Weekday wines 25 top picks under £20, chosen by the Decanter team
Looking to try something different or adventurous, but don’t want to make an expensive mistake? The Decanter team has done all the hard work for you, picking out 25 exciting and accessible wines which are available in the UK and priced at £20 or less
Dr Loosen, Riesling Sekt Extra Dry, Mosel, Germany NV
£18.50 Chester Beer & Wine Sweet-scented nose of elderflower, ripe peach, dried apricot and spiced lemon curd. Soft, rounded bubbles, and a hint of honey that follows the mineral palate of green apple and ripe peach. Buttered stone fruits on a clean finish. SW Alcohol 11.5%
Pyramid Valley, Sauvignon Plus, North Canterbury, New Zealand 2019 O
£19-£20 Hay Wines, Penistone Wines, Reserve Wines, Wine Direct With skin contact, wild yeast, a dash of Riesling and Pinot Gris, plus partial ageing in old oak and amphorae, this is deliciously unique. Jasmine, pear, melon and honeyed peach characters with gentle pink grapefruit acidity and a sherbet finish. TG Alc 13.5%
Tesco, Finest Chablis 1er Cru, Burgundy, France 2018
£15 Tesco
Only a little pricier than the regular Finest Chablis, this offers a step up in complexity and intensity. About 20% is barrel aged, and the wine is bottle aged before release. Attractive nuttiness and minerality, more savoury than fruity, with lemon citrus notes. AW Alc 13% £10 Morrisons
Like all Prosecco rosé, a blend of Glera and Pinot Noir. Fresh nose of stone fruits, yellow apple and red berries, off-dry on the palate with red apple peel and strawberry jam, and good acidity. A simple and lovely fizz, perfect for food pairing. SW Alc 11% £9.99 Aldi
Along with its 2014 Kiwi Riesling (see last month’s issue), Aldi has sourced this fine example from Henry of Pelham, one of the few Canadian wines in UK supermarkets, especially at this price. It’s off-dry, but racy acidity cuts through the sweet nectarine flavours. Available online only. TG Alc 10.5%
Adnams, Bacchus, East Anglia, England 2019
£14.99 Adnams
Aromatic and intense, gorgeously weighted and textured, grippy with lemon and crunchy apple. Refreshing and zippy with a bright uplift on the finish combining tropical pineapple and mango flavours. Crisp, but with a softness that makes this feel smooth and welcoming. GH Alc 11.5%
Valdesil, Sobre Lías Godello Valdeorras, Galicia, Spain 2019
£16.50 The Wine Society
New to The Wine Society’s range, this shows just how well Godello responds to winemaking techniques. Valdesil owns some of the oldest vineyards in the appellation, and cuttings from its Pedrouzos plot, planted in 1885, just after phylloxera, are used for all new plantings. This elegant and restrained example of the variety shows marked minerality, and a bready complexity from six months on lees. A delicious alternative to Chardonnay. AW Alc 13.5% ▶
Charosa Vineyards, Sauvignon Blanc, Nashik, Maharashtra, India 2019
£18 Wine Monkey
From one of the leading producers in India, this has fresh-cut grass, asparagus, green pea and flint overlaid with stone fruit and citrus. Mineral and clean, with green apple and limey acidity as the spine, and a pungent, herbal finish. SW Alc 13.5%
Montes, Reserva Chardonnay, Aconcagua, Chile 2020
£9 Tesco
A great everyday drinking wine from one of Chile’s big names. A medley of fully ripe tropical fruit – lychee, melon, mango, pineapple, banana – balanced by high acidity, and well integrated vanillaoak spice. Pleasant apple and peach-skin finish. A lot of wine for £9. NE Alc 13.5%
Chateau Ste Michelle, Dry Riesling, Columbia Valley, Washington, USA 2020
£12.25-£14.95 Chiltern Wines, The Great Wine Co, Vinvm, Wine Direct Chateau Ste Michelle is the world’s largest single producer of Riesling, and this one (while not as popular stateside as the medium-dry version) offers enjoyable drinking. Zesty acidity lifts pear juice, florals and firm peach to a round, lactic finish. TG Alc 12.5%
Flower Press, Rosé, Western Cape, South Africa, 2020
£7 Marks & Spencer
Chenin Blanc-based with a bit of Sauvignon Blanc, this gets its colour from the skins and juice of 1% Pinotage. As its name suggests there’s a floral aroma before a dry, exotic palate of passion fruit and stewed apples. Nothing complex, but easy to like. In-store only. TG Alc 12.5%
Marks & Spencer, Found Moschofilero-Roditis, Peloponnese, Greece 2020
£8.50 Marks & Spencer
This is dry, but ripe, floral and honeyed flavours suggest otherwise – try it if you like Alsace Gewurztraminer or Torrontés: the Moschofilero variety brings Muscat grapey honeyed tones, balanced by the seaspray and lemon tang of Roditis. TG Alc 12% £15 Colombier Vins Fins
Orchard aromas, apple crumble and cream, with citrus and herbal freshness. Lees contact adds a creaminess, balanced by vibrant acidity and a bone-dry finish. Layers of grapefruit, lemon, herbs, honey and apple, with a mineral undertow. This would age, too. JS 13.5%
Alc
£8.25 The Wine Society
Such a fun wine, and perfect for end of summer parties.
