Merlot Recommendationage

[mattdaniels]

A while back I had a glass of Merlot which was very nice. Being an avid white wine fan, particularly Sancerre and Sauvingnon Blanc, I usually find red wines very "thumpy" and heavy, but the Merlot was quite light. I have no idea what it was or where it came from. But I'm interested in trying some more. So what do the PH wine experts recommend as a nice bottle of Merlot to try? Looking for something as a drinker on its own not with any particular food, for about £10 a bottle.

[JABB]

Not Merlot, but if you want a light Red, try cotes du rhone. Some of the cheaper bottles / own branded bottles are really light and at £5 ish a bottle

[tgr]

beaujolais. not merlot, but light and a useful entry into red wine for someone used to whites

[LooneyTunes]

Personally not a big merlot fan (tend to find the current trend towards excessive fruit puts me off) but, around that price point, the Chileans are probably still the folk to turn to. If I were you, I'd avoid the wine "brands" and drop by a decent independent wine merchant to see what they can steer you towards.

For lighter reds, Beaujolais would get my vote. Not just due to the lightness, but because there are many cracking wines produced there, especially when you start getting to the Villages level.

Some Cote du Rhone might fit the bill, but Syrah/Shiraz can be too tannic for some tastes, especially without bottle age.

[rsv gone!]

Is the answer to every PH question the MX5?

http://www.mx5-mazda.co.uk/merlot.htm

[cslwannabe]

Louis Jadot do a couple of reasonably priced ones which might appeal - Beaujolais Villages, Cotes de Beaune etc. Also try some Fleurie - Waitrose etc sell some reasonably priced ones.

When I was in France I discovered red Sancerre - sounds like it would be ideal for you but unfortunately its pretty difficult to find over here...

[SVX]

I'd recommend a decent South African pinotage as a good merlot alternative. But if you are after very light then a New Zealand Pinot Noir is also a decent steer.

[alfa pint]

JABB said:

Not Merlot, but if you want a light Red, try cotes du rhone. Some of the cheaper bottles / own branded bottles are really light and at £5 ish a bottle

The problem with Cotes du Rhones is that it's a blend of 3 grapes and there's no rules on the proportion of the mix. So some of them can be light and fruity and others more tannic and heavy.

Light reds include pinot noir, from anywhere, but the NZ one in particular is very light and very lovely, but not always cheap ~ £8 a bottle. US/Oz/Chilean merlot is pretty easy going, but the French stuff tends to be blended with other grapes and has a bit more weight.

Bardolino from Italy is a ridiculously easy to drink starter red, and it's where I cut my teeth when I was making the transition from white to red wine. Barbera D'asti from Italy is in a similar vein and neither of them are expensive.

The French make some absolutely lovely light reds from the Gamay grape, whether it's beaujolais, broilly, fleurie, etc and they're not ridiculously expensive. beaujolais will always be cheaper than the slightly better quality ones like broilly though.

[Davey S2]

Try Morgon, Brouilly, and Fleurie for nice light red beaujolais.

Georges Duboeuf is a good producer for under a tenner and widely available in supermarkets, Majestic etc.

[Mobile Chicane]

One of my favourite light reds is Georges Duboeuf Chiroubles. It's a Beaujolais (hence made from the Gamay grape), but without the 'chemistry set' taste some of these wines have.

Currently on offer at Waitrose for £7.99 £7.49, normally £9.99. Snap this up.

ETA: I'd got the price wrong - now even more of a steal.

Edited by Mobile Chicane on Monday 20th February 18:13

[Cheese Mechanic]

There are 2 wines that come to mind that I'd recomend

Zalze, a South african blend of Shiraz, Viognier and Mourvedre. Waitrose have it, and recently it was on promo at 5.99.

Unsure if it still is, but an absolute steal at that price.

The other has been mentioned I think...

Louis Jadot, Combe Aux Jacques , Beaujolais Villages.

Excellent stuff, Waitros, Co-op and I think Tesco . Around £9.50 I think.

[tuffer]

cslwannabe said:

Louis Jadot do a couple of reasonably priced ones which might appeal - Beaujolais Villages, Cotes de Beaune etc. Also try some Fleurie - Waitrose etc sell some reasonably priced ones.

When I was in France I discovered red Sancerre - sounds like it would be ideal for you but unfortunately its pretty difficult to find over here...

Never had a bad bottle from the Louis Jadot stable, picked up some lovely Pinot Noir from Heathrow the other day, about £20 a bottle.

[cslwannabe]

(Apologies to the OP for digressing)

Yes tuffer, me too. I hadn't actually realised until recently that Louis Jadot are fairly upmarket from a price point of view in that a lot of their wine is £30 upwards a bottle, but I've tried a few of their lower end wines and never been disappointed.

Digressing further, last year I bought some Australian Pinot Noir - DB (De Bortoli), from Majestic for around £7-8 a bottle and it was excellent. I managed to track some more down at Christmas so if you have a Majestic near you it might be worth a try (admittedly at the lower end of the Pinot Noir price range).

[pwd95]

Doesn't have to be Merlot, just very well & carefully produced....

http://www.vi-vino.co.uk/spanishwinestore/Red-Wine...

Visited this vinyard.... Toni produces some stunning wines.... really.
http://www.vi-vino.co.uk/spanishwinestore/Medium-W...


Have a rummage....

http://www.vi-vino.co.uk/spanishwinestore/


Oh & the best White I've ever experienced..........

Again, from Toni Ripoll
http://www.vi-vino.co.uk/spanishwinestore/Full-Bod...

Edited by pwd95 on Tuesday 21st February 23:35

[mattdaniels]

Thanks all for the suggestions. I have a nice shopping list now.