On the Thursday Club this afternoon: More summertime sips and this time, from Sainsbury’s. Here are some wines you may or may not have heard of before, but they are certainly worth chilling and bringing out on hot days, even the red!
Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine, France. Taste the Difference.
Muscadet is a 70’s favourite but it’s coming back as people reach for cleaner, cool, bone dry, more neutral wines. The grape is actually Melon de Bourgogne, which really makes no sense as Bourgogne means ‘Burgundy - a totally different region! Muscadet wines are famously slightly spritzy with earthy, grape flesh notes and a chalky texture. It hails from the far west of the Loire Valley in France. Perfect with shellfish.
£7.50 from Sainsbury’s
Cono Sur ‘Bicicleta’ Viognier, Chile.
Cono Sur is a big Chilean brand but one you can rely on to make seriously easy drinking, inexpensive fruity wines that are great examples of type. Her, they’ve taken France’s Viognier grape and given it the New World Touch. On the opposite end of the spectrum to Muscadet, Viognier is the sun goddess of wine. Think ripe peach and apricot, with coconut oil and a garland of white flowers. Viognier is great with lightly spiced food, especially Thai.
£7.50 from Sainsbury’s
Beaujolais Villages, Coteaux Granitiques, France. Taste the Difference
Beaujolais is another seventies throwback in a way but these days, it’s certainly not the strawberry bubblegum stuff that could strip paint. The grape used is Gamay for the reds and it comes from central France, just below the Burgundy region. There are several quality levels of Beaujolais, from the early drinking, ‘bubblegum’ nouveau style, to the more serious Beaujolais, Beaujolais-Villages and then the 10 ‘Cru’, which each have names you might know such as Fleurie or Morgon. Gamay is a light bodied red with very little drying tanning, that is known and loved for its fresh cherry and red berry fruit.
£9.50 from Sainsbury’s