A dozen of the best vegan and vegetarian wines White Rosé Red
There is a growing appeal for vegan and vegetarian wines as more retailers and supermarkets highlight them on their shelves.
Winemakers use certain animal products to filter out organic particles which might affect the flavour, colour or texture. The most common are isinglass (from fish bladder membranes), gelatin (protein from boiling animal parts), egg albumen, chitin from crustaceans, casein, blood or bone marrow.
With the increasing number of people turning to vegetarianism, winemakers are focusing more on using mineral and plant agents like silica gel or bentonite clay. We are now seeing prominent supermarkets focus on these wines – the best of which are Marks & Spencer, Co-op and Aldi – whilst independent wine merchants are also now showing an interest. “When I put a sign board outside my shop telling people I sold them, I got more people coming in asking for vegan wines than for anything else, so people clearly want to know,” says Peter Wood of St Andrews Wine Company, who has been labelling his products as vegan or vegetarian since he started his business five years ago.
Sicily: Corbello Inzolia/ Catarratto 2017
Crisp, clean, zippy white with a hint of spice, made from two native Sicilian grapes. Easy drinking. Ideal as an aperitif. £4.99, reduced from £7.99, until 15 May, Waitrose
South Africa: The Project Sauvignon Blanc 2017
If you normally drink Kiwi sauvignon blanc, you will like the tropical fruit, grapefruit hints and minerality of this Cape sauvignon. Ideal with goat’s cheese.
£5.99, Aldi
Italy: Pecorino Abruzzo Contesa 2017
The pecorino grape makes full, richly textured, crisp, tangy, lemony, dry whites with
Rose Murraybrown floral hints which would work well with a creamy mushroom pasta dish. This is made by one of Abruzzo’s leading winemakers, Rocco Pasetti. £9.75, www.thewinesociety.com
South Africa: Bradgate Chenin Blanc 2015
Gary and Kathy Jordan of Jordan Estate have crafted a rich, honeyed Cape chenin blanc with plenty of zesty, tropical fruit notes and a lively, dry freshness to the finish.
£9.99, www.rudewines.co.uk
France: Oliver Dubois Touraine Sauvignon Blanc
Attractive Loire sauvignon blanc from a mix of vineyard soils: sand, argilo and chalk adding exotic fruit and minerality. Loved its crisp, crunchy, green apple flavours and zippy finish.
£8.99/£9.99, Majestic Wine
Spain: K-naia Verdejo 2016
Quite honeyed with a full-bodied fleshy, succulent and richly leesy palate, it’s so much better than many thin Rueda whites produced today. An unoaked quaffer with enough texture and minerality to match light vegetarian dishes. £9.75, www.standrews winecompany.com
France: Domaine De Cassagnau Rosé 2016
A delicate Languedoc blend of cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon and malbec. £7.99/£8.99, www.rudewines. co.uk
Spain: Toro Loco Reserva 2013
This organic oaked blend of 50 per cent tempranillo, 20 per cent bobal, 10 per cent merlot and 10 per cent cabernet sauvignon is great value. Attractive plummy fruits, hints of vanilla and a soft, smooth finish.
£5.29, Aldi
Portugal: Herdade De Gambia 2016
Big juicy, brambly fruit bomb from Setubal peninsula. Like many Portuguese reds it is a blend: touriga nacional, syrah and aragonez work well together giving damson, cherry and peppery notes. The proceeds help conserve endangered flamingos and herons in the Sado estuary.
£7.99/£9.99, Majestic Wine
Chile: Echeverria Merlot Reserva 2016
I have always liked Viña Echeverria, one of the most charming and oldest of the Chilean wine families who focus on traditional methods. They blend Curico, Maule and Colchagua valley fruit to create this very peppery strawberrytoned silky merlot. £9.25-£9.50, St Andrews Wine Co; Great Grog, Edinburgh
Italy: Allegrini Valpolicella 2017
The corvina grape’s bitter cherry fruits, juicy acidity and herby notes work well with vegetarian food. If you are going to buy a valpolicella, you should head to the best producer in the region, Allegrini, who make this textbook example. £14.99, Aitken Wines, Dundee; Eusebi Deli, The Cave, Valhalla’s Goat, Glasgow; Valvona & Crolla, Villeneuve Wines, Edinburgh
Chile: Outer Limits By Montes Zapallar Syrah 2016
From a tiny planting of just one hectare in its coastal Zapallar vineyard in Aconcagua Valley, Montes craft this lightly oaked, smoky, blackberry fruited syrah. Shows what potential syrah has in Chile. ■ £21.99, Cornelius Wine & Beer, Edinburgh; Noel Young Wines, Cambridge
Join Rose’s Croatia, Slovenia and Friuli wine tasting on Thursday 7 June in Edinburgh, £42, www.rose murraybrown. com