Asda

Diemersfontein Pinotage 2004 Wellington, South Africa
This is a remarkably forward, modern, classy Pinotage that totally succeeds in taming the funkier aspects of this grape. It’s dark coloured and has an alluring nose of smoky, roasted dark fruits. The palate is savoury, spicy and quite rich with a nice stucture and more of that roasted character. Chocolatey richness, too. A crowd pleaser. (£6.99 Asda, Waitrose) 

Asda Barossa Valley Semillon 2004 Australia
A nice clean, focused white wine. The main feature here is clean, pure lemony fruit, but there’s a fuller, honeyed sort of subplot. The overall impression is of a fresh, full flavoured wine which avoids being rich and heavy, so it’s a good match for a variety of foods. (Asda £4.98)

Spier Private Collection Sauvignon Blanc 2004 Stellenbosch, South Africa
South African Sauvignon Blanc is the theme this week, a variety that has thrived in the Cape in recent years, despite a recent scandal where some winemakers were found to have added some methoxypyrazine, a grape chemical that confers a distinctive herbaceous, grassy character to these whites. We begin with a c lassy high-end example from Spier, which is a very sophisticated white with forward, grassy fruit and nice herbiness. It’s very rich, but with great balance. (£10 Asda)

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