The CWB Aussie Red-Off

A five-way Australian Red-Off: three wines from Tesco, plus Yalumba and Vasse Felix

Once a byword for "sunshine in a glass", that became increasingly monolithic fruit bombs, Australia is discovering European-style fresh, savoury complexity.

Here are five Australian reds that have plenty of easy-to-enjoy fruit, but also enough complexity, and food-friendly freshness.

More a continent than a country, Australia is not only one of the few places that can successfully make varietal Cabernet Sauvignon, without the need for blending, but actually has two areas where Cab thrives - Coonawarra in South Australia's Limestone Coast and Western Australia.

These five wines are are a mix of:

- two varietal Cabernets

- two Cab-Shiraz blends and 

- one varietal Shiraz

Cab-Shiraz Blends

Penfolds Max's Shiraz Cabernet, 2019, South Australia (£20, Tesco)

Max's Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon displays the Penfold's 'stamp' inspired by Max Schubert, a winemaking legend in Penfold's history who was the company's chief winemaker from 1948-1975. 

Aged for 12 months in French and American oak.

dark fruits, green herbs, peppery spice and graphite with mushroomy sous bois; generous, supple and plush, with dark berries, plums bramble fruits and cherries, minty eucalyptus and oaky vanilla spice; rounded and firm, well-integrated tannins; long and savoury

Good.

Drinks well on first opening; opens up further with aeration and can be cellared.

Match with beefy dishes, such as casserole, ragù alla bolognese or burgers.

Yalumba The Signature 2016 (£35, Majestic, Waitrose Cellar, Fine & Rare Wines)

Yalumba, Australia’s oldest family-owned winery has been making Cabernet-Shiraz blends for over half a century. The Signature was first made back in 1962, taking inspiration from Bordeaux winemakers who added small amounts of ‘other’ grapes to bring out the best in their cabernet wines.

Yalumba’s winemaker Kevin Glastonbury, who has been making The Signature for more than 20 years, describes it as a “Yalumba icon”. Every vintage of The Signature is individual, each reflecting the influence of vineyard differences and vintage conditions while maintaining a high level of quality and bringing The Signature landmark style.

The Signature is made using the best fruit of the vintage. The Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes up 53% of the blend, comes from four vineyards in the Barossa Valley and provides the rich, lifted Cabernet Sauvignon aromatics and palate structure for which The Signature is renowned. The Shiraz components include plantings of varying vine age; the oldest were planted in 1925. 

tarry-plummy dark fruits, minty eucalyptus, florality and complex oaky spice and sous bois; fresh and inky with black olives, ripe black and bramble fruits, cassis, sage and scrubby garrigue herbs, graphite and supple, very fine, rounded and well-integrated tannins. Dense and concentrated, deft and nuanced with very fine detailing. Very long.

Very Good.

Drinks nicely on first opening, opens up with extensive aeration and can be cellared for up to fifteen years.

Suggested food match from Yalumba: ham with a sweet orange and mustard glaze, served warm with some crusty bread and a glass of Yalumba The Signature 2016.

Match the sweet and salty flavours with the balance and fruit sweetness of the wine; this is a perfect classic festive food and wine pairing. 

For festive glazed ham, in eight easy steps, see the recipe below and watch Robert Hill-Smith and Nick Waterman cook their version here:

Varietal Cabernet Sauvignon

Wynns The Siding Cabernet Sauvignon, 2019, Coonawarra (£15, Tesco)

From a winery built 1896 on Conawarra's terra rossa soils in South Australias limstone coast. 

founded by pioneer John Riddoch, The wine is named after the railway siding - a local landmark that played a defining role during Coonawarra's early settlement. Completed in 1898, 'The Siding' was responsible for transporting around 600 hogsheads of wine a year to Adelaide

ripe dark berries and bramble fruits, oaky spice and some florality; supple cassis, baked blueberry and black olives with minty green herbs and liquorice; ripe, rounded and very well-integrated tannins; savoury, fresh and elegant. Very harmonious and adept.

Good.

Drinks well on first opening; further improves with aeration and can be cellared.

Match with rare roast beef and horseradish, or rack of lamb.

Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 (£30 Direct Wine, Harvey Nichols, Australian Wines Online, Bonafide Wines, Vinvm. Ltd, Wine Direct, Connolly’s Wine Merchant, Averys, Laithwaites, The Secret Cellar)

Vasse Felix made their first Cabernet Sauvignon in Margaret River in 1972, from the vines planted by regional pioneer Tom Cullity in 1967 when the winery was first founded, and this wine has been made every year since.

The blend also includes some Malbec and Petit Verdot.

tarry dark fruits, lifted blackcurrant, violets and complex, oaky vanilla spice with leathery, truffley sous bois; ripe, juicy cassis, bramble fruits, liquorice, tobacco leaf, balsamic and ripe, well-integrated tannins. Supple, adept and harmonious.

Very Good

Match the blackcurranty fruit to rosemary-and-garlic lamb shoulder or barbecue foods on first opening. 

 Alternatively, decant for serval hours and match with beef dishes or savoury pates.

Cellar for several years for something to drink with darker game, truffles or mushrooms.

Varietal Shiraz

Bird In Hand Two In The Bush Shiraz, Adelaide Hills (£14, Tesco)

Made by Master of Wine Kym Milne.

Aged in tight grain French oak for 16 months, our 'Two in the Bush' Shiraz has rich aromas of vanilla, blackberry and a hint of chocolate which resonates on the palate. This medium bodied Shiraz displays the elegance and complexity of cooler climate red winemaking.

This cool climate Shiraz was harvested early in April from a hot, dry summer followed by a particularly mild autumn. These conditions favoured more medium bodied, structural and aromatic red wines. Made using open fermentation vessels this Shiraz was then aged in new (20%) and older French oak barrels for 12 months. 

Situated in an area of the Adelaide Hills that was littered with goldmines in the 1800s, the Bird in Hand winery was purchased and planted in 1997 by Andrew Nugent. Andrew has kept the close historical links alive both in the naming of the winery and their wine ranges; Two in the Bush and Nest Egg were the names of mineshafts in the Bird in Hand goldmine. From vineyards in Woodside and Clare, Bird in Hand produce classic examples of cool climate Chardonnay and Shiraz that have won world acclaim.

The seaside influence of the Gulf of St. Vincent, the cloud-trapping rise of the Mount Lofty Ranges and plenty of Australian sun all combine to create a special diurnal temperature shift that the grapes love.

juicy black fruits, cassis, black cherry and blackcurrant with black olive, pepper and aromatic green herbs; juicy, fresh, pure and supple with very fine, well-integrated tannins.

Good.

Very closed up on first opening; benefits from extensive aeration and will repay some cellaring.

Match with roasted red meats, such as garlic-and-rosemary lamb shoulder.

Three Côtes de Bordeaux Reds

Three red wines from Bordeaux's more-ambitious but better-value sub-appellations

Bordeaux has long been one of my favourite wine regions; if I had to drink the red wines of just one region, it would probably be Bordeaux. It pretty much has everything:

- fresher, plumper Merlot-based wines

- fuller and gripper Cabernets

- lighter wines in cooler years

- bigger, riper wines in hotter years

- easy-drinking wines for early consumption

- complex and ageworthy wines for laying down

- from everyday wines to some of the world's most expensive

There is very little that Bordeaux cannot do; it is one of the great food-friendly and versatile wines.

Here are three wines from lesser-known regions that offer a glimpse of above-average Bordeaux greatness without the price premium of bigger names.

Château Carignan 2015, Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux (Oddbins £17.50)

Château Carignan has an extraordinary history; it was given to one of Joan of Arc’s right-hand men, Jean Poton de Xaintrailles. Today, fantastic, full-bodied reds are made in this Cadillac-based estate. This is a floral and fruit-forward wine yet with a decent amount of age adding a savoury undertone. Notes of damson, violet and black cherry are prominent, layered with flavours of sweet spice and cigar box. 

complex aromas of coffee grounds, soy and dried sour cherries with graphite, old leather, minty green herbs and sous bois; dark berry fruits, spiced plum cake, toasty oak and menthol with ripe, rounded and firm yet well-integrated tannins. Sleek, elegant and adept.

Very Good.

Match with roast beef or lamb with rosemary and garlic,

Château Pré Lalande, Cuvée Terracotta, 2016 Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux (Majestic £16.99 )

Based in the Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux appellation, biodynamic producer Château Pré Lalande have aptly named this wine ‘Teracotta’ for the vessel it is aged in. Matured in amphorae, this is a modern and approachable Merlot/ Cabernet Sauvignon blend.

dark berry fruits and inky graphite; vibrant ripe, juicy blackcurrant, blackberry and plum with cherries, pepper, coffee and savouriness; supple inky texture with very well-rounded and integrated tannins. Very harmonious.

