Berry Bros & Rudd, Riesling Kabinett, Mosel, Germany 2013 (£10.25) For all the finest and exquisite branding, the term own-brand is still associated with cheaper supermarket wines, aka the ‘not quite as good’ imitations of the real thing. This despite the fact that, 1: some supermarket own-labels are really quite good, and, 2: the posher stores have recently taken to the idea with a vengeance. Indeed, the poshest wine retailer of the lot, Berry Bros & Rudd, which has always done brisk business with its Good Ordinary and Extra Ordinary Clarets, has expanded its own-label range to 48 wines. I haven’t tasted them all, but I was impressed with the handful I did. This racy, zingy riesling from the fine Mosel estate Selbach-Oster was particularly good value.
The Society’s Exhibition Crozes-Hermitage, France 2013 (£11.99, The Wine Society) Looking through the list of Berry Bros own-labels, it’s clear they’ve gone to some lengths to secure the services of well-respected producers. Not surprising, then, that those producers are prominently featured on the label, not always the case with supermarkets where you have to squint at the fine print on the back label. Also putting the emphasis on the producer are two other own-label ranges: Fortnum & Mason (which features producers such as Piedmont’s GD Vajra and Priorat’s Alvaro Palacios), and the Wine Society, whose own-brand offerings from the northern Rhône include Hermitage from the legendary JL Chave and this peppery syrah from the Maison Nicolas Perrin stable.
LDN Cru Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 (£20, London Cru) Roberson, another smart retailer, took the own-label idea even further in 2013, building its own winery below its London offices, to make its wines from grapes trucked in from around Europe. That a project that could have been a terrible gimmick (the first wines made in London!) actually yielded some nice wines is thanks in no small part to winemaker Gavin Monery. Australian born, but Burgundy-loving, he has a light-touch that unites such disparate wines as the verdant English Bacchus 2014 (£15), the succulent Garnacha 2014 from old vines in Calatayud and the fragrant cassis of the Cabernet from the vines of top Languedoc producer Jeff Coutelou.
Follow David on Twitter @Daveydaibach
