50 by the case/single bottle price)

In Piedmont, where this is from, dolcetto loses out because everyone wants to talk about nebbiolo. A criminal shame when a wine is as attractive as this one: deep purple, a silky tease of dark cherries and violets.

Château La Guérinière Saint Emilion 2016 Bordeaux, France (14% Haynes, Hanson & Clark, £13.95/15.75 by the case/single bottle price) Although this does have the comforting richness so typical of Saint Emilion it’s more towards the perfumed than the dense, spicy, tannic spicy fruitcake end of the scale. I loved it.

Domaine Jones Fitou 2017 France (14.5%, The Wine

Society, £15.50)

Katie Jones works with old vineyards dotted around the wilds of the Languedoc. Many of the grapes come from vines that are more than 100 years old. A blend of carignan, grenache and syrah, it is thickly scented, enveloping you in clouds of brambles and garrigue.

Domaine Yannick Amirault Côte 50 Bourgueil 2018 Loire, France (13%, Lea & Sandeman, £15.50/16.95 mixed case/single bottle price)

Cabernet franc as you dream of it: sumptuous yet also fresh, like cushions of summer berries with a leafy fragrance.

Château Musar Aana 2016 Lebanon (14%, Waitrose, £17.99 at 15 branches and

waitrosecellar.com) Musar is Lebanon’s bestknown winery and besides the flagship wine it makes several other cuvées including this one, which carries the Musar signature through a blend of cinsault, grenache and cabernet sauvignon. Spicy and intense.