Very Good.

Fresh and fruited, match with grilled meats or charcuterie.

Château Puygueraud 2018, Francs Côtes de Bordeaux (Laithwaites £14.99)

A blend of Merlot in majority with Cabernet Franc and a touch of Malbec, this is the top wine of Château Puygueraud. Fruit is sourced from the plateaus and the clay-limestone slopes overlooking the Francs Côtes de Bordeaux appellation.

Earthy with tobacco leaf, herb, liquorice and wild cherries; plush with ripe, slightly stewed blackberries, damsons and cherries; cocoa, spice and minerality; concentrated, with fine, slightly grippy tannins.

Improves with aeration and will repay some cellaring.

Good.

Match with rare roast beef.

****** 

More info on Côtes de Bordeaux: 

An epicentre of modern winemaking With significant innovation being implemented in wineries and vineyards across five diverse appellations, it’s time to discover the exciting and great value wines of the Côtes de Bordeaux.

Tucked away next to some of the most famous appellations in the world lies the fourth largest AOC in France. Côtes de Bordeaux may not be the first Bordeaux appellation to spring to mind, but it is a region on the rise, worthy of exploration.

Although the appellations are spread across the right bank of Bordeaux, they share similarly hilly landscapes, hence the name ‘Côtes.’

Created just 12 years ago in 2009, Côtes de Bordeaux is made up of five different appellations including Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux, Francs Côtes de Bordeaux, Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux, Cadillac Côtes de Bordeaux and most recently, Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux which joined the group in 2016. 

The union of these great regions has created a dynamic and exciting larger area where modern, fruit-forward reds, refreshing whites and delicious sweet wines can be found. Around 10% of Bordeaux are wines are from Côtes de Bordeaux, which counts over 950 producers, many of whom are young winemakers producing modern style wines.

Each appellation has its own unique terroir and regulations producing an array of exquisite wine styles. Cadillac and Castillon are solely dedicated to making red wines, many of which are fruit-forward and approachable in their youth, while the Blaye appellation is renowned for both crisp, fresh whites made from Sauvignon Blanc & Sémillon and reds.

In Francs and Sainte-Foy, luscious sweet wine is also produced alongside the reds and dry whites. Discover the wines of this fascinating region with these 6 wines, each from a different Côtes de Bordeaux appellation.

La Tirela Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2014 DOCG, Veneto, Italy

An inoffensive, almost personality-less, Italian red from Laithwaites / Sunday Time Wine Club

My usual complaint about my parents' wines from Laithwaites is that they are overextracted, with too much of everything apart from subtlety, restraint or elegance.

Just occasionally, the opposite proves true and you find a wine that is technically well-made, without rough edges and not too much of anything.

Unfortunately, what gets lost with the bathwater of over-extraction here is the baby of personality. What's there with this wine is pleasant enough, it's just it is lacking in fruit expression and - ironically, any noticeable amarone character (the richness that comes from using partially dried grapes in the fermentation).

Interestingly, there is quite a bit of behavioural nudging going on with the packaging - the bottle is heavy, the label sophisticated and there's that paper DOCG tag which coneys an artisan feel.

Picking up the bottle and pouring it in the glass unthinkingly, I found myself (with hindsight) primed to expect something superior; when the first couple of sips were underwhelming, I instinctively wondered if I was missing something and thought "I need to pay a bit more attention to this, there must be more to it".

In practice I wasn't missing anything. There was nothing more to it and it is just another mediocre wine.

La Tirela Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2014 (Laithwaites) dark fruited with cherries and plums; harmonious, supple and moderately substantial with little if any amarone character.

Pleasant enough.

Laithwaite's TV Advert

 

A TV spot from Laithwaite's wine

I have reviewed a number of Laithwaites wines on this blog. Since I used to work in advertising, this time, I thought I would review their latest advert, as tweeted by Laithwaites the other day.

The advert is above so have a watch and see what you think.

Now, what you or I might think of the advert is actually pretty irrelevant; the aim of a TV ad is, at its most basic, to resonate with the target audience for the product in the advert.

