Red wine recommendations?

[ponyclub1234]

Looking for a nice bottle of red for over Christmas. I normally only get the £5 bottle of wolf blass for the wkd! Want to treat myself to a more expensive one but not too indulgent! £20 tops really. Any recommendations??

Tim Adams Shiraz from Tesco?

If you like Wolf Blass then they have a range of wines further up the price/quality ladder beyond the £5 supermarket special which might be worth exploring. The Black Label is phenomenal, but is northwards of £50 a bottle these days, but lines like their Eaglehawk might work.

A similar idea would be to look through the Penfolds range; I think the Max's red is about £20 a bottle from Majestic.

If you want something more Old World traditional, both Aldi and Lidl have some crackers in their seasonal/Christmas ranges. From Aldi the Winemaster's Lot Châteauneuf-du-Pape at £19.99 should be good as will any of the Specially Selected reds from southern France - particularly the Rasteau.

Aldi do an Amarone for £19.99 as well, but Lidl's equivalent tastes exactly the same for a fiver less. In general Lidl's prices this year seem to be slightly less optimistic than Aldi's (which I've noticed is already starting to discount some of them). In particular, at Lidl I'd point you towards two Portuguese ones in the sub £8 range: the Entre Quintas and the Torre de Ferro which could easily sell at double the price if they came from France.

Château neuf du Pape is always a safe go to for a lovely red in that price range.

Bucks Fizz
Festive gin

Honestly, I think that the vast bulk of wines in that price range from the supermarket/Majstic etc would be very nice.

Having said that, if you like wolf blass then I think it's safe to say you prefer a heavier, new world wine. In which case I'd stick with Australian/South African red wine for Christmas. I'd go with a merlot or a cabernet sauvignon or a shiraz (or a blend) in that grouping. A pinotage COULD be good for you but they vary a lot and some are much lighter than others.

Chocolate Block is a famous South African blend that people seem to love. I do like it but am never certain it's worth £20 myself!

If it was me, and I usually drank Wolf Blas, I think if I had £20 I'd rather spend it on 2 bottles of around £10 each. Wolf Blas does a higher end Shiraz at around £9 I think which you could try.

Aldi or Lidl websites list their wines with varieties & gradings attached. You can decide what you like before shopping. Their wines are so much better value than the branded varieties. Aldi wines can be home delivered as well.

Jim Porter 'The Poacher' is on offer in Waitrose for £20 and is v nice for Christmas and would go with turkey well.