What is a good value wine? Well, let me start with this:
With duty rises, a bottle of wine at £5 is not half as good as a £10 bottle of wine. In fact, it is probably less than half as good. This is simple maths. Wine duty in the UK is £2.23 on any bottle of 75cl wine, whether it be £5 or £500 and then there is VAT on the duty, so if you are paying £5 for a bottle, that makes up £3.06. This does not include packaging costs, shipping costs, or marketing, let alone the liquid in the bottle! So in this article, I will be looking at wines that are great value for £10 or under.
There is so much wine out there, it is very difficult to know what is good and what is bad, especially at the less expensive end of the market. I particularly like Bordeaux and it is difficult to find inexpensive Bordeaux which is really good. However, there are some great Bordeaux wines which do not cost the earth. The trick is to buy wines which have been made in a good vintage. In a good vintage (when the weather is just right), the wines from lesser vineyards are much better quality than they would be otherwise, and I have a couple listed below. The same could be said for the Rhone, although there are some Rhone wines which are pretty good in most years. Burgundy is a different story all together and I’ll cover Burgundy in a separate article. Here we have my guide to ten cheap wines which over-deliver in flavour and quality. I have been enjoying all these wines recently.
The Wine Society’s Sicilian Reserve Red 2015
At £8.50, this red wine punches well above its weight. I found this wine looking for a mid week wine which wasn’t too strong and at 13.5%, it fitted the bill. It has lots of juicy red fruit flavours and a touch of blackcurrant. The oak maturation is delicately handled and over all the wine is well balanced with great acidity. You won’t get bored of this wine for quite a while.
ABV: 13.%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £8.50
Waitrose Argentinian Malbec 2018
I wanted to find a Malbec which was classic in style, with big fresh red berry fruit flavours and touches of spice, this wine has lots of depth for only £7.99. With a touch of oak to round off the palate and toasty flavours, this will go very well with Italian food, especially pasta dishes.
ABV: 13.%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £7.99
Tour Chapoux Bordeaux Superior 2017
If you find either 2016 or 2017 in the shop, both were good vintages, 2016 being slightly better. This is classic claret without having to age it for an age before the tannins round out and it becomes drinkable. Open it now and it will be delicious, or open it in another five years and it will be different, but still delicious. Classic Bordeaux.
ABV: 14.%
Size: 75cl
Buy now for £9.39
Cote du Rhone Reserve Maison Perrin et Fils 2017
This wine is made by Rhone royalty. The Perrin family make one of the best Chateaux Neuf du Pape wines at Chateaux Beaucastel, and you will pay a pretty penny for it. But their Cote du Rhone is like a baby Chateaux Neuf du Pape. It is less than a sixth of the price and is drinking very well now. Decant for an hour before serving and those around the dinner table will be impressed.
ABV: 13.5%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £9.69
Famille Perrin Ventoux Rouge 2018
From the same famille, but from a lesser known area called Ventoux. This wine is great value, as with the Cote du Rhone it will be even better with an hour in a decanter (or just opened for an hour before serving), but it will also just pop and pour. With lots of rich plumby flavours it’s a belter.
ABV: 13.5%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £7.85
Carrizal Tempranillo 2012 Rioja
Another cracker from Winebuyers, they are knocking it out of the ballpark at the moment with great value wines. This is a Rioja in a modern style. No need to look for the Reserva or Gran Reserva name son this label. It has plenty of aging since the grapes were harvested back in 2012 and it is big and smooth with plenty of powerful fruit flavours, without losing its finesse.
ABV: 12.5%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £8.99
Porta 6
Ever since James Martin expressed his liking for this wine several years ago on Saturday Kitchen, it has been a popular choice at Majestic, and with good reason. There is a lot of bang for buck here. It’s a great summer BBQ wine with rich and bold flavours and will go with most food. But there is a complexity to the wine which outstrips its price tag, and that is why I love it.
ABV: 13.5%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £7.99
Pemo Montepulciano 2017
The name PEMO comes from the fusion of the two regional grape varieties, PEcorino and MOtepulciano, which have been growing in Abruzzo since 200 A.D. Pecorino and Montepulciano embody the rugged Abruzzo region, where the mountains dramatically meet the sea. This connection is expressed in the form of fox for Montepulciano (Hills, forest) and a whale for Pecorino (the sea).
ABV: 13.5%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £9
Croze Hermitage Cave de Tain 2017
Normally one would expect to pay at least £15 for any Croze Hermitage, and from an estate producer you would. However, Cave de Tain are what the French call négociants. They buy wine or grapes from farmers and wine estates and make or blend the wine themselves. Cave de Tain have a great reputation for creating very good wines from other people’s grapes and this is no exception. It is drinking very well know and will age for at least another five years if cellared well.
ABV: 12%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £10
Dows Late Bottled Vintage 2011
I know I was going to stick to £10 or under, but this is just too good to miss. From the legendary 2011 vintage (probably the best vintage for port from the last 100 years), this is on a special offer at The Whisky Exchange and it tastes way above its price tag. Late bottled vintage means the port has had longer aging in barrel to allow it to oxidize to make it seem much more mature. Many people would mistake this for full vintage port many times more expensive, as the vintage was so rich and refined.
ABV: 20%
Size: 750ml
Buy now for £10.95