A unanimous Gold, according to an impressed team of judges, with Christoph Hons of Park Chinois finding ‘peaches, orange, mango and yellow fruit notes’ and describing this as ‘very crisp on the palate with vanilla and herbal richness, yet refreshing acidity to balance’, while Bleeding Heart Group’s Chris Delalonde MS thought it was ‘vibrant, with fresh green flavours throughout, great drive and balance, a weighty mid-palate and a clean, fresh finish’.

£14.33 Hallgarten & Novum Wines, Maltby & Greek

A hit with our judges, this Macedonian red struck Gold with its ‘opulent and modern’ style, thought Hakkasan’s Olivier Gasselin, who further praised ‘savoury, juicy tannins and cocoa, smoke, cigar leaves and cedar notes’, while Davide Dall’Amico of Royal Automobile Club found the oak ‘well integrated’, along with ‘ripe red and black fruit, as well as some spice from the oak’. Team leader Tom Forrest agreed, finding ‘crunchy red fruit and some toasty spice’. Its ‘pronounced intensity’ made it a match for chicken breast with chilli sauce, thought consultant Javier Azcona.

£15.89 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

Unquestionably Gold, this was made in a ‘spicy, Chenin-like’ style, thought team leader Martin Lam, observing a ‘golden colour and rich, dry, honey and flower aromas with a dry, floral palate’, while Yauatcha City’s Linh Ziolkowska enjoyed its ‘lovely camomile and tropical nose with honeydew melon and honey notes, then pronounced, fleshy peach and pineapple on the palate’, which made it ‘very easy to drink’. With its ‘waxy lime-fruit nose and lovely peachy fruit in the mouth’, this was, for team leader Angela Reddin, a great match for vegetable risotto.

£8.50 Southern Wine Roads

‘Rose petals and lychee on the nose,’ began Woodhead 17’s James Fryer, finding ‘an oily texture on the palate with waxy lemon and green melon, salty minerals on the finish with a hint of perfume’, while for Yauatcha City’s Linh Ziolkowska it was a ‘very enjoyable glass, with a pronounced floral nose, nice freshness and a long finish’.

£13.55 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

Bleeding Heart Group’s Chris Delalonde MS found ‘acacia and fresh buttery aromas, with spices from oak, cooked apples and pears and blossom hints, with great drive on the palate’, and Manuel Ribeiro of The Bybrook at The Manor House Hotel enjoyed its ‘ripe peach, apple, vanilla and butter aromas’ and found it ‘intense and complex, with citric notes on a good, oaky palate’, with ‘hints of toast and honey on the finish’.

£20.56 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

For Eva Krenkova of Restaurant Sat Bains, this had ‘jammy red and dark fruit on the nose, leading to juicy, silky tannins joined by some rosemary and mint’. Beaverbrook’s Euan McColm, meanwhile, liked its ‘lovely earthy tones and delicate tannins’.

£13.19 Hallgarten & Novum Wines, Maltby & Greek

Team leader Tom Forrest was taken with this red blend’s ‘spicy aromas with dark cherries and berries, leading to juicy, dark fruit flavours that are well integrated with some oak’, and described it as ‘culminating in a smooth finish with a kick of charcuterie spice’.

£13.40 Hallgarten & Novum Wines, Maltby & Greek

‘Fresh and powerfully structured, with red apple joined by a gamey note, as well as some pine needles and spice,’ said an impressed Davide Dall’Amico of Royal Automobile Club. ‘A lovely wine, from its earthy nose to its fine-grained tannins and minerality,’ added Beaverbrook’s Euan McColm.

£9.25 Wine Lovers Colective

Bleeding Heart Group’s Chris Delalonde MS liked this wine’s ‘nose of acacia and spring flowers with candied peel herbaceous notes, then vibrant character with ripeness on the mid-palate, chalky mineral notes and a touch of spicy heat on the finish’.

£10.37 Bibendum

Eva Krenkova of Restaurant Sat Bains liked this wine’s ‘raspberry and marmalade notes joined by some bay leaf and thyme’, while Beaverbrook’s Euan McColm found that herbal character and ‘black olive notes complemented juicy, ripe fruit, leading to a long finish’.

£14.59 Bibendum

£7.00 Southern Wine Roads

£10.50 Southern Wine Roads

£10.75 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

£15.35 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

£8.95 Boutinot

£9.79 Boutinot

£9.39 Bibendum

£9.25 Wine Lovers Colletive

£9.25 Wine Lovers Colletive

£9.25 Wine Lovers Colletive