For those of you who haven't come across the Wine Gang, they introduce themselves as... "a unique collaboration between five of the UK's most influential wine critics. Our comprehensive assessment of wines for sale in the UK will help you buy smarter and drink better."
The team are made up of:
Olly Smith of BBC1's Saturday Kitchen, Tom Cannavan of wine-pages.com, Anthony Rose of the Independent, Joanna Simon of House & Garden and Tim Atkin MW of the Observer.
More info: http://www.thewinegang.com
And here's what they've been saying about us...
Nakedwines.com is a new-ish online only venture that adds a social media dimension to its business model. It's a friendly well-run website that prides itself on championing the small producer and arranging local tastings. We were impressed by the diversity of their range and noted that their wines tend to be modern, upfront and fruity with a laudable majority number of screwcaps in the line-up. Perhaps a touch pricey in places and not the first port of call to buy wines to lay down, but for wines that offer big fruit, they're worth a look. Delivery is next day if ordered before 5pm www.nakedwines.com
Bottelary (Stellenbosch), South Africa
Dry White (Cork), 14.5% abv
Very nutty aromas. The palate is full of flavour - peachy and nutty with some good lactic notes, depth and long, tapering, richly flavoured finished. Very good, powerful Chardonnay with well-judged oak.
90/100 - £10.99 at Naked Wines
Coastal Region, South Africa
Dry White (Screwcap), 13.5% abv
Fantastic value. We've tasted the 09 vintage and it's stunning, but at this price the 08 is worth every penny. Golden Delicious appley character, touches of pineapple, no oak, fantastic pure fruit and a real benchmark of South African quality. What a good price for a wine with quality fruit and elegance on the finish.
One of this month's Five Best Value Wines
90/100 - £7.99 at Naked Wines
Nelson, New Zealand
Dry White (Screwcap), 13.5% abv
Goosberry-ish niffs. The palate is zingy, refreshingly fruity (citrus and lime) and intense. One that will please a lot of palates with its crisp concentration.
89/100 - £8.99 at Naked Wines
Loire, France
Dry White (Screwcap), 13.5% abv
Aroma is crisp and appley while the palate is more tropical - think mango. It's a fruity Sauvignon Blanc where the acidity is peachy and fleshy rather than zingy and makes a decent fist of it.
88/100 - £10.99 at Naked Wines
Strathbogie Ranges (Victoria), Australia
Dry White (Screwcap), 14.0% abv
Let it be known that we loved this label! Aromas are buttery and nutty, the palate is rich syrupy with some pear-drop character and lots of oak. It's very rich and oaky and the alcohol dominates the finish where the fruit could be more persistent. Butch and hefty, a bit much for us.
87/100 - £13.99 at Naked Wines
South Australia, Australia
Dry White (Screwcap), 14.0% abv
For your money, you're getting loads of peachy flavour, syrupy texture and a fair old dose of alcohol (14%). It's a commercial style, but we can see it going down well with food for a full on bold fruity style of Chardonnay, if that's your thing.
87/100 - £7.99 at Naked Wines
Rìas Baixas, Spain
Dry White (Cork), 12.5% abv
Appley aromatics on the nose. Palate is oddly petillant. Flavours are fresh and crisp, as you'd expect from Albariño, but the bubbles are a bit of a mystery.
86/100 - £9.99 at Naked Wines
Mendoza, Argentina
Dry White (Synthetic Cork), 12.8% abv
Mildly aromatic on the nose - think lime marmalade. The palate is limey and very dry but with a curious biscuity tang to the finish. We've had much better Torrontes and this one could do with more life and complexity
85/100 - £7.99 at Naked Wines
Rioja, Spain
Dry Red (Cork), 13.5% abv
Trademark spicy earthy Crianza type aromas. Dark fruit on the palate with vibrant fruit, good concentration, some silky finesse and length with some fine tannic structure. Awesome with lamb chops and a good all round buy from Naked Wines.
91/100 - £9.99 at Naked Wines
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Dry Red (Cork), 13.0% abv
An older vintage from the Naked Wines line-up. A savoury wine with smoky earthy aromas. Good black fruit with a liquorice streak on the palate and an almost salty liquorice tang to the long finish. Rather good, bold flavours, but restrained alcohol at 13%, and another 3-4 years in bottle will bring out an even more savoury character.
