Jonathan Ray

Readers will, I’m sure, remember the excellent Merlot-rich Sang du Sanglier from Ch. de Fayolle that we offered here with FromVineyardsDirect recently. Well, crikey, the 2016 Ch. de Fayolle Blanc (1), its sister wine, is every bit as toothsome. A blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon (just a bit) from low-yielding, naturally farmed, herbicide-free vineyards in Bergerac near Bordeaux, it’s crisp, clean and refreshing. The Sauvignon gives a lively touch of citrus, grass and herbs while the Sémillon adds depth, character and a certain roundedness. A white Graves of this quality from down the road would be twice the price. £9.95 down from £10.95.

There’s something for everyone in the Rhône Valley. And there’s definitely something for everyone in this fine offer from Mr Wheeler: a dozen different wines from one of the region’s finest producers: Etienne Guigal. Goodness these wines are good and so well-priced! When I last looked, Majestic was offering the Côtes du Rhône Rouge for £12.99 a bottle (£10.99 if you mix six). It’s available here at just £10, along with 11 other first-rate wines that you would struggle to find available all under one roof, particularly at these cut-to-the-bone prices. I love the Rhône.

A great selection from Messrs Corney & Barrow this week and a ridiculously well-priced one too, especially if you take advantage of the Brett-Smith Indulgence whereby C&B’s MD, Adam Brett-Smith, knocks six quid off a case for anyone buying two dozen bottles or more. Never in a thousand years did I think that I would find myself recommending a Romanian Pinot Grigio in these pages, nor indeed anywhere else. But the 2017 Sanziana Pinot Grigio (1) is blooming lovely and my summer quaffing wine is now sorted. The wines of Romania are being taken very seriously these days and merchants the calibre of Corney & Barrow wouldn’t be sniffing round there if they weren’t. Oh don’t be so snooty, they’ve been making wine there for 6,000 years!

Spring is definitely here, in all its capricious glory, and, in cahoots with FromVineyardsDirect, we’ve selected six wines — all from France — with which to enjoy its many moods. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve recommended the 2014 Cave de Lugny Crémant de Bourgogne (1), both here and elsewhere. It’s one of the best sparkling wines for the price that you will find anywhere. I featured it recently at a tasting of sparkling wine and Grandes Marques champagnes and it was voted the star of the show. Produced using the champagne method by the Cave de Lugny co-operative in Burgundy, it’s a classic blend of handpicked Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, cool-fermented in steel.

Irecently did a straw poll of a dozen or so friends in the drinks trade. If, for whatever strange reason, you were condemned to drink the wines of just one country for the rest of your life, I asked, which country would it be? Confident that the answer would be France, I started writing up some Gallic-slanted copy as I waited for the answers to trickle in, leaving gaps here and there for the dazzling chablis- and champagne--eulogising quotes I expected to receive. Darn me, though, if I hadn’t completely and utterly miscalled it. What a bloody idiot! Every idle, booze-loving one of them, apart from an avowed Francophile and a bribable floating voter, said Italy.

It’s April and as I write, it’s still bloody cold and the fire’s lit. The other day I could have sworn that spring was on its way but it seems it’s been unaccountably delayed. It’s probably down to leaves on the line or some such guff about the wrong type of sunlight or the points having frozen. Sigh. It’ll be here soon. Until then, I can dream — and my dream of the moment is of plenty of sunshine and plenty of chilled rosé. Thank goodness then for Sacha Lichine whose sole aim (and that of his partners, Patrick Léon, former head winemaker at Château Mouton Rothschild, and Patrick’s son, Bertrand) is to make the finest rosés in the world at his Château d’Esclans estate in Provence.

We’ve not had an offer from my alma mater Berry Bros & Rudd for yonks, almost a year in fact, and I’m delighted to see them back in these pages with a really very tasty selection of wines. And just for a change, they are offering a six-bottle case this time rather than the more usual 12-bottle case. Unfortunately, since the wines are in such short supply, they are only available in the mixed box, and cannot be bought individually. Needless to say, if you fancy a full mixed dozen then simply sign up for two cases. The wines are darn good and keenly discounted, so I strongly recommend that you do. Indeed, in selling the box at £75 all in, Berrys have very generously snipped £7.30 off the selection’s list price and are also waiving their customary £7.

