I’M having some friends over for a Greek night soon and my dilemma is which wines to serve.
The traditional Greek wine, retsina, is a very individual character, created by the addition of pine resin, which gives it a distinctive nose and dry, citrus-y flavour – often an acquired taste.
Greek food can be very rich, with the creamy flavours and textures of hummus, taramasalata and haloumi cheese, so I am choosing a dryish, zesty white wine to accompany these, Cantina Breganze 2010 Pinot Grigio, £5.99 when you buy two at Majestic.
For the main dish, traditional moussaka, a lighter red is required, and I’m going for a pinot noir – Louis Latour 2008 Bourgogne Pinot Noir (£8.99 when you buy two bottles) – which is delicate and balanced with flavours of raspberries and blackberries.
In terms of offers, Majestic has some great spring promotions, including Undurraga Brut NV sparkling wine from Chile at just £4.99 (from £9.99). This is a very acceptable sparkler, fresh and dry, ideal as an aperitif.
Marlborough Hills Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand is down to £4.99 (from £7.49) when you buy two – crisp and citrus-y, another good match for my Greek starters!
And if you’re looking for champagne, Majestic has Jacquart Brut Tradition NV at £15.
On the red side, Durius Natural Reserve Tempranillo 2006, from Spain, is £4.99 (from £6.24) when you buy any two Spanish wines; the reliable Oxford Landing Cabernet Shiraz 2010 Yalumba, Australia, is £4.99 (from £6.99), full of red cherry and spicy flavours; and Rioja Reserva Vendimia Seleccionada 2005 Muriel is £5.99 when you buy any two Spanish wines.
For rosé, I think Neblina Rose 2010, Central Valley, Chile, is a good choice – just £4.49 (from £5.99) when you buy two, with a deep pinky red colour and lots of intense fruit flavours.
