I buy cheap red wine for cooking - my criteria is that it has to be at least palatable if it is to end up in my sauce for meatballs, coq au vin or beef in red wine. So I bought a bottle of Tesco Australian red wine and tasted to make sure okay for cooking. Have to admit it is comparable to the Aussie reds I have paid £7 a bottle for and its only £2.78. I have tried to see if one of the ingredients is antifreeze or similar - but no it just seems to be a good basic blended aussie wine - so if you are interested pop along to Tesco - it's got an orange label and just called Australian Red wine.
PS I have to admit I feel a bit odd recommending Tesco or any other big supermarket or anything that has travelled such a long distance. But I suppose i am not as environmentally friendly as I supposed... I do buy free range chicken by the way!
Suzanne
We must have been thinking along the same wave length! I too bought the 3-litre Aussie red from Tesco yesterday after I realised we had no wine left (a rather shameful thing to admit for a wine columnist). And I have to agree for the equivalent of £2.70ish a bottle this is very good - fruity, a bit of tobacco and chocolate flavours. The taste improve enormously if you squirt the wine into a jug and get some air in before glugging.
If you want more £3 and under bottle bargains find a Co-op. Many good offers on unitil the end of Jan, particularly their Las Moras Argentinian Chardonnay and Malbec. I understand they are flying off the shelves.
When i was in france a couple of years back, i had a wonderful boeuf bugenion, cheakly i asked the waiter what wine the chef used. Turns out it was a Bordeux by Les Petites Caves (12.5%) the thing is that this is sold in a Calais hypermarket Carrefour for 70pence a bottle its gone up to 90pence now but i usualy have 1/2 a dozen bottles around the house as its ace to cook with and you can still drink the last couple of glasses if there is anything left.
I know the chefs say that you should buy the best wine you can afford but this is perfect for what i need it for :)
Well i've just poured a tesco chianti down the sink popped a bit in the bolognase sauce and thought i'd ha.ve a glass with tea, not nice. I usually get a french one it usually £3ish let me have a look............its called Cuvee Prestige a soft fruity red wine and it is.
I got the Tesco Chianti Riserva Selezione Oro online recently, reduced from £7.59 to £4.74 and am quite pleased with it, but I reckon the Aquila Malbec at £3 .32 (from £6.64) is very good value (if you like Malbec ;D )
I have a very strick policy where it comes to wine, I do not pay more than £3 a bottle and consider it a challenge to find the nicest I can in the budget. My current favorites are ALTO PINO, a nice fruity hungarian white and GOOD ITALIAN RED - MERLOT is the current best red, IMO. Both are £2.99 from Morrisons and are always this price so no need to rush for the offers.
I do have a stash of nicer bottles hidden away from when our wine snob friends come round, but even then I only pay £3 for them when they are on offer and hide them til required.
It all tastes the same after the 3rd bottle .....
Helen
Apparantly India is the new new wine region to watch :)
I have been very disappointed with Chianti thus far. For such a well known wine every version I have tried has been awful.
I tend to stick with Shiraz myself - pretty much always a nice drinkable wine and you can get some good deals on it at Dunnes (our version of Tesco).
I worry about you lot.
If you wish to cook, say a caserole, with a good wine:-
Drink a bottle - say of 'Tim Adams' red (you don't cook with white, do you)?
an hour before the preparation.
When the recipe says add the wine, crouch and p*ss in the pot.
Result - the same with your choices - sorry oh! my God here it comes!
8) :P ;D ;D
I usually give a warning before I throw anything so
DUCK
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D