MARKS AND SPENCER 2010/11 TOP WINES IN PRICE CATEGORY
SUMMARY
Very good in the £5 -8 bracket and at the top end, also some great buys from Chile and Argentina, the Aussie whites did particularly well. The overall scoring for M and S is very high as you'd expect from International Wine Challenge Supermarket of the Year.
KEY
The reds are written up in this colour
The whites in this colour
Pink in this colour
The fizz in this colour
Desert wines in this colour
WINE PRICE DRINKER RATING
>£5
Gaston de Veau Blanc 2009 (Fra) £4.99 84
Good basic sauvignon blanc character, value, Wednesday night wine
>£10
Secano Estate Sauvignon Gris 2009 (Chi ) £7.49 83
Asparagus nose, ripe pear, zingy lime and good acidity
Argentina Pinot Grigio 2009 (Arg) £6.49 82
Pinot gris style, creamy palate, good fruit backbone
Altos del Condor Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (Arg) £6.99 82
Grassy herbaceous nose, full fruit and good balancing acidity
Altos del Condor Sauvignon Gris 2009 (Arg) £6.99 85
Big full elderflower nose, complex fruit character nice burnt notes
Knock on Wood Riesling Viognier 2009 (SA) £8.99 87
Floral aromatic nose, dry, hints of honey and menthol, interesting
Snapper Cove Chardonnay 2009 (Aus) £6.99 89
Full ballsy Aussie nose, ripe apples
Lost Sheep Chardonnay 2009(Aus) £6.99 87
Restrained chardonnay apples, hints of minerality, citrus zest
Margaret River Semillon Sauvignon 2008 (Aus) £7.99 84
Complex blend on nose, good fruit/acidity balance, lemon squash finish
Shepherds Ridge Chardonnay 2008 (NZ) £8.99 86
Red apple nose, fleshy sweet apple and crisp acidity, top value
Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (NZ) £7.99 85
Full gooseberry and elderflower power, green, good acidity, well made
English Bacchus 2009 (Eng) £9.99 86
Floral violet nose, English meadow, grassy, good stuff
Quincy Domaine Bailly 2008 (Fra) £9.99 86
Lush ripe peach nose, grassy, complex, elegant, good price
Petit Chablis 2008 (Fra) £8.99 82
Apples, stones, chalk, very good wine for the money
Pecorino, Rocco Pasetti 2009 (Ita) £8.99 83
Good apple aroma, full gooseberry palate, high acidity, delicious
English Rosé 2009 (Eng) £9.99 82
Salmon pink, unripe strawberry, complex nose, fresh, aromatic
Tierra Y Hombre Pinot Noir 2009 (Chi) £6.49 83
Good young fresh pinot, some oak, good ripe red fruit
Corriente del Bio Pinot Noir 2009 (Chi) £7.14 83
Good red fruit nose, bitter cherry, lush fruit, good acidity
Fragoso Merlot 2009 (Arg) £6.49 82
Full soft, velevety merlot, black cherry, good soft tannin
Charles Back Barbera 2008 (SA) £9.99 88
Fleshy black cherry and stewed plum, good full tannin, firm, lush
Snapper Cove Shiraz 2009 (Aus) £6.99 82
Blackcurrant, iron, blood, blackcurrant juice palate, full, very Aussie
Lost Sheep Cabernet 2009 (Aus) £6.99 84
Ripe brambles, full alcohol, good late summer wine, great value
Les Oris Rouge 2007 (Fra) £7.99 84
Metalic cherry and sweet spice nose, low tannin but not flabby, interesting
Baglio Rosso Nero d’Avola Sicilia 2008 (Ita) £5.99 82
Good black cherry fruit, nice firm tannin, very good value
Umberto Fiore Barbaresco 2005 (Ita) £9.99 92
Rich black cherry, good full but soft tannin, great price, top nebbiolo
>£15
Grand Enclos de Chateau Cerons 2006 (fra) £14.99 86
Complex apple, pear, elderflower nose, full creamy palate, pricey, good
Pouilly Fumé Mathilde Favray 2008 (Fra) £10.99 82
Cream, vanilla, mineral, smoke, complex, top example of the style
Saint Romain, Fabrice Lesne 2007 (Fra) £10.99 84
Rich, elegant mineral, hints of apple and lime
Kaituna Hills Reserve Pinot Noir 2008 (NZ) £10.99 88
Smoky elegant nose, cherry palate, developing, great example of pinot noir
Chateau Puy Mouton St Emillion Grand Cru 2006 (Fra) £13.99 82
One to lay down, developing well will score 88 in 3 years
Crozes Hermitage Domaine Collonge 2007 (Fra) £10.99 84
Pepper, cherry, bramble nose, hedgerow flavours, value for money
Mouvèrdre Bonny Doon 2008 (USA) £11.99 83
Pleasing, complex, full, rich, elegant, complex, great wine
<£15
Gloria Ferrer Etesian Blanc De Blancs 2005 (USA) £15.99 84
Brioche nose, apple, bread, toast, good stuff right price
Oudinot Brut NV (Fra) £19.99 84
The real deal in Champagne, great price, elegant, complex
Saint Gall Vintage 1er Cru 2004 (Fra) £26.99 88
Brioche, green apple, hints of pear. Proper Champagne.
Saint Aubin 1er Cru Domaine Pimont Les Charmois (Fra) £17.99 90
Cram and coconut, dry stony, vanilla, complex, very good
Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chalumeaux 2007 (Fra ) £35.00 93
I could live on this wine and drink nothing else for ever
