Mid-week tipple: a rich red with an unforgettable name

La Perdrix de l'Année des Bêtes Curieuses, Muscadet sur granit 2014
€14.50 from One Pery Square, Limerick; Jus de Vine, Portmarnock; The Drink Store, Stoneybatter; La Touche, Greystones

I do sometimes wonder about the wisdom of giving a long complicated name to a wine, such as the Partridge of the Year from the Curious Beasts. No, me neither and I have even met the man and tasted this wine with him. Quite rightly he was more concerned about explaining how the granite soil from this unique vineyard in Muscadet produces a marvellous wine with a mouthwatering combination of richness and salty minerality. And that the wine is organic.  I agreed with him about the wine; it is delicious and amazingly cheap given the quality. Still not sure about the name though.

Cornelia Swartland Red 2014
€14.99 from Marks & Spencer

Marks & Spencer has both red and white wines under the Cornelia label. Both are made by Adi Badenhorst, one of the new stars of South African wine, and both come from Swartland, a region that has been growing grapes for a long time, but has become everybody’s favourite in the last year or two. The red is a Southern Rhône-style blend of Shiraz, Cinsault and Mourvèdre. It has lifted fragrant aromas, medium-bodied spicy dark fruits, and a rounded finish. A very nice wine.