TV advertising such as this is by definition mass advertising, so the opinions of one or two people don't matter; it's all about how the great mass of people who see the advert react to it.

What is the advert trying to achieve when seen by a large number of people? Here's a slide from the great Les Binet explaining in the most succinct way I have seen how advertising works.

The text reads:

- advertising increases / maintains sales & margins by

- slightly increasing chance the people will choose your brand, by

- making the brand easy to think of and easy to buy, by

- creating positive feelings and associations, via

- broad reach ads that people find interesting and enjoyable, and 

- targeted activation that they find relevant and useful

Les' specialist subject is the Effectiveness of advertising. Put simply, Effectiveness is not so much about whether you or I individually like an advert, and more about whether an advert will lead to more sales at higher prices from both existing and new customers.

The reaction from wine twitter to the advert was very positive:

- Anne Krebiehl MW exclaimed: This is actually a LOVELY advert!

- Fiona Beckett added: Clever (as did Andre Ribeirinho)

- Winemaker Nayan Gowda observed: Hats off to the creative team behind this one. 

So, I wondered what people in the advertising business would make of it and tweeted a question about it.

Initial responses were uniformly positive - people liked it for its playful silliness, felt the creative idea was good and that it would resonate with its target audience.

A number of people felt the creative idea did not link with the brand strongly enough; in other words, the creative idea is likeable enough, but does not by itself immediately say "Laithwaites".

Creative ideas work most powerfully when they are inextricably linked with a particular brand; Coke adverts are always about fun, enjoyment and togetherness. If you see a soft drink ad with themes of fun, enjoyment and togetherness in the story, you'll expect it to be for Coke.

Alternately, consider the adverts for The Economist magazine; these were always witty, wry and slightly superior. You always knew what to expect from an Economist advert and could spot one immediately because it fitted into a recognisable pattern.

Another way to think about the link between the creative idea and the brand is to replace the product in the advert with a competitor product and see if the advert still works. If it does work, then you have a weak advert that is advertising the entire category (here, all wine) rather than specifically for the brand (specifically Laithwaites and no other wine retailer).

As a thought experiment, imagine the advert exactly as it is but with Virgin Wines or Tesco Wines at the end. In this form, the advert would still work, I believe, so it is failing to say anything distinctive and particular about "Laithwaites wine", it's just advertising "wine".

This would be OK if Laithwaites were the dominant player in the market; if you dominate the category (by having the largest market share), then you can advertise the category and as people purchase more in response to your advertising, you will pick up the biggest sales increase.

In the case of Laithwaites, it is not the dominant player in the wine retail market, so it has to grow by stealing market share from other players, rather than by growing the category as a whole. So the advert has to give you a reason to buy from Laithwaites rather from any other wine retailer.

To do this it has to be distinctive - not in any meaningful way, it just needs to create an association between "something" and "Laithwaites", in the same way that "The Economist" = "wry and witty".

A few commenters noted that with a series of future adverts in this style, the company could start to own the playful silliness of this advert and thereby create a distinctive brand personality.

In general, the non-Brits (who are presumably unfamiliar with Laithwaites) struggled the most to understand why this advert says anything distinctive about Laithwaites: "nice idea, but I've already forgotten the brand name" was a common reaction.

A few people went slightly further in their comments; Miguel Ferreira noted "The wine industry is quite conservative. And compared to 99% of wine ads out there this ad MIGHT be distinctive enough to stand out."

Rhubarbrhubarbr observed: "Medium is what matters here. Very direct response/‘loyalty’ driven business moving to broad reach ad activity is a good thing."

Claire Strickett thought it was good, but a missed opportunity to be more innovative: "it plays into stuffy stereotypes about wine and wine world - they're all pretending to be posh, and I'd love wine to work hard to lose its associations with being posh."

Chris Carr felt the advert could have gone further to be more distinctive and memorable: "it's a fun take on the no doubt insight inspired aspirations of average wine drinkers. But I think the execution keeps it in forgettable territory. Could have taken it further into the fantasy of a wine cellar perhaps."

Dark Corner Durif Shiraz 2019

Another chunky red from Laithwaites

According to the Laithwaite's website, this is the pet project of a rising-star winemaker who didn’t want anyone to take a look or taste it until he was absolutely ready.

The ambition is admirable, but it does not exactly live up to its ta-dah billing.