Esme Johnstone, the genial boss of FromVineyardsDirect, is the past master at rootling out tasty little parcels of this and that and at unearthing vinous treats from past vintages. I’m delighted to say he’s done it again this week with six very stylish French wines including two fully mature, extremely well-priced clarets and one steal of a Bergerac. There’s much to enjoy here, so fill your boots! The 2016 Château Virgile Blanc (1) comes from Costières de Nîmes in the Gard, where they’ve been making wine for over 2,000 years. The estate of Château Virgile itself dates from the 18th century and is home to brothers Serge and Thierry Baret, producers of wines that offer what Robert Parker calls ‘mind-boggling value’.

Chateau Musar, that extraordinary Lebanese winery with vineyards deep in the Bekaa Valley, boasts an almost fanatical following. Indeed, two of Musar’s most devoted admirers were my esteemed predecessors — Messrs Waugh and Hoggart — thanks to whom our Wine Club partner, Mr Wheeler, has been wafting Musar under the beaks of Spectator readers very successfully for 20 years. I’m delighted to report this offer is as enticing as ever and marks the first time that the latest vintage of Musar’s grand vin, the 2011, has been offered to anyone, anywhere. The 2008 Chateau Musar White (1) is a remarkable wine produced from un-grafted old vines grown in vineyards planted almost 5,000 years ago.

Dry January must have heightened my senses. Or maybe I’m simply craving alcohol. Either way, I’m pretty chuffed with this week’s selection, courtesy of FromVineyardsDirect: six classic French wines. It took an age to whittle the wines down to six, largely because I felt compelled to drain every bottle. I’d hate you to think I was shirking my researches. The 2016 Château Bauduc Sauvignon/Sémillon (1) will be familiar to diners at the restaurants of Rick Stein and Gordon Ramsay, where it’s the house white. Produced by Gavin and Angela Quinney at their 200-acre estate in the Entre Deux Mers, it’s a blend of 70 per cent Sauvignon Blanc and 30 per cent Sémillon.

Good grief, I’m glad that’s over. Dry January, that is. The worst thing was that for most of it I slept terribly and invariably woke with what can only be described as a hangover: throbbing head, aching eyes and dreadful feelings of remorse for having drunk too much the night before (not to mention for having behaved appallingly and for owing a large number of folk some pretty hearty apologies). It would slowly dawn on me, though, that I had drunk nothing but Badoit and that I hadn’t, after all, been at the Presidents Club bash and that I needn’t reproach myself. I’m now happy as a lark having jumped off the wagon straight into the warm embrace of Messrs Corney & Barrow.

Well, I don’t know about you but I found the recent festivities somewhat challenging. I didn’t draw a sober breath between 8 November and New Year’s Day which, as my wife Marina kindly pointed out, was neither big nor clever. She’s no slouch herself when the corks are popping so for her to call me a lush is a bit rich, but I took her point and hopped meekly on the water wagon on 1 January. As the days of sobriety turned to weeks I began to feel rather smug, especially since so many mates fell by the wayside. One chum lasted all of two days; another barely a week until a bottle of fine Beaujolais undid her; and a third told me that far from drying out he felt obliged to drink for two since his wife had done the giving up for him.

I can’t lie to you, I hate this time of year. I further admit to being a fully paid-up member of the Bah Humbug Brotherhood and a long-time sufferer of Christmas Affected Doom, Depression and Despondency (known to anyone who will listen, such as sympathetic barmen and random strangers in the Dog and Vomit as CADDAD), a ghastly condition that flares up around mid-October and lasts until January. And it only gets worse as one gets older. Sadly, there’s no known cure, although symptoms can be alleviated a little by taking November and December off in the Caribbean or the Maldives, alone, with Netflix, a box of books, some decent grub and a well-stocked minibar.

