Don’t say it too loudly but, fingers crossed, we may now be in the long-awaited summer! Let’s make the most of it while we can.

We have the perfect bottles to turn your backyard barbecue into a gourmet affair!

This sizzling selection of reds have been picked by the team to pair with some tasty flame-grilled treats.

Ethan, Rachel & Bill have all made their choices, coincidentally all glorious blends of indigenous grapes.

Ethan’s Pick: 2022 Domaine Burle Est Ce-Que

Grenache, Syrah, Caladoc, Marselan | Vins de Pays, France

If you scratch the surface of Gigondas and deviate from the well-trodden path, you will be sure to stumble across brothers Damien & Florent Burle. Two generational winemakers that are masters of their craft, producing Gigondas of the highest quality using whole bunch press with no destemming. The wines are savoury, yet lush, and deliver a welcome injection of spice.

From vines to the south, just a shake of a lamb’s tail away from the appellation of Gigondas’ - therefore free from all the restrictions that come with it - the brothers planted Grenache, Marselan, and Caladoc. We are very glad that they did!

Bottled simply as “Vin de Pays”, this delivers some serious barbecue bang for your buck.

Tasting Note & Food Pairing: This is wine with gusto, guts and lashings of dark fruit. Throw in some wild herbs for good measure and you have got yourself the perfect wine for a garlic encrusted butterflied leg of lamb. Glorious.

Rachel’s Pick: 2020 Vina Padre

Rufete, Garnacha, Aragones, Calabres (plus others) | Salamanca, Spain

"A wine of our fathers" is how it's described by the team behind Vina Padre. Built on generations of knowledge and understanding, this wine is a hidden gem on our shelves.

This vintage flaunts a blend of Rufete from the Sierra de Salamanca, Garnacha from the Gredos Mountains, and additional heritage varietals - including several white grapes - all cultivated from small plots with vines reaching at least 80 years of age.

Handpicked and fermented with wild yeasts in open buckets and clay amphorae, the timelessness of this exquisite combination is quite a sight to behold. Finally, it is left to mature in a blend of barrels and concrete vats for a period of five months.

Tasting Note & Food Pairing: The wine has a fleshy, juicy body, accompanied by strong tannins and texture. Its flavours are authentic, with a true sense of rustic, mountainous viticulture. Wild herbs and hedgerow fruit dominate the palate, with a sweet scent of bacon rind smokiness lingering on the finish. Pair alongside patatas bravas and chargrilled vegetables.

Bill’s Pick: 2020 Mouchao Dom Rafael Tinto

Aragonêz, Trincadeira, Castelão, Alicante Bouschet | Alentejo, Portugal

Situated in the heartlands of Portugal’s Alentejo region, Mouchao has had a challenging, yet colourful, history steeped in politics and socio-economic change. However, in the current modern age, they are producing wines of stature that mesmerise the mind.

The Dom Rafael Red is a perfect exponent of their enduring nature. As Bill discovered on his visit to the winery last September!

The hand-selected bunches are trodden twice daily prior to fermentation, which lasts 4-6 days. This young wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in Autumn in large wooden barrels with capacities of 5,000L and a blend of new and used barrels (up to 25%). After filtration in mind-winter, it is aged undisturbed for 12-15 months. Once bottled the wine is given an additional 6-9 months before release.

Tasting Note & Food Pairing: Ripe and rich red and black fruits with dark chocolate layered through warming spice, Full-bodied, yet oh so soft thanks to its velvety texture. Try it alongside Iberico pork, red cabbage slaw, marinaded in oregano, rosemary and extra virgin olive oil.