This is not a result I would want on my winemaking CV; in fact, if I'd worked for ages and all I'd come up with was this fruit-bomb mediocrity, I would be much more likely sell it off as quietly as possible with the under strict instruction that my name was never to be linked to it in any way.

Is it a terrible wine? Not really - it's just somewhat unsophisticated, overpriced, alcoholic fruit juice for people who either don't actually like wine or don't know any better (Laithwaite's customers give this 4.4 out of 5).

What's there is vaguely pleasant as long as you don't pay too much attention to the details.

Dark Corner Durif Shiraz 2019 (Laithwaites, £10.99) dark plum and dark berry fruit with spice and liquorice; no rough edges but rather unsophisticated. All fruit, no underpinnings.

Underwhelming.

Antakari Syrah, Laithwaites

A Big-and-Blowsy, but well-enough-made Chilean Syrah from Laithwaites

I feel like I've been on a run of overextracted, chewy, chunky Big Reds from Laithwaites; as a result, I have started to have a bit of a thing about over-extraction.

This latest Laithwaites wine is another Big Red to be sure, but what it does have in its favour is that at least it's not overextracted. There's not much else to recommend it, however; even Laithwaites' own customers only give it 3.4 out of 5.

Antakari Syrah 2017 (£9.99)  lots of up-front dark fruit, spice and mintiness; warming and alcoholic; reasonable tannins and acidity.

Overblown, overpriced and underwhelming.

Andresen LBV Port

An LBV Port from Andresen via Laithwaite's

LBV is the impatient drinker's vintage port - it is a vintage port, as in being from a single year and not blended across years. However, unlike actual vintage port, LBV (late-bottled vintage) is aged in wood for several years and then bottled as a ready-to-drink port.

Vintage port, by contrast, goes straight into bottle and generally requires years, if not decades, of quiet maturing (and often a lot of decanting to remove sediment) before being ready to drink.

LBV has the plumpness and primary fruit of youth, the richness and sweetness of port and if it is not as complex as a vintage port, it is a step-up from a basic ruby.

I'm generally not a fan of Laithwaite's wines, but I found myself appreciating this; you can probably get better ports for less elsewhere, but there is no reason to avoid this one. It has an IWSC Bronze medal, which roughly translates as "perfectly fine with no rough edges, but nothing really special".

Andresen LBV port 2011 (£16.99, Laithwaite's) sweet, ripe red and black cherry fruit, dark plum and cassis, oaky vanilla spice, eucalytpus and warming alcohol. Full, concentrated and expressive; fresh with very fine tannins.

Thoroughly enjoyable.

Drink as a digestif; match with dark chocolate, mince pies or Christmas pudding.

Domaine Bisconte

A classy, if slightly jammy, Big Red from Roussillon

I've been drinking a lot of Laithwaites' reds recently - not entirely through choice, I must add.

They score highly for Look-At-Me expressiveness, but less so for elegance, tending to be somewhat chewy and overextracted.

This Domaine Bisconte is very much in the Laithwaites style of Big Red; high in alcohol with baked, jammy fruit but what sets it apart from the others is a degree of finesse, freshness and balance which so many of the others lack.

For my palate, it's something of a curate's egg; it's technically very well made and the tannins are faultless. I'm just not keen on the baked, jammy character, but if you drink a lot of Parker-esque California or Barossa, it may even seem quite restrained.

Domaine Bisconte 2017 (£13.99, Laithwaites) ripe, baked dark-berry fruits with damson and plum, slightly jammy and overcooked ; garrigue herbs, oaky spice and a balanced freshness that just about holds it in check; complex with very fine tannins.

Thoroughly pleasant.

Will age.

Match with roast red meat, especially garlic-and-rosemary leg of lamb.

Viña Tarapacá Malbec Shiraz

A chewy Chilean Big Red from Laithwaites

To be fair, this wine has warning signs written all over it - Laithwaites, Chile, Malbec and Shiraz all tell you this is going to be a Big Wine, probably with a chewy, over-extracted style to it.

Why so?

Firstly, that's pretty much Laithwaites' house style; secondly, it has become Chile's house style (albeit not universally and some more interesting producers are doing the elegance thing rather well these days). Finally, Malbec and Shiraz are unlikely ever to give you a delicate wine, albeit elegance is eminently achievable.

It need not be this way; I've had good wines from Chile and I've had excellent Malbecs and Shirazes - just not from Laithwaites.

