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12 best world wines
Sound like a connoisseur with our pick of wines from unlikely sources
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It used to be simple: red wine from France, white wine from Germany. Then the New World started bustling in and before you knew it California, Australia and New Zealand were producing great wines with Chile and South Africa not far behind.
Nowadays, it may be difficult to find a country that doesn't make wine.
So we've scoured the cellars and the lists to find wines from unlikely sources that are available to British consumers
It's been a fascinating and rewarding voyage of discovery that takes in India, China, Lebanon, Israel, Turkey, Brazil, Canada, Greece, Armenia and even Belgium. All you need is a glass.
Chateau Ksara Merwah 2017 75cl, 12.5%: £13.92, Winebuyers
We know that Lebanon produces great red wine but here’s a new and exciting white with a pedigree that stretches back to the Phoenicians.
The indigenous merwah grape has been cultivated in Lebanon for thousands of years but has only been used in blends before. Now Ksara has produced an unoaked white made purely from merwah grapes.
Dry, vibrant and fresh, it’s a superb aperitif or a wonderful accompaniment to a plate of mezze.
Changyu Noble Dragon Riesling 75cl, 13%: £10, Sainsbury’s
Despite it being the fifth largest wine-producing country in the world (ahead of Argentina, Chile and Australia) not much Chinese wine has made it over to the UK mainly because most of a strong domestic demand.
But now Sainsbury’s is offering a riesling from one of the countries oldest wineries based at Yantai in the Shadong wine region.
A moderate, almost Rhine-like climate has produced a fresh and floral riesling with attractive soft fruit and citrus flavours.
Enjoy it with your next Chinese meal.
Stratus Cabernet Franc 2015 75cl, 13.5%: £22.80, Vinvm
From Canada’s Niagra-on-the-Lake wine area comes a rich red helmed by French winemaker Jean-Laurent Groux who learnt his craft in the vineyards of Burgundy and Bordeaux.
They claim it’s a wine made with “minimal handling but maximum patience” and the result is a distinctive cabernet franc with ripe and soft black fruit flavours and striking tannins.
If you have the patience, it might be best to open this in the new year or even wait a few more years to experience the full depth of flavour.
Chateau Musar 2003 75cl, 14%: £27.99, Ocado
An absolute classic from Lebanon.
They’ve been producing wine in the Bekaa Valley since Old Testament times, but its Gaston Hochar and his son Serge who put modern Lebanese wine on the map producing red wines that blended consault, carignan and caberernet sauvignon grapes and sent wine connoisseurs into raptures.
With this 2003 vintage expect layer upon layer of exotic fruits and spices and a whole mouthful of rich, warm and comforting flavours.
Soul Tree Nasik Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2017 75cl, 13%: £9.30, Tanners Wines
What goes well with a curry? Well, why not try some Indian wine.
Launched in 2011 when a group of wine-loving enthusiasts got together with wine growers from India’s Nasik Valley, Soul Tree has quickly developed into an award-winning winery.
Situated on India’s west coast some 100 miles north-east of Mumbai the area enjoys warm days and cool winter nights, resulting in wines such as this sauvignon blanc with its crisp, green fruit flavours and hints of herbs and spice.
M&S Recanati Carignan Petite Sirah 2014 75cl, 13.5%: £11, M&S
M&S winemaker Jeneve Williams discovered this Israeli red during travels around the eastern Mediterranean.
Made from grapes grown on the Judean Hills, the aim of the Recanati winery is to produce wines that best express the local terroir. And this blend of carignan and petit sirah grapes does just that with lashings of juicy blueberry and blackcurrant flavours and soft tannins.
Enjoy it with traditional roast beef or something a little more Mediterranean such as lamb tagine.
Tsantali Organic Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 75cl, 13.5%: £9.99, Ocado
If your only experience of Greek wine is a resinous retsina, then give this organic cabernet sauvignon from the Halkidiki peninsula in northern Greece a try.
Aged for 12 months in French oak, it has lashings of berry and hedgerow flavours and a long and pleasing finish.
One to enjoy with a a meaty moussaka or some ripe Greek cheese.
Miolo Tannat 2012 75cl, 13.5%: £11.40, Vinvm
Mix Italian know-how and expertise with some Brazilian flair and pzazz and you get Miolo Tannat, a ruby red wine made from Brazil’s tannat grape.
Guiseppe Miolo arrived in Brazil from Italy in 1897 and began planting vines in what became known as the Vale dos Vinhedos or Valley of the Vineyards in the Gaucho Highlands in southern Brazil.
Now run by the fourth generation of the family they produce this smooth and rounded red wine with its velvet tannins and lingering silky finish.
Fratelli Maharashtra Sangiovese 2015 75cl, 12.5%: £11.85, Wine Buyers
Three sets of brothers from Italy (hence the “Fratelli”) and India have combined to produce wines Indian wines in the Italian tradition in the south-west Indian region of Solapur.
With the help of Italian master winemaker Piero Masi and growing condition which mirror the Tuscany terroir they’ve been able to produce a red wine that’s fruity and wholesome enough to stand comparison with its continental counterparts.
It’s the perfect accompaniment for a lamb biriyani.
M&S Anfora Trio 2016 75cl, 14%: £9, M&S
Turkey looks as if it was the in holiday destination of 2018 and if this red is anything to go by then its wines are on the up, too.
A blend of shiraz, cabernet sauvignon and the local kalecik karasi grapes, it’s a beautifully smooth unoaked red with bucketloads of red and soft fruit flavours and long and lingering finish. And at under £10 it’s a steal.
Enjoy with beef, lamb or venison or some mature cheddar.
Wijnkasteel Genoels-Elderen Chardonnay Blauw 2015 75cl, 12.5%: £16.80, Genesis Wines
A Belgian wine? Who knew?
Well presumably the Belgians did which is why this oaked chardonnay from the Genoels-Elderen Wijnkasteel (“wine castle”) in the south-eastern province of Limburg is gaining in popularity.
Layers of marl and loam and an equable climate help to produce chardonnay grapes in a vineyard that’s free of herbicides and artificial fertilisers. The result is a beautifully buttery wine with orchard and peachy hints and a smooth, long-lasting finish.
Enjoy it with salmon or pork.
Zorah Karasi Areni Noir 2015 75cl, 13.5%: £23.60, Slurp
From vineyards nestled in the shadow of Noah and his Ark’s final resting place, Mount Ararat, comes a full-bodied Armenian red wine that claims an almost equally long pedigree.
They were producing wine in the caves in nearby Areni more than 6,000 years ago and it’s the indigenous areni noir grape which gives this complex but elegant wine its rich soft fruit aromas with hints of herbs and spice.
The Verdict: Best world wines
What's great about finding new wines is the use they make of homegrown grape varieties.
From Armenia's lush Zorah Karasi with its areni noir to Turkey's fruity and smooth Anfora Trio with its kalecik karasi and Brazil's ruby red Miolo Tannat, each brings its own distinctive terroir and flavour.
Elsewhere, Continental wine expertise has been exported to countries such as Canada, India and Brazil to produce wines that are similar to their more well-known and often more expensive counterparts, but with a little local twist.
Best buy and a great discovery is the wonderfully refreshing and vibrant Lebanese white Chateau Ksara Merwah made from the indigenous merwah grape.
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