Go organic with a dozen crackers under £20 each
To mark Organic September, I have picked a dozen wines made from grapes grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilisers. All under £20 per bottle, it proves that organic does not necessarily mean expensive – and there are some great organic wine bargains to be found.
Sparkling
Veneto, N Italy: Ceradello Organic Prosecco Brut NV
This is classy Spumante mountain fizz made by Adria Vini from organically-grown glera grapes with aromatic peachy notes, creamy texture and fresh vibrant length. £12.50, Woodwinters
White Piedmont, N Italy: La Raia Il Borgo Organic Gavi 2021 Star buy
Cracking price for this stylish Gavi from the Rossi Cairo family. Beautifully floral, citric, intense approachable aperitif.
£9.99, Majestic Wine
Bordeaux, France: Chateau du Seuil Graves Blanc 2018
Sean and Nicola Allison, a New Zealand and Welsh couple, create this semillon/sauvignon blanc blend south of Bordeaux in Graves. Very honeyed and citric with deft touch of smoky oak.
£15.99, Virgin Wines
Marlborough, New Zealand: Babich Organic Albarino 2022
Babich winery has introduced the Galician grape albarino to their Headwaters vineyards with great success. It is a big, rich, lush example with enough tangy, refreshing natural acidity to freshen the palate. £14.99, Majestic Wine
Ribeiro, Spain: The Flower & The Bee Blanco 2022
Star buy
Made with 100 per cent treixadura from vines planted on ‘socalcos’ terraces near Gomariz. Rich, herby, peachy with soft rounded texture. £19, The Sourcing Table; Harvey Nichols; Cork & Cask, Edinburgh
Rosé
Sicily, Italy: Purato Rosé Terre Siciliane 2022
A carbon neutral rosé made by Stefano Girelli from the popular nero d’avola Sicilian grape. Made with minimal skin contact, resulting in a pale rosé with rich red berry fruits. £10.50, Ocado; Abel & Cole; Amazon
Orange Manchuela, Spain: Enblanco de Altolandon 2021
Bodegas Altolandon makes this very approachable orange wine from grenache blanc and grenache gris fermented on skins and aged in 1000 litre clay amphorae. Aromatic, apricoty, with a hint of anise – a great introduction to the orange wine style. £13.50-£15, Cornelius Wine, Edinburgh; Drinkmonger, Edinburgh & Pitlochry
Red
Puglia, S Italy: Terre di Faino Nero di Troia Organic 2021
Nero di troia is an indigenous grape from northern Puglia which makes rich, lush, intensely fruity reds. It has plenty of exotic spice and earthy notes. Cracking price at discount. £8, reduced from £9.50, Sainsburys
Calabria, S Italy: Santa Venere Ciro Rosso Gaglioppo 2021 Star buy
Produced in the wild Calabria region in southern Italy from organically grown gaglioppo grapes. Pale colour disguises its intense flavours, its softness on the palate makes it so easy and approachable.
£10.95, The Wine Society
Thracian Valley, Bulgaria: Eduardo Miroglio Bio Mavrud & Rubin 2019
Delicious dark berry fruited blend from two grapes, mavrud and rubin. Italian textile manufacturer-turned winemaker Miroglio majors on mavrud, but adds in rubin, a cross between nebbiolo and syrah, to add roundness elegance and spice.
£13.50, St Andrews Wine
Sicily, Italy: Frappato Costadune Mandrarossa 2022
For those who like light fresh juicy reds, the morello-cherry flavoured frappato grape is a delight. Sicily’s light bodied native red grape has fragrant violets and soft tannins. £11.95, The Wine Society
Southern Rhone, France: Alain Jaume Grande Garrigue Organic Vacqueyras 2019
Star buy
One of my favourite Vacqueyras made from a blend of grenache, syrah and cinsault on Les Garrigues plateau. Loved its deep dark fruits, dried herby notes and soft roundness.
£17.99, Majestic Wine
Join Rose’s Champagne v Sparkling Wine + Buffet evening at Rufflets Country House Hotel, St Andrews, Friday 17 November, www. rosemurraybrown.com