French wine can be a little intimidating and you could be forgiven for thinking you need an intimate knowledge of the “terroir”, the region, the chateau, the winemaker or the grapes themselves before even reaching for a corkscrew.
Chris Cassell, owner of Must and Lees wine shop and tasting room in Islington, North London, understands why.
“The majority of French wines are named after the region where the grapes are grown,” he explains, “and therefore the name of the grape, or grapes, which make the wine aren’t always mentioned on the bottle, so consumers are expected to know all of that just from the association with place.”
That’s why Cassell advises that when you come across a wine you like, note the label to inform future purchases and increase your knowledge of regionality and taste expectation.
And don’t always be drawn to the more user-friendly New World reds because drinkers in the UK are well placed to explore French wine with confidence.
“There are far fewer bad French red wines in the UK than the country they’re made in,” reveals Cassell. “That’s because they’ve usually gone through more filters from importers, distributors, retailers etc and with that in mind, it’s rare you’ll get a wine you won’t drink, perhaps just not to your preference.
“The red wines of Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhône Valley dominate the market when looking at premium to luxury red wines, but you’ll find all quality levels across all regions of France.”
So, with this advice ringing in our ears, we spoke to buyers and connoisseurs and set out on a journey of discovery through the world of Le Vin Rouge, taking in the high-profile French regions, as well as some of the lesser-known locations, which are all turning out really good reds.
Best French red wines at a glance
- Best overall: Léon Perdigal Lirac 2021 - £12.99, Majestic
- Best for winter warming: Chateau La Diligente Puisseguin Saint-Emilion 2018 - £16.99, Virgin Wines
- Best for pairing with vegetarian food: ASDA Extra Special Cóte De Beaune Villages - £17, Asda
- Best for the Xmas table: Sainsbury's Gamay, Taste the Difference 75cl - £9, Sainsbury’s
- Best for easy evening drinking: Château Capendu La Comelle Corbières - £8.99, Waitrose
- Best for pairing with food: M. Chapoutier 'Belleruche' Côtes du Rhône 2020/21 - £12.99, Majestic
- Best value for money: Calmel & Joseph Organic Pinot Noir - £12,99, Waitrose
- Best entry-level French red: Fete Bordeaux Merlot 75cl - £7.25, Sainsbury's
- Best for BBQs: Pigmentum Malbec, Cahors Georges Vigouroux - £12.91, Great Wine
- Best for the cheese board: M&S Collection Margaux 75cl - £23, Ocado
Léon Perdigal Lirac
Best: overall and as a Châteauneuf alternative
ABV: 14.5. per cent
Okay, so you don’t have to be really into wine to be aware of the reputation (and price) of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but just over the Rhône river is a region of excellent French red wines that are more modestly priced.
A blend of Grenache and Syrah, this wine has a delicious, juicy, red forest fruit profile and is rich and silky. While opening your wallet for a bottle from Châteauneuf-du-Pape may give you the truest experience of the Grenache grape, this is a terrific example of what a skilled winemaker can do with the same fruit, while ensuring your money goes a little further.
The bold and spicy nature means that you can bring it to the table with a whole host of meat dishes but we’ve found that if you’ve been looking for a pairing for a Mexican dish (yup, that’s right,) then you have just found the perfect partner.
Buy now £12.99, Majestic
Chateau La Diligente Puisseguin Saint-Emilion
Best for: winter warming
ABV: 14.5 per cent
Wines from the Bordeaux region are broadly broken down into left and right bank, with the latter relying heavily on Merlot, usually blended with a smaller amount of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. That is the case with this Puisseguin Saint-Émilion, which often lives in the shadow of its much-heralded neighbour (Saint-Émilion) but we’re a big fan of this jammy, fruity Bordeaux with its red and black fruity nose, with a delightful warm finish
So, it comes as no surprise that this well-balanced, award-winning bottle of French red wine proudly displays a Silver Medal from the prestigious Concours de Bordeaux 2020.
The time that the wine spends maturing in oak barrels brings cedar, clove and vanilla to the party, which also makes it a great bottle to open, curled up on the sofa in the bleak mid-winter.
It’s versatile too in terms of pairings and works well with beef, duck, a chocolate dessert or a late-night cheese board.
Buy now £16.99, Virgin Wines
Asda Extra Special Cotes de Beaunes Villages
Best for: pairing with vegetarian food
ABV: 13 per cent
‘Sous bois’ is a French phrase that’s particular to Burgundies, it roughly translates as ‘forest floor’ and this wine is a cracking example of those gloriously comforting notes of Autumn.
When we say, ‘forest floor’, think mushrooms, herby organic soil and maybe even truffles if you’re lucky, rather than a mouthful of rotting leaf matter. This will give you some idea of the characteristics of this red wine, which has been a double bronze medal winner this year.
Affordable Burgundy is hard to find, but we believe this soft and round red delivers a genuine glass of Burgundian flavours at a very reasonable price.
We enjoyed a glass of ours with a mushroom risotto to really emphasise the musky sous bois.
Buy now £14.50, Asda
Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Discovery Collection Gamay
Best for: the Xmas table
ABV: 12 per cent
The Gaillac area in south-west France has a long history of wine-making (it was one of the first regions in France to be planted with vines) and this is an excellent example of the Gamay varietal and everything the grape has to offer.
The first thing that hits you from the glass are the fruity aromas of raspberry and red cherry, replicated on the palate along with some lovely, subtle spice notes.