One of this month's Five Wines to lay down
90/100 - £10.99 at Naked Wines
McLaren Vale (South Australia), Australia
Dry Red (Screwcap), 15.5% abv
The blend is Shiraz/Cabernet/Grenache. Warm subtle spice like a compote on the nose, the palate is seriously voluminous. Huge in the mouth with stacks of deep dark fruit, liquorice, pepper, richness and a deep spicy finish, along with some final flourishes of acidity and plenty of toasty sweet oak. Amazingly the 15.5% alcohol seems just about in proportion. Good wine - massive - so one to match with enormous beefy dishes. You could probably eat the whole cow raw with this bad boy.
One of this month's Five Greatest Wines
90/100 - £10.99 at Naked Wines
McLaren Vale (South Australia), Australia
Dry Red (Screwcap), 14.0% abv
Cabernet Sauvignon/Cabernet Franc/Shiraz is the blend. Cherry, strawberry and almond aromas. Sleek and fruity on the palate with very soft ripe tannin and a good, tapering, fruity finish. Balanced, a touch of spice. Impressively pure and seamless blend.
90/100 - £9.49 at Naked Wines
Maipo Valley, Chile
Dry Red (Cork), 14.0% abv
Cot is an old term for Malbec. This is scented and quite fragrant with vivid fruit on the nose. Don't think we've gone bonkers but there's almost a touch of guava in there. The palate is laden with vivid fruit, some grainy tannin on the long fruity finish and a bitter choc spice element too. Good wine and a reasonable price for the quality on offer.
89/100 - £11.49 at Naked Wines
McLaren Vale (South Australia), Australia
Dry Red (Screwcap), 13.5% abv
Plummy, blueberry-ish aromas. Soft and fruity on the palate with a leaner, fine, drying tannic finish. It's bright and vivid with good purity of fruit, though not as complex as other Chalk Hill offerings we've tasted.
89/100 - £10.49 at Naked Wines
Western Cape, South Africa
Dry Red (Screwcap), 14.5% abv
Earthy, tobacco-like niffs. The palate is voluptuous with deep star anise spice, dark chocolate complexity and a long finish with a good sense of balance. Hefty and bold and perhaps a touch too much acidity on the finish. Nonetheless, decent wine at a fair price.
89/100 - £9.99 at Naked Wines
Mendoza, Argentina
Dry Red (Synthetic Cork), 13.5% abv
Attractive cherry and prune aromas with almondy touches. Dense, fruity, some fine drying tannin on the finish and some interesting floral complexity on the finish. Vanilla oak a touch evident but a good hearty autumn wine to accompany a meaty feast.
89/100 - £8.49 at Naked Wines
Mendoza, Argentina
Dry Red (Synthetic Cork), 13.5% abv
Raspberry-ish and delightfully summery fruity niffs. Silky on the palate with freshness and stacks of pure-tasting fruit. Perhaps a touch harsh on acidity but will nonetheless, we suspect, be a bit of a crowd pleaser.
89/100 - £8.49 at Naked Wines
Vacqueyras (Rhône), France
Dry Red (Cork), 14.0% abv
Cherry and spice-like aromas. Vivid fruity palate with an espresso-bitter kick to the finish and some drying fine-grained tannin. Definitely one to sip with hearty food - big fruit with a bitter dark chocolate edge, warming spice and alcohol but also some decent quality fruit.
88/100 - £12.99 at Naked Wines
Rasteau (Rhône), France
Dry Red (Cork), 15.0% abv
Dark cherry aromas with a touch of liquorice depth. Soft tannins, fruity and bold with a spicy, dry, peppery finish, this is large wine with a jot too much alcohol (15%) that manages to be intense and bold but just gets pipped by that hefty boozy finish. A winter warmer certainly, but take it steady!
88/100 - £11.99 at Naked Wines
Mendoza, Argentina
Dry Red (Synthetic Cork), 13.5% abv
Fragrant plum and cherries on the nose invite you to go for it on the glug. And it's not too shabby. A liquorice and bitter chocolate character is evident on the finish, along with some vanilla and charry oak. Tannin is drying, so one to match with food (big wintry pies we'd say). Overall it's not bad, but just feels a touch disjointed and angular in comparison with the Malbec from the same producer.
87/100 - £8.49 at Naked Wines
