Jacob's Creek Shiraz Cabernet 2008

Appearance: Medium red.
Aroma: Faint red fruits, peppercorns.
Flavour: Traditional Australian blend showing cooked fruit and spice characters on top of strong oak and persistent tannins.
Plum, blackcurrant and woody spices.

Wine Name: Jacob's Creek Shiraz Cabernet 2008

Producer: Orlando Wines (Pernod Ricard)

Grape/Blend: Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon

Vintage: 2008
Alcohol: 13.5%

Country: Australia (South Eastern Australia)

Bought at: Co-Op

Price: ~ £5

Value for money: ♦♦♦ Good
Over all rating: ♦♦♦ Good

Font de Michelle Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2007

Châteauneuf-du-Pape has a big reputation for big wines with big price tags. This one, a £25.00 bottle from Waitrose, is a real treat. It's very expensive (for me, at least) and comes with a Shiny Gold Award from Decanter on it. Let's have a little sip...

Appearance: Deep black-brown.
Aroma: Blackcurrant jam.
Flavour: Rustic, no holds barred with deep fruit flavours, low acid and soft mouthfeel.
Blackcurrant, morello cherry, candied peel and cinnamon.

Absolutely fantastic! Value for money is entirely subjective but I honestly think it's a fair price and would go without a week's worth of £3.99 wines for one bottle of this divine wine at the weekend. The tannins weren't any where near overbearing but with a bit of age, they should melt down nicely and improve the balance. 5 more years should do it.

This little bottle was greedily hogged between two people with fried lamb chops and a spinach, pecan and roquefort salad.
 

Wine Name: Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Producer: Domaine Font de Michelle

Grape/Blend: Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault

Vintage:2007
Alcohol: 14.5%

Country: France (Rhône)

Bought at: Waitrose

Price: £24.99

Value for money: ♦♦♦ Good
Over all rating: ♦♦♦♦♦ Outstanding

Kumala Western Cape Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz 2010

Appearance: Murky black-red 
Aroma: Black fruits. 
Flavour: Throat-catching and acrid. Lingering numbing finish.
Aluminium foil, bark chips and burnt pans.

Despite being under screw cap, this wine tasted out of condition and oxidised. Not great. 
 

Wine Name: Western Cape Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz

Producer: Kumala

Grape/Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz

Vintage: 2010
Alcohol: 13.5%

Country: South Africa

Bought at: Sainsbury's

Price: £4.00 (3 for £12.00)

Value for money: ♦♦ Average
Over all rating: ♦ Poor

Sainsbury's House Côtes du Rhône NV

Appearance: Mauve-tinged, dull red.

Aroma: Light, unidentifiable 'fruits'.
Flavour: Acidic and sugary, a bit like strong blackcurrant and apple squash. A bit of mustiness hangs on after swallowing.
Blackcurrant, pepper, fungus.


I've decided to try as many of the Sainsbury's House wines as I can over the next few weeks.
I thought this Côtes du Rhône was OK. There wasn't anything particularly exciting about it though it's no reason not to buy it. As with the other House wines, it's very competitively priced and is great for stocking-up on for parties, cooking or whatever you like.

It's almost Summer. Why not make up a big jug of Sangria?

Wine Name: House Côtes du Rhône

Producer: Sainsbury's

Grape/Blend: Grenache, Shiraz

Vintage: Non-vintage
Alcohol: 13%

Country: France

Bought at: Sainsbury's

Price: £3.99

Value for money: ♦♦♦ Good
Over all rating: ♦♦ Average

Hardy's Crest Cabernet-Shiraz-Merlot 2009

Appearance: Bright crimson.
Aroma: Tarry oak, ripe berries and pepper.
Flavour: Sharp fruit and oak take centre stage, supported by plummy sweetness with a herbal twist. Feisty mouthfeel, fresh finish. Juicy!
Fruits of the forest, mint and fennel.


This blend is focused on what Australians do best: Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. Merlot is often blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz and has the effect of softening the wine and filling out the body. Here however, it doesn't really achieve this and is dominated by the other two grapes. The wine is also a little too sweet, though this probably isn't noticed when it's gulped down with a big meal.

Whilst it's not the best buy at the full price of £9.99, I really recommend buying this when it's on offer. It's young, vibrant and juicy and at the same time pretty powerful and serious - qualities which will make this wine appealing to a broad range of people. There's plenty of weight on the palate and it packs a powerful alcohol punch so it's best to enjoy it with a fat-laden meaty dinner. This bottle is a safe gift for a dinner host!

Wine Name: Crest Cabernet-Shiraz-Merlot

Producer: Hardy's

Grape/Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot

Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 14%

Country: Australia

Bought at: Sainsbury's

Price: £4.99 (50% off 9.99 SRP)

Value for money:♦♦♦♦ Very Good
Over all rating: ♦♦♦ Good