It only gets 3.1 / 5 on Laithwaites own website, so even their own customers seem rather underwhelmed.

Viña Tarapacá Malbec Shiraz 2018 (£10.49, Laithwaites) sweet, ripe dark fruits with herbs and spice, rather jammy and overcooked; heavily-stewed, over-extracted texture. Not pleasant.

One to avoid.

Rex Mundi Shiraz Grenache 2017, Laithwaites

A stewed, extracted Languedoc wine from Laithwaites

Another trip up to my parents', another bottle of heavy-handed Laithwaite's wine.

If the three stages of palate development can be summarised as: expressiveness, complexity, elegance, then Laithwaite's wines generally show well for expressiveness (often over-delivering in this area) with moderate amounts of complexity and very little elegance.

So, the question can be framed not so much as "Is this a good wine?" as "Do you have a Laithwaite's palate?".

Not to put too fine a point on it, if you are not bothered about elegance or complexity and want a wine that makes a BIG statement, then this is perfectly fine for you.

To my mind, it's heavy-handed, unsubtle and over-priced. Languedoc can do much better than this.

That said, Laithwaite's customers give it 4.4 out of 5 and 93% approve. Clearly, I don't have a Laithwaite's palate.

Rex Mundi Shiraz Grenache 2017 (£9.99, Laithwaites) stewed plums, porty eucalyptus, spice and alcohol; it just doesn't hold together. It promises everything, like a newly-formed Conservative government, then falls apart just as quickly.

Rocksand Shiraz 2017 - Laithwaites

A Portuguese Shiraz from Laithwaites

I'm not quite sure what to make of this Shiraz from Laithwaites; my sister declared that she does not like Shiraz, so we opened a Bordeaux with her instead (that I rather liked) and had this one later on.

I'll admit, I was intrigued by the bottle shape; a sign of the winemaker's quirkiness and ambition.

The label aesthetic is New World evoking Australia, but look closer and the wine is actually Portuguese; Shiraz / Syrah does well in Portugal, even though the country has plenty of native grapes to explore.

For most of the bottle it was fresh and well-balanced; but then towards the end, a heaviness of started to become more apparent.

Rocksand Shiraz 2017, Vinho Regional Península de Setubal (£9.99, Laithwaites) ripe dark-berry fruit, spice and balanced freshness; supple with fine tannins. Generous extraction levels become more apparent over time.

Match with red meat.

Chateau Mayne Guyon 2015 - Laithwaites

A classy but expensive 2015 right bank Bordeaux from Laithwaites

Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux is essentially a slightly better appellation than basic Bordeaux; based on the right bank, Merlot dominates here.

2015 was a very good year in Bordeaux, so this ticks all the boxes.

And it delivers on quality, too; however, the price is a little toppy - even for a right bank Bordeaux.

Chateau Mayne Guyon Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux 2015 (Laithwaites, £16.99) ripe dark berries, sour cherry and some oaky spice; supple and fresh; concentrated and harmonious with fine tannins.

Still youthful and will age further.

Good (but not great value).

Match with a Sunday roast.

Belle Roche Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 - Laithwaites

A Languedoc Cab from Laithwaites

Mum seems to have ordered a case of Laithwaite's "most extracted wines" - not just big, ripe, fruit forward wines, but ones with lots of extraction too. A bit like over-stewed tea.

Sometimes you want a really strong cuppa or a heavily-seasoned stew. Me, I find that after a while, I long for something a bit lighter and less … heavy-handed.

This Laithwaites Languedoc Cab comes in a overweight bottle which is scientifically proven to make it taste better - this is not a joke, it is actually true.

It's big and Cabernet-like with lots of southern ripe fruit; so far, so standard.

The heavy bottle suggests a degree of winemaker ambition, so I consider it in more detail. It's technically well-made and my reservations are limited to stylistic issues. Checking it out on the website, I find that the winemaker is Jean-Marc Saboua, for whom I have a lot of respect.

Like a ballerina with a mohawk and day-glo socks, there is an elegance in there; it's just rather overshadowed by the look-at-me extraction. And it's not cheap either.

Belle Roche Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 (£10.99) aromatic with ripe dark fruits, cassis and spice. Fine tannins and balanced acidity with plenty of extraction. No rough edges but generously extracted.

Match with winter stews.