Light in both body and colour, the red wine makes an easy pairing with a range of dishes but we would certainly recommend, with Christmas on the horizon, that you give this wine a place on the table for the big day as it marries wonderfully with roast turkey, herbs and cranberry and herbs. And if there’s any left, it will also work wonders with the cheeseboard later in the day.
Buy now £7.50, Sainsbury’s
Chateau Capendu "La Comelle"
Best for: easy evening drinking
ABV: 14 per cent
This is a full-bodied, French red wine blend of Carignan and Grenache Noir and Syrah and with grapes like these, so much depends on the personality of the wine maker and the terroir. The bottle comes from the winery of Paul Mas, whose son Jean Paul is now largely responsible for the resurgence in popularity of wines from the Languedoc region earning him the nickname of the “wine wizard”.
And this certainly comes through in the wine as it has an earthiness and a rustic quality in keeping with Mas’s philosophy of “rural luxury”, while also allowing you to experience the red and black fruit flavours, a touch of vanilla and notes of spice. It’s a flexible wine too when it comes to complimenting food, but play to the wine’s rustic strengths with dishes like slow-roasted brisket or even a chicken casserole
Buy now £8.99, Waitrose
Michel Chapoutier ‘Belleruche’ Côtes du Rhône
Best for: pairing with food
ABV: 14.5 per cent
Originally, Grenache was not a French grape, but winemakers in the country embraced it and began cleverly blending it to make some stand out wines and this is a very good example of a top notch Côtes du Rhône from one of the biggest winemakers in the region. The skilful blend of Grenache and Syrah, brings the fruit front and centre with black cherries and a hint of cinnamon, while the Syrah sprinkles a bit of pepper in there. Again, because of its medium body you can pair this red wine with anything from sausage and mash to sirloin with a pepper sauce, but we enjoyed the wine with a Saturday night charcuterie platter. Delicious.
Buy now £12.99, Majestic
Calmel & Joseph Organic Pinot Noir
Best for: value for money
ABV: 12.5 per cent
Calmel and Joseph are a reliable producer in the south of France and opening this bottling of Pinot Noir will bring back memories of summer, even if you’re drinking in the dark days of February.
French Pinot Noirs are renowned for being elegant and complex but they’re also renowned for being expensive, which is why we love the price point of this bottle, which still does everything you want from a wine made from the grape. It’s full of refreshing strawberry fruits and smokiness and all that comes with nice acidity and smooth vanilla notes too.
However, it’s the earthy, smoky subtlety of this red wine that means it’s well-matched with bistro-style dishes.
Buy now £12.99, Waitrose
Fête Des Flaveurs Bordeaux
Best for: entry level French red
ABV: 13 per cent
Merlot is Bordeaux’s flagship grape and this bottle’s own label flags the mouth-watering plummy profile of the wine within and the chocolatey finish that makes it a real crowd-pleaser, but there’s also some spice in there to make this a good choice for colder days. There’s a nice counterbalance in the blend between the softer Merlot and the Cabernet Sauvignon, which is more structured and tannic but overall this is a well-rounded red, which makes it a good choice if you’re beginning to explore French red wines for the first time and the price does a lot to help too.
In terms of food pairings, Merlot is traditionally excellent with roasted meat dishes and this bottle is no exception and we found it was the perfect accompaniment to slow-roasted, Sunday lamb.
Buy now £7.25, Sainsbury's
Pigmentum Malbec
Best for: BBQs
ABV: 13.5 per cent
Southern French red wines are excellent partners with smoky grilled foods and just because the evenings are drawing in doesn’t mean you have to retire the tongs for the time being. Winter barbecuing is an absolute delight (for a start you’ve got a ready-made heat source to huddle around) and so is this rich Malbec that’s proof that the grape isn’t purely the preserve of South America.
This Malbec calls South West France home and opening it up will release the smell of summer with raspberry, blackcurrant and blackberry all vying for your attention. Thankfully, this is held together by spicy, savoury tannins and the structure to stand up to the smokiness that comes with every barbecue. As for what to serve it with? Basically, whatever’s coming off the grill.
Buy now £15.50, Great Wine
M&S Collection Margaux
Best for: the cheese board
ABV: 14 per cent
We covered Bordeaux earlier, so it’s only fair to finish with a bottle too. This one originates from the much-revered left bank of the River Garonne, renowned for its terroir and soil where the vines have to work harder to find water and so produce bolder fruit flavours and robust tannins. The Margaux region is well known and this oak barrel-aged red wine from the M&S Collection, which blends Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
This makes for a complex quaff in the glass and is a very good introduction to the black fruit character of Left Bank Bordeaux and we found that it went down really well with a cheese board, particularly harder cheeses.
Buy now £23.00, Ocado
Verdict
We uncorked, unscrewed, smelled, glugged and slurped our way through a host of excellent wines, but, it was the red that bore the name of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape estate’s original Cellar Master, that really stood out.
According to wine lore, the man himself had a reputation for a commitment to quality, and this is celebrated in the Léon Perdigal Cotes du Rhône, which is a belter of a bottle, with the subtle Grenache harmoniously meeting the more structured Syrah on the palate.
The forest fruits and spicy tones made for silky supping and we found it was particularly suited to be drunk with big meaty dishes. Representing great value for money, we would have no hesitation serving this up to guests or making it a Saturday treat you can look forward to all week.
