Members' Favourites Reds

Delicious, well-priced claret from a small area between Côtes de Bourg and Fronsac. Majority merlot with 30% cabernet sauvignon providing freshness and backbone.

The 2020 is the best vintage of Château de la Grave Caractère that we`ve tasted. The wine has deep colour and a fragrant bouquet of plums, tar and vanilla, with layered, juicy texture on the palate. A blend of 80% merlot and 20% cabernet sauvignon the wine was aged for 12 months in two and three-year-old barrels from one of Pauillac`s most famous châteaux. This is concentrated, but well balanced, with grainy, ripe tannins on the finish. A remarkable wine for the price, this is already drinking beautifully, but has ample capacity to age. As winners of our 2024 Climate & Nature fund, de la Grave will use our funds to help diversify and move away from a monoculture. One project involves planting fruit, olive and truffle trees, establishing pre-orchards which will combine fruiting trees with meadows for grazing and breeding their sheep and horses.

Richly flavoured and fruity but always fresh red from the slopes of Mont Ventoux. Made from majority ripe grenache with syrah in support, it offers a spot-hitting and delicious palate of ripe red berries and a touch of spice.

Generous and spicy South African blend of shiraz and mourvèdre with floral perfume, enhanced on the palate by notes of forest fruits, cassis and spice.

Uncomplicated charm doesn`t get more charming than this. A popular southern French red and a Wine Champion in 2024, Laborie was given a makeover in 2023 to include some especially good, crunchy syrah fruit. Tasted blind among its peers, it was a resounding hit: ‘So much fruit, juicy and user friendly. Incredible value.`

Brilliant, fruity and fresh-tasting red made from cabernet franc and malbec, both of which work well in the heat of the Languedoc. The balance is lovely and the fruit flavours are reminiscent of raspberry and plum. Great value.

This popular Veneto red's opulent rich style is achieved by partial natural air-drying of the grapes (a mix of merlot and corvina) to add richness. Black cherry and leather on the nose, with more spice developing on the palate and finish.

A flattering and expressive Rioja full of vanilla and red-fruit flavour made in the oaky style. It is consistently a favourite of members' year after year. Navajas get their hands on some of the finest fruit from Rioja`s best vineyards. They used to sell the fruit on to the big names, including CVNE, but now, wisely, have decided to keep it for themselves.

Juicy, ripe red-cherry and strawberry-scented Italian red from warm yet windy vineyards. A great go-to wine, combining the fresh acidity of sangiovese with the richness of primitivo in a style which works well with a wide range of foods.

A modest, inexpensive Spanish red from the country's most famous grape. This is smooth, fruity and more mellow than usual with a touch of cedar. Everything about Bodegas Príncipe de Viana is vast. Owners of over 400 hectares of vines in Navarra, they control a further 500 hectares, but the winemaking approach is sensitive and modest, aiming always for clean, balanced flavours and offering superb value for money.

This is a lovely, fruit-forward, bright pinot from California. With grapes sourced from the cooler delta AVA of Clarksburg it has a cherry-scented, vibrant crisp style.

A lighter-style Côtes-du-Rhône thanks to the vintage, and one that is drinking very well with lots of juicy accessibility and balance. Red-berry fruits and red-cherry notes combine with subtle black pepper spice.