Pillastro Primitivo 2018 - Laithwaites

A heavily-extracted southern Italian red from Laithwaites

Laithwaites is the greasy take-away of wine, the slutty pizza of plonk; heavy-handed, unsubtle and lacking in finesse.

Sometimes, simple-and-uncomplicated is what you want; fish and chips on the beach, Friday night curry, Pret sandwich at your desk.

But - and here's the rub - there's a difference between being uncomplicated and being inelegant. Coco Chanel's LBD is uncomplicated and fabulously elegant. Bernard Manning's comedy act is unsubtle and brash.

Imagine you've made a pot of tea and served everyone; there's now a few teabags sitting at the bottom of the pot in their stewed, dark brown juices and you fancy another cup. You put the kettle on, pour over some boiling water and squeeze the last few drops of flavour out, then add a generous dash of milk hoping for the best.

That's your Laithwaites wine - thick, heavy and extracted all the while claiming to be "sumptuous", "powerful" or "velevety". These are all euphemisms for "unsubtle and extracted".

In the words of Doctor Evil, Laithwaites are not quite elegant enough; they're semi-elegant, quasi-elegant, the margarine of elegance, the diet Coke of elegance, just one calorie, not elegant enough.

Extraction does for a wine what the bass drum does for rock music - it gives you a hit of something substantial that you feel more than hear or taste. But it needs to be used judiciously or it soon becomes dull and repetitive. You need to mix it up a bit with tom-tom, snare and high hat.

And this is where Laithwaites dishonesty annoys me - I've said it before, Laithwaites are a wine seller and not a wine educator, but a more honest description would be "extracted and unsubtle" rather than "sumptuous and velvety".

Granted, they'd probably sell fewer wines and alienate their customers, but hey.

Pillastro Primitivo 2018 (£10.99) dark-berry fruits and sweet spices; heavy on extraction, yet otherwise balanced fresh and long. Becomes tedious after more than a couple of glasses.

It's not faulty or a bad wine; it is popular with Laithwaites customers - the oenological equivalent of a greasy pizza and a best of Bernard Manning DVD.

Three Laithwaites Wines

A(nother) mixed bag of wines from Laithwaites

A bank holiday weekend meant a trip up to my parents'.

Over the course of three days, we ate, drank and caught up with each other over various meals. The kids had put in a special request for fish and chips and a curry and there were home-cooked meals as well, so we ended up trying quite a range of drinks.

Some were better than others.

Mum has a fondness for Laithwaites wines that I've never quite understood; Dad's generally happy with whatever's put in his glass.

I have to confess to a certain amount of eye-rolling about Laithwaites wines - they are usually not terrible, just rather dull. in that sense, they conform to Rory Sutherland's definition of a brand as being a guarantee of non-crapness.

My complaint is not so much that the wines are mediocre (they are) or that they are oversold (they are) or overpriced (they are). No, it's the whiff of dishonesty that irks; the slight-of-hand, the knowing-yet-confidential references, the casual mentions of high-priced / high-scoring wines, the almost-religious belief in the most tenuous of connections.


I know that Laithwaites are wine sellers, not wine educators, but telling your audience that mediocre wines are great wines just seems a bit ... wrong.



Domaine Bisconte 2017, Cotes du Roussillon AOC (£12.99 plus delivery) the best of the three and highest rated by Laithwaites customers (4.3/5); dark fruits, garrigue herbs and spice; fresh and mineral with very fine tannins. Deft, harmonious and accomplished.

Good.

Match with roast red meat or darker game.

Viña Tarapacá Malbec Shiraz 2018 (£10.49 plus delivery) gets a lowly 3.0/5 from Laithwaites customers; confected and jammy, aiming for a bigger-is-better style.

Underwhelming.

Castelo do Vinteiro 2016, Douro DOC (£10.49 plus delivery) voted 3.5/5; dark berry fruit and fine tannins; on the plus side, it's fresh and balanced.

Pretty ordinary.

Copa Real / Cop-A-Feel

A typically blowsy Spanish red from Bujanda via Laithwaites

It's no secret that I am not generally a fan of Laithwaites wines; brash, obvious and unsophisticated. And that's just the advertising.

Copa Real / Cop-a-feel is a bit like someone's bit on the side - desperate for attention and hoping you won't ask too many questions.

Fur coat and no knickers.

There's lots going on up-front (too much) but it can't deliver on the promise.

