Red Wines
We offer more red wine than white on our website… Well, there is a view that a meal without red wine is like a day without sunshine…
As a general rule red grape varieties tend to perform at their best in warmer temperatures than white. So whilst one could argue that the very greatest reds of the world come from marginal zones where the local vines need to be coaxed to full ripeness - for example Cabernet Sauvignon in Bordeaux, Pinot Noir in Burgundy and Syrah in the northern Rhône - there is abundant decent red wine available now from countries or regions enjoying a Mediterranean climate; in particular the south of France, Italy, Spain, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, California, etc.
While certain grape varieties are associated with particular countries or regions (for example Sangiovese with central Italy, Tempranillo with Spain, Malbec with Argentina, Carmenère with Chile, the home-grown Pinotage with South Africa, Zinfandel with California), it is the varieties best known for making top French wine - Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Syrah (Shiraz), Pinot Noir, and, to a lesser extent, Grenache and Mourvèdre - which have been widely planted all over the new world.
A word about ripeness, alcohol levels and climate change. Red wines, even more than white, are becoming more alcoholic. This is as a result of a number of different factors working together. First, consumers now seek riper wines - wines made from grapes which are picked properly ripe, with higher sugar levels which, once fermented out, become higher alcohol levels. (My theory as to why riper wines are so much more popular is related to us having become accustomed to higher sugar levels in a modern diet). Better management of the vines (in particular the "canopy" of the leaves) and more sophisticated weather forecasting has enabled growers to ripen their grapes better and pick at the right moment.
And on top of that is climate change. Thirty years ago reds from Bordeaux used to be bottled at 12-12.5%; since the hot 2009 vintage most examples show 13-14.5%, and some wines actually contain over 15% of alcohol.
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Chateau de la Liquiere, Faugeres Rouge, 2019
Medium bodied
The estate’s principal wine, an unoaked, life-enhancing blend of Grenache and Syrah with a...
OriginFrance
RegionFaugeres
ColourRed
ABV14.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeLIQ119
GrapeGrenache, Syrah & Mourvedre

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Magnum, Chateau de la Liquiere, Faugeres Rouge, 2019
Medium bodied
The estate’s principal wine, an unoaked, life-enhancing blend of Grenache and Syrah with a...
OriginFrance
RegionFaugeres
ColourRed
ABV14.5%
Bottle150cl
CodeLIQ119M
GrapeGrenache, Syrah & Mourvedre


Named after the cistus or rock rose, the pretty shrub which dots the hillsides, a blend of 70%...
OriginFrance
RegionLanguedoc-Roussillon
ColourRed
ABV14.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeLIQ318
GrapeSyrah & Mourvedre

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"A blend of Grenache and Syrah, named after two cousins in the Orosquette family, this is...
OriginFrance
RegionLanguedoc
ColourRed
ABV13%
Bottle75cl
CodeGRV119
GrapeGrenache & Syrah

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Juicy, unfiltered blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah: raspberryish mouthful, mildly spicy...
OriginFrance
RegionRhone
ColourRed
ABV14.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeESZ120
GrapeGrenache, Cinsault & Syrah

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Vega del Rayo, Rioja, Vendimia Seleccionada, 2019
Medium Bodied
A blend of about 95% Tempranillo and 5% Mazuelo, a cheerful, oaked (American and Russian)...
OriginSpain
RegionRioja
ColourRed
ABV13%
Bottle75cl
CodeVEG219
GrapeTempranillo

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Bodegas Borsao, Garnacha, Joven, Campo de Borja, 2020
Medium Bodied
Bodegas Borsao is a big co-operative, marketing wines from over 600 growers whose land...
OriginSpain
RegionCampo de Borja
ColourRed
ABV13.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeBOR320
GrapeGrenache

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El Lagar de Isilla, Ribera Del Duero, Roble, 2019
Medium Bodied
A best-seller here, 95% Tempranillo with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, given precisely 122 days (it...
OriginSpain
RegionRibera Del Duero
ColourRed
ABV14%
Bottle75cl
CodeLAH119
GrapeTempranillo

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"Restrained aromas, quite elegant in red-berry fruit with a delicate spicy touch....
OriginSpain
RegionRibera Del Duero
ColourRed
ABV15%
Bottle75cl
CodeLAH616
GrapeTempranillo

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Carinae, Malbec, Hommage, Mendoza, 2014
Full Bodied
Amazing old-vine Malbec from 95 year old vines in a high altitude vineyard at Calle Cobos,...
OriginArgentina
RegionMendoza
ColourRed
ABV15%
Bottle75cl
CodeCAE414
GrapeMalbec

Fryer's Cove, Pinot Noir, Bamboes Bay, 2019
Medium Bodied
From this isolated, calcareous vineyard on the cold Atlantic shore. Attractively early-maturing...
OriginSouth Africa
RegionWestern Cape
ColourRed
ABV13.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeFRY619
GrapePinot Noir

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Old vines indeed, over 80 years and some pre-phylloxera, so perhaps over 150 years old: 80%...
OriginFrance
RegionSouth-West
ColourRed
ABV14.5%
Bottle75cl
CodeBAJ319
GrapeTannat