Copy of the newsletter that goes out after the Moncrieff show on Novemeber 19th to subscribers:

The Germans are coming has been the cry this week as the EU’s bankers and the IMF role into town to bail out the Irish economy with an enormous loan facility.

We’ll be paying them off for decades via increased taxes so most of have the prospect of less money to spend on wine in the coming holiday season. Thankfully these days you don’t have to spend a lot to find a drinkable wine. Most of the big retailers have had press tastings recently and I’ve picked out a few of my favourite bargains. 

First wine tasted today is from Dunnes’ new Portuguese range. Pena de Pato Vinho Verde at €6.99. If you buy 5, the 6^th is free bringing the price down to just €5.83. Also in the range is a red Pena de Pato Dao on the same price offer and that’s a serious bargain too but I like their Gran Vasco Douro red at €6.99 even more especially as it’s currently reduced to €5.99. 

Also on the same 6 for 5 at €6.99 offer at Dunnes and worth buying are the Jacob’s Creek Range and Cono Sur and Ch. Pennautier.

 When thinking ‘cheap’ many will head for German discounters Aldi and Lidl. In several years of tasting both ranges, Aldi is always more reliable. At the moment they have a Spanish pair, a rosé and a red called Toro Loco, which translates as Crazy Bull. Both are remarkably drinkable and cost just €4.99 and the fun label has a bull’s head as a corkscrew. Other good buys in Aldi include the Bushland Reserve Chardonnay and Shiraz from the Hunter Valley. Their red Bordeaux €6.99 is from the excellent 2009 vintage and the best I’ve tried and the new packaging is really smart. 

Lidl has less hits but one that is worth buying is their Rose Creek NZ Sauvignon Blanc, which is down in price from €8.49 to €6.99. Their basic Bordeaux red is also from the excellent 2009 vintage so is worth trying. Pinot Grigio fans should try their German Pinot Grigio Troken (troken means dry) at €6.19. The perfect wine for toasting the visiting bankers, if you welcome their arrival, as it seems many do.

I’ll be giving more tips on good value wines from other retailers on my website winerepublic.com

Wines Tasted on the Show

Pena de Pato Vinho Verde 2009 Portugal, Dunnes €6.99 or 6 for price of 5.
A proper dry Vinho Verde with crisp lemon scented fruit and refreshingly only 11% a.b.v. so you can drink more of it at a party or at lunch time and not keel over. 

Toro Loco Rosé 2009, Utiel-Requena, Spain, Aldi €4.99.
A really modern rose with a youthful bright almost blue pink colour not the orangey brown you sometimes see and it then delivers plenty of red berry and cherry fruit at and all at a remarkable price. 

Giacondi Nero d’Avola 2009, O’Briens €5.49.
Sicily is the source of an increasing number of good quality and great value wines. I’ve recommended the Inycon brand many times over recent years for example. This producer is new to me but they’ve delivered exactly what you’d hope for, which is rich, slightly raisined and liquorice scented fruit and no hard edges