• Virgile Joly is a minor genius with the Merlot grape, and he's come up trumps with this little number...
• In the mouth it's a fruit bomb of juicy red cherries and berries and, once the initial explosion settles, you are left with just a touch of wood smoke. Bloomin' lovely!
• A hunk of red meat, lots of roast potatoes, a smidge of veg (to keep mum happy) and a case of this. That's Sunday sorted.

• "Like our Sauvignon Blanc, Ben and I like to think our new Merlot Rose captures the best of Kiwi and French style equally! From Ben’s influence comes the colour and texture, but we've combined it with the Hawke’s Bay grapes to retain that classic NZ fruity character.
• It's from a single vineyard planted by one my early mentors – I remember the day he planted the vineyard, I was about 15 years old. It produces low yields of immaculate Merlot. Ben and I discussed the style extensively - achieving the desired colour, complexion and texture was very much led by Southern French style and Ben's years of experience. It's a real first for New Zealand Rose.
• It's a lovely salmon pink colour. Aromatically it has a little floral lift with rose petal notes to the fore, combined with some lime dust like mineral notes. It is dry but has that pronounced strawberry like fruit character. Very classy."

Rod Easthope, Winemaker

• Stellenbosch is the beating heart of the South African wine industry. It has the perfect soils and climate to make some of the best Merlot on the planet.

• Lucky for us, Johan’s connections there include some of South Africa’s winemaking top brass. So when a mate of his made a vintage of one of the country’s most sought after Merlots, Johan used all his charm (plus a dollop of Angel funding) to snaffle a parcel up for you.

• From the first sip it’s velvety soft and silky, like proper Merlot should be. With big warm hugs of red fruit, a lovely lifted flavour and a smooth, rich finish.

• Stephen’s Merlot is absolutely soaked in warm Californian sunshine, it tastes awesome and is great value to boot!

• Bursting with ripe and juicy blackberries, dark cherry and jammy plums followed by a dash of vanilla spice, it's the perfect tummy warmer.

• Don’t be afraid to crack this wine open on any occasion. With food or without, it's the ultimate everyday drinker. 

• What 4th generation winemaker Pierre doesn't know about winemaking isn't worth knowing. He just seems to have the knack of making feel-good wine at a rock 'n' roll price.
• Pierre's Merlot is a treat - Seriously full-bodied with ripe fruits and a velvety finish. And thanks to Angel funding the price is sweet too!
• This is the perfect mid-week glugger. It'll go with everything from roast chicken to spag bol.

• Charles and Ruth love Merlot and they love a good Merlot even more. And this is just that. They took these hand selected top notch Merlot grapes from their sun drenched vineyards in Saint Rose and made another corking wine.

• All that Southern French sunshine is what Merlot needs to make this stunningly full bodied, velvety drop just bursting with plummy fruit with a touch of chocolate.

• This rich and fruity red is just right with any mediterranean-style food from antipasti to ratatouille with every shade of pasta in between.  

• Connie has an eye for quality grapes and when she discovered these beauties nestled in the Maule Valley, she knew she was on to a winner.
• From 35 year old vines, these grapes get oodles of sunshine and crisp cool nights keeping the wine fresh but packed full of soft and juicy blackberries, cherries with a dash of smooth, silky chocolate.
• Connie only uses the best French oak for this wine and you can taste the spicy, complexity. The perfect wine to crack open with your friends and family.

• This fruity French red is the sort of go-to nectar you'll find yourself cracking open again and again. It's rich and brimming with flavour - to make the most of this unctuous bottle you'll want to decant it before drinking so as to filter out any of the natural sedament that can be expected in big juicy wines like these. 

• It’s a mouthwateringly juicy Merlot oozing with enticing aromas of fresh red fruit. In the mouth it’s super-plush, with those lovely red fruit characters lingering on the tongue, and with fine tannins. Totally gluggable - enjoy it on its own or treat yourself to a classic French charcuterie loaded with delicious cured meats and cheeses. Yum!

• And a cool fact about this wine - it’s made without sulphites. No-sulphite wines are a more natural style of wine but they require incredible care and attention to detail from the winemaker to get right. Thankfully, Edouard has those skills in spades, which is how he was able to create this classy Bordeaux gem.

• Jonathan is ridiculously talented and living in a house bordering the banks of Bordeaux. And how did he get there? By producing some of the most sensational Garagiste wines you'll ever taste.
• You'll taste the brooding, delightful depth of ripe fruit - simply packed with juicy, mouth-wateringly rich flavour. Jonathan sourced pristine fruit from outside his winery and aged it in 100% new oak, to take it from good to sublime.
• A (very famous) previous vintage of Jonathan's wine scored a whopping 100 Parker Points - and accolades just don't come any higher than that. Go and grab yourself a bottle while you can...

• A true Merlot from the coast of Tuscany, taking inspiration from one of the world’s most famous Super Tuscans, Tua Rita Redigaffi. It’s a wine that has received astronomical ratings and reviews, but in order to taste it, you have to pay over £200 for a bottle.
• Ripalti is very similar in both style and character to Tua Rita Redigaffi and was grown in the vineyard immediately next door in Suvereto. It’s a small appellation that has been quickly gaining a reputation for its high quality reds.
• The growing season here is exceptionally long, starting almost a month before the rest of Tuscany and ending almost a month after. All of this works together to form a truly distinctive Merlot, comparable to the perfect blackberry jam - extravagant and fruity with lots of fresh berries.