Out & About October 2017

OA food & drink

top by

tipples

bring on

Hallowe’en is coming and JAMES ALLEN thought it would be fun to see what could be drunk while waiting for the trick or treaters to knock on the door. Here are a few appropriate suggestions – wines made to keep body and soul together

the boos

Chronic Cellars Purple Paradise Another wine to sustain body and soul. This Paso Robles Zinfandel Blend has a label to bring out the Hallowe’en spirit. As the saying goes, Life is a gamble, just roll with it . With three quarters

Bogle Phantom 2013, California This dark rich and massively powerful Californian red blend is definitely a wine to keep the cold out. Winemaker Dana Stemmler has blended hugely fruity

Rex Mundi Cuvée Cathare 2016 Named in memory of the Cathars of Southern France, who were the subject of a gruesome medieval crusade (which wiped them out by the way). Sinfully delicious Rex Mundi

is adored by hundreds of fans of southern French reds, thanks to its wickedly moreish, silky black fruit. And if you covet that darkly- addictive drop, you’ll sell your soul for this masterpiece from century old vines. Deep, dark and dangerously easy to drink, Rex Mundi Special Edition is a beguiling black beauty. The grapes are Grenache and Carignan, but balanced and terrifically long. Slips down nicely on its own, or with your finest game dishes. Laithwaites, Theale, £15.99 Casillero del Diablo, Shiraz, 2016 Well I couldn’t do Hallowe’en wines without mentioning this one. This producer is sponsor, appropriately enough, of Manchester United, ‘The Red Devils’. Good-value drinking.

potent black grapes to create this dense chocolaty rich and very smooth red. It’s a bit of a monster of wine and is tamed with spiced meats and rich sauces. The Naked Grape, Hungerford, £18.99

of the wine Zinfandel and the rest a blend of Syrah, Petit Sirah and Grenache, it’s a great blend and well worth a punt. A rich dark colour is vanilla and spice and flavour to match. Enjoy with richly flavoured meat dishes from burgers and steaks to beef and game stews. Majestic, Newbury, £17.99 poured from the bottle, bursting with aromas of

S C Pannell Dead End Tempranillo

A Mclaren Vale version of the classic Rioja grape. The wine is highly perfumed, vibrant and complex with sweet black cherries and hints of exotic spice. It is a plush, medium bodied but juicy wine with leafy dusty tannins on the finish. This is a perfect wine for those dark, chilly autumnal evenings. Inn at Home, Newbury £21.95

they come from the very oldest vines – some more than 100 years in age – and from the finest slate soils of Maury in the Roussillon. As you might imagine yields are minute, which accounts for the depth of colour and intensity of flavour. This is a powerful red, beautifully

Widely available at around £8 per bottle

23