It’s paler than some Navarra rosados, but still a vivid pink. On the nose it’s all bubblegum and juicy strawberry and raspberry. Don’t be worried about residual sugar – it’s dry, but exuberant, with bags of ripe fruit flavour. AW Alc 13.5%
Château Barthès, Rosé, Bandol, Provence, France 2019
£13 Co-op
Blend of Grenache, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. With red apple, strawberry and citrus on nose and palate, it’s ripe and sweet but lifted by a good level of acidity. The alcohol gives the wine a warming finish, with red fruit notes that linger on. SW Alc 13.5%
Reyneke Biodynamic, Syrah, Polkadraai Hills, Stellenbosch, South Africa 2018 B
£15-£19 Four Walls, Harrogate Wines, JN Wine, NY Wines, Roberts & Speight, Vinvm, Wines with Attitude Super value for this delicious biodynamic field blend of Syrah. Gorgeous aromas of smoky, earthy rooibos tea, lavender and black cherry. The complex, silky palate has fine gravelly tannins and flavours of rose, leather, blood and aniseed, with a lingering seaweed freshness. Fermented in concrete, then aged 14 months in oak, three months in steel and a final eight in bottle. TG Alc 13%
Antinori, Villa Antinori, Tuscany, Italy 2018
£13 Co-op
A blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot with Merlot and Syrah, given 12 months’ ageing in barriques. Ripe red and black berry fruits with sweet spice notes and well-integrated oak. Velvety and plummy with juicy dark fruits, liquorice and cloves, balanced by mineral acidity. SW Alc 14%
Luigi Bosca, Selección de Vistalba Malbec, Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina 2018
£16.99 Waitrose
From 35-year-old Malbec vines grown at 900m-1,100m. Enticing bonfire smokiness to the appealing black fruit nose. Soft and silky, more black fruit and a spicy, toasty finish from a year in French oak. The perfect match for a steak with peppercorn sauce. JS Alc 14%
Tesco, Finest St-Chinian, Languedoc, France 2019
£9 Tesco
If you like a hearty southern French red, then this will give a lot of pleasure. Spicy blackberries and cherries layer thickly onto savoury sausage and cured meat flavours. The ferrous, smoky notes are balanced by classic garrigue herbs, fennel and star anise. NE Alc 13.5%
Yalumba, Galway Shiraz, Barossa, South Australia 2018
£12.99 Waitrose
For just £4 more, it’s worth buying Yalumba’s 2018 Samuel’s Collection Shiraz (winedirect.co.uk), but for supermarket convenience, this is a solid red: full-bodied, smooth and easy drinking, with redcurrant acidity, ripe berry flavours and lingering warmth. TG Alc 14.5%
Costers del Priorat, Petit Pissarres, Priorat, Spain 2018 O
£14.95 Jeroboams
Made with 60% Garnacha and 40% Samsó (Carignan), this has rich and seductive dark fruit aromas. It’s juicy and mouthwatering on the palate, red and black fruit combining with a spicy, herbal touch. Expressive and finessed, a really excellent everyday wine. GH Alc 14.5%
Stéphane Ogie, Le Temps est Venu, Côtes du Rhône, France 2018
£13.48 Lay & Wheeler
Blackcurrant, plum and black cherry compote, with a speckle of spice. The palate is intense, good acidity balancing the ripe, jammy fruit. Red apple and red plum skin layered upon bacon flavours. Enjoy on its own or with a fragrant tagine: gluggable. NE Alc 14.5%
Viña Pomal, 106 Barricas Reserva, Rioja, Spain 2015
£18 Delivery Wine Co Tempranillo, Graciano and Garnacha, selected from 106 barrels by winemaker Diego Pinilla. Ripe black berrycherry aromas, plus sweet cedar from 20 months in US and French oak. Luscious with spicy, savoury layers, becoming more pronounced on the finish. JS Alc 14.5%
Domaine de la Rectorie, Cuvée Thérèse Reig, Banyuls, Roussillon, France 2019
£16/50cl The Wine Society
This gorgeous fortified dessert wine (new to The Wine Society) should be enjoyed in its youth, and slightly chilled. A blend of 90% Grenache and 10% Carignan, with flavours of brown sugar, prunes and ripe berries. Try it with summer pudding or chocolate. 84g/L residual sugar. AW Alc 18%
Domaine des Ormes, Saumur, Loire, France 2016
£8 Co-op
With its typical varietal nose of herbs, fresh redcurrant and raspberry, this unoaked 2016 Cabernet Franc from the Loire Valley shows a savoury hint of leather alongside its saline edge, with plenty of red berry fruits and freshly trimmed grass, all supported by good acidity and a solid backbone of tannin. It is a great-value option at well under a tenner per bottle.
SW Alc 12.5% ▶