A WELCOME SOUTH AFRICAN IN AUSTRIA

While all countries in Europe are extremely parochial about their own wine [and retail shelves reflect this] sometimes outside help is required. Austria is not renowned for red wines so I was more than willing to buy a bottle of this to try.
I wasn't expecting much for the price but once again Lidl amazed me. I love Pinotage, and while it's not to everyone's taste, if you love grungy, feral, earthy reds this may just be the best bargain in Europe. It has plenty of cellar potential so just grab a bottle to start with. Taste it over three days and see how it grabs you. Personally I'd rate it at well above 5/5 but I have to recognise it really isn't to everyone's taste.



VREDEBOSCH 2017 PINOTAGE
GRAPE VARIETY: Pinotage
REGION: Western Cape, South Africa
A/V: 14.5% 
PRICE: 2.49 euro 
FROM: Lidl, Austria
RATING: 4.5/5 from me

Sainsbury's "Taste The Difference" Wild Valley Fairtrade 2016 Chenin Blanc

This one's from Wellington in South Africa. While I'm a huge fan of SA efforts with this variety, I just felt this one fell a bit short of my expectations. It's a very pleasant dry white that no one will take offence to. I'm just being picky looking for something a bit more definitive.

3.5/5 rating from me 
£6.00  from Sainsbury's

I wonder where these two come from?

Retailers all around the world have wines labelled for them. They make up brand names or simply use their own name. Which means the same wine could conceivably be on the market under many different labels. In the UK they've gone one step further:No brand and no indication of who it was made for.
But there is absolutely no mistaking their country of origin.
The Pinotage is unmistakeably South African with that earthy feral character displayed by this hybrid variety. If you like your reds squeaky clean this is to be avoided. Otherwise I recommend a try. It has a bit of grunt at 14% a/v and at just £3.89 at Lidl scores 4/5 from me
The Pinot Grigio has a little more palate weight than usual and a dash of sweetness. It's not particularly exciting but I could see it being a real crowd pleaser. £4 at Tesco scores 3.5/5 from me

TWO "BETTER BE QUICK" £3.99 BARGAIN CLEARANCE WINES FROM LIDL

I  spotted these two during today's grocery shop. I've got the boxes I want and I have no idea how much they have left but both were really good value at their £6 original asking price. Both have a silly geographical labelling theme and are imported and bottled for Off-Piste wines. I hope they're not too piste off with what's happened to their wines:

LA MERIDIONALE GRENACHE MOURVEDRE TANNAT £3.99

750ml Western Cape South Africa 14% a/v

"LM wines are inspired by the French settlers who arrived in the Western Cape of South Africa in the 17th century" Really? I'd be far more interested in knowing what percentage there was of each grape as an explanation for the final result. It's a surprisingly soft wine with plenty of complex spice. Great drinking now and has enough acid to warrant a place in the cellar at this price. 4/5

AXIS 2015 CLARE VALLEY RIESLING 

  750ml Clare Valley Australia 12% a/v £3.99

"Australia's Clare Valley lies on an axis of 274 degrees from Botany Bay where the first European settlers arrived in the 1700s" That's all kind of true but if you want to be really accurate they rejected Botany Bay and settled in Port Jackson [Sydney] in 1788. My goodness, almost the 1800s!

And the wine? It's past its first flush of youth and has developed a slightly cloying palate weight. It's still dry with zesty fruit zing but for me this is either drink now with spicy food or cellar for 5-10 years when it should develop into a toasty gem.

4.5/5