A charm filled Rioja that makes lovely easy drinking. Hand harvested to select only the ripest Tempranillo grapes from the old vines, the 2020 is complex and elegant with luscious, subtle spice notes and velvety smooth tannins. Bursting with high-spirited summer berries and fragrant vanilla oak, and tinged with the charisma of ripe strawberries for a tantalisingly delicious mouthful. You’ll enjoy the Rioja most when paired with authentic tapas, grilled lamb or rabbit stew.

As Robert Parker says, “Spain leads the world for sensational wine bargains of character and soul”, none more so than its mature reds. Nowhere else produces mellow, barrel-aged wines of such remarkable quality and price. Take Palacio del Conde – a gorgeously complex, oaky 2015 from Valencia. Part of this region is close to the coast, while the more southerly part is inland, up in the hills, and dry. It’s there that winemaker Marta Martínez selects the finest, hand harvested – from 50 year old vines – Tempranillo grapes for this Gran Reserva, then ages the wine for three years in oak barrels. A wonderfully fragrant, silky red with mature redcurrant and strawberry fruit and a rich, toasty character. Sublime with roast lamb or tapas. Its three recent Gold wins show its drinking beautifully now.

Lovely fresh Riesling from the pioneering Seifried family estate, who set up in the super-sunny coastal region of Nelson in 1973 (way before most of Marlborough next door). In the 1970s Hermann Seifried, then a fresh-faced Austrian wine nut seeking adventure, travelled to New Zealand. It was a final stop-off on a world tour, mainly to see where the All Blacks came from. There he fell in love with a local primary school teacher, Agnes, and has never left. In 1973 the couple realised their shared dream – to plant a vineyard – and have since racked up a host of awards. Today their three children, Chris, Heidi and Anna, help run the property in Nelson – a region with over 2,400 hours of sunshine, it's the sunniest in New Zealand.

One of the greats, Mumm Champagne is the perfect choice when celebrating. Combining Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay together has created a delicious Champagne with rich bubbles and scents of fresh fruit and caramel.

Michael Fragos grew up in McLaren Vale, and spent 14 years at Tatachilla before taking over at Chapel Hill in 2004. A three-time ‘Bushing King’, Michael has also been named best winemaker on the planet! James Halliday notes that his “wine quality is unfailingly excellent” . This one has an expressive nose of blackcurrant, bay leaf cigar box and chocolate. The palate is medium to full-bodied, beautifully structured, with a powerful complexity, fine-grained tannins, velvety texture and long, long finish.

Bold blackberry fruit and spice suggest classic McLaren Vale Shiraz, while rare depth and complexity reflect premium, old vine fruit. A class act, this moreish red is ready to be enjoyed right now – ideally with a juicy rump steak, lamb cutlets, pork sausages or hearty moussaka.

Argentine Malbec doesn't get much finer than this. From a Bordeaux wine family, Hervé came to South America to look for a vineyard and fell in love with old vine Malbec. He not only bought vineyards but also made his home there. Having started in Mendoza, he now has an estate in Patagonia too. He runs his properties like a top Bordeaux château, with impressive barrel cellar and meticulous attention to detail. This hugely impressive cuvée comes from 30 year old Malbec vines grown in Patagonia's Río Negro. Made like a fine claret, the juice was pumped over to extract colour from grape skins during fermentation then aged for 12 months in French oak barriques. Silky with violet and liquorice aromas and dense black fruit, it's perfect with beef.

Traditional open fermentation was employed followed by maturation in French oak barriques for 20 months, prior to bottling. The wine displays a lifted aromatics of black fruits and violets, along with some cedary oak nuances. The concentrated palate has a lovely silky texture, showing chocolate and cassis flavours and a wonderfully long finish.