Christmas is the time for fine claret, whether the grub you plan to gorge on is a juicy rib of beef, a succulent saddle of lamb or the dread festive turkey. And, if you’re canny, there’s no need to break the bank. We’ve put together three keenly priced clarets with our partners Mr Wheeler. Each has unimpeachable credentials, from truly great estates. Drink long and drink deep. The 2014 Vieux Château Saint André (1) from Montagne Saint-Emilion is a complete and utter claret-lover’s delight. Produced from fruit grown on his own six-hectare estate by Jean-Claude Berrouet (who, being the former winemaker at Ch. Pétrus, certainly knows his onions), the wine is almost indecently flirtatious and approachable.

I adore the wines of New Zealand and reckon I could survive on nothing but, if I were ordered to drink the wines of just one country for the rest of my days. Well, I’d need the odd bacon sandwich or plate of oysters in between, but I think you know what I mean. One of the first Kiwi wineries I ever visited was Kumeu River, up near Auckland. Michael Brajkovich, a Master of Wine, makes stunning wines there and his Maté’s Vineyard Chardonnay is one of the finest and most sought-after in the country. To enjoy a bit of Kumeu stardust at a very keen price look no further than the 2015 Kumeu Village Pinot Gris (1). It’s deliciously fresh, floral and creamy and proves beyond doubt that, in the right hands, Pinot Gris is a delectable grape. £10.

It’s the turn of FromVineyardsDirect this week and, just to keep things simple, FVD’s Esme Johnstone and I decided simply to offer readers FVD’s six best-selling wines. FVD’s customers love them, I love them and I trust you’ll love them, too. I even persuaded the normally unpersuadable Esme to knock off 50p here and £1 there just for goodwill’s sake. Anyone looking for a top-quality, champagne-method fizz of real style at a ridiculously cheap price should look no further than the 2013 Cave de Lugny Crémant de Bourgogne Millésime (1). I cannot praise it enough.

Gosh I love Gosset champagne! And having recently been in the enviable but liver-challenging position of researching a book on my favourite fizzes, I remain convinced that this oldest of all Champagne houses (est. 1584) is up there with the very best. Thanks to our partners, Mr. Wheeler, we are able to offer almost the entire Gosset range at the best possible price, including the yet-to-be-released Blanc de Noirs. The Gosset Grande Réserve Brut (1) is a blend of three vintages (2005, 2006 and 2007, I believe) and of three grapes (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, of course). It’s rich, creamy and toasty with ripe and dried red fruit, a keen mineral note and a long, fresh finish. £39.50 down from £49.50.

Esme Johnstone, of FromVineyardsDirect.com, has done it again. He’s managed to snaffle some cracking ‘defrocked’ clarets (and one Sauternes) from some of Bordeaux’s finest estates and is offering them here at remarkably keen prices. These wines are from the same vineyards and same winemaking teams that produce the estates’ fabled grands vins (which sadly I’m unable to name but can give clues to) and boast impeccable pedigrees. I strongly recommend you get stuck in. We’ve offered the 2014 Pauillac (1) before, that first allocation being snapped up by thirsty readers in a trice. No surprise there, given the wine’s provenance, coming as it does from the leading and foremost icon that exists (geddit?).

As readers know, The Spectator is a famously broad church. All manner of opinions are held and expressed here, and it’s impossible to find common ground, be it on Brexit, Trump and May, or even on the relative merits of Marmite and Bovril, say, or how to pronounce ‘controversy’ correctly. No one agrees about anything. What a shock, then, to find total unanimity among thirsty members of Spectator staff who joined me and Laura Taylor from Private Cellar to taste wines for this offer. Never were spittoons so redundant. The following six wines were the favourites. Actually, I lie: there was one dissenting voice about just one of the wines.

I love Picpoul de Pinet; I mean we all do, right? It’s the quintessence of easy, affable drinking and I’ve not met a Picpoul more easy or affable than the 2016 Racine Picpoul de Pinet (1), produced by Bruno Lafon and François Chamboissier, the Burgundian/Bordelais pair behind Diva Sud, a collection of great-value wines from the Rhône, Languedoc and Provence. Their Picpoul is spot on: fresh, lively and light--bodied with excellent acidity, fine concentration of fruit and — hooray! — an easy-access screwcap. Don’t overanalyse it, just bask in its tasty simplicity. £9.75 down from £11.50. The 2015 Domaine Mourchon ‘La Source’ Côtes du Rhône Blanc (2) is an old favourite of mine.