Copa Real 2014 (£7.99) lifted oaky spice, with liquorice, baked red berry and bramble fruit and fine tannins. Mellow but not harmonious - alcoholic and drying on the finish.

Avoid.

Match with strongly-flavoured foods, such as spicy sausages or a stew, to mask the poor finish.

Three Bordeaux Wines

Three Bordeaux from 2015's good vintage - available nationally from Waitrose, M&S and Laithwaites

After some difficult vintages, Bordeaux has been on a roll recently with good years in 2014, 15 and 16; some chateaux say that each year has been better than the one before.

These three wines from 2015 - all at different price points - are generally well made and very pleasant.

The freshness of the first two makes them rather more typically Burgundian than Bordelais; you might almost think they had come from a cooler year. The last delivers more substance, but trades this for the deftness and elegance of the others.

Les Chartrons, 2014, Bordeaux (£7.99 Waitrose) Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc; light, fresh and well-made with  a good backbone of acidity and gentle, fine tannins. Elegant with delicate red and blueberry fruit with some peppery spice. Improves with air as the fruit emerges.

Light enough to match with salmon, fresh enough for hard cheese or keep it traditional with roast meat.

Grand Plessis Grand Réserve, 2015, Médoc (£10.00, M&S) Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Carmenère; expressively toasty-oaky nose with juicy red and black fruits, liquorice, a firm grip and plenty of spice. Good backbone of acidity and fine tannins.

Match with butcher's sausages or roast red meat.

Vieux Château Guibeau, 2015, Puisseguin Saint Émilion (Laithwaites £14.99) Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon; typical Bordeaux cassis and pencil shaving aromas with tobacco leaf and tar; substantial and supple with cooked bramble fruit, violets, mint and spicy vanilla. Grippy and slightly alcoholic.

Match the ripe fruit and firm tannins with garlic-and-rosemary roast lamb.

Familia Martínez Bujanda 2014 - Laithwaites

A Rioja from Laithwaites

It's not often, I find, that you get a very pleasant and classy wine from Laithwaites - but this is one.

It's reasonably-priced for the quality, typical of what it should be and has no faults or rough edges; you can't ask for much more; just a nice, ripe Rioja with a little age at a reasonable price.

How did that happen?

Familia Martínez Bujanda 2014 (£9.49 plus delivery) ripe plummy-damson fruit with spice and well-integrated oak. Fresh and nicely balanced; a very pleasant easy drinker.

Match with roasted red meats.

Camino de Seda 2014 - Laithwaites

 

A typically overbearing Laithwaites wine from Jumilla, Spain

Laithwaites specialise in sourcing unsophisticated wines from cheap areas, billing them as "BIG reds" and selling them at a high mark-up to the sort of people who write "Supple mouthfeel, smooth as silk...."

Camino de Seda 2014 (£8.99 plus delivery)  Jammy, extracted and alcoholic with no length; blowsy and all-front, the acidity just about holds it together - oversold, overpriced and overblown; it has as much finesse as a milky tea with two sugars.

Not actively unpleasant, it is thoroughly underwhelming unthinking drinking; just the sort of thing Laithwaites customers seem to like.

Chablis and Rioja - Matching For Dummies

A Chablis from Laithwaites and a CVNE Rioja

We go together
Like rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong
Remembered forever
As shoo-bop sha wadda wadda yippity boom de boom
Chang chang changitty chang sha-bop
That's the way it should be
Wah-oooh, yeah!

- We Go Together, Grease (1978)

Chablis and Rioja are both food wines and complement each other like Grease's Sandy and Danny; a piercing, crystalline white to start, followed by a mellow, oaky red. What's not to like?

Chablis works as an aperitif or with seafood starters; mature Rioja matches garlic and rosemary lamb, or a cheese course.

It is, in short, a failsafe option; Food-And-Wine-Matching for Dummies.

Robert Nicolle Chablis 2015 (£14.49, Laithwaites) expressive with ripe apple-and-pear fruits, florality and beeswax; leesy and toasty. Hefty and substantial yet fresh.

Good.

CVNE Rioja Imperial Gran Reserva 2008 (£44.75, The Wine Society, Tanners) complex red and black fruits with dried herbs and sweet spices; muscular yet fresh with very fine, firm tannins.

Drinking nicely now and will improve further with age.

Very Good.