‘Bramble and hedgerow in a glass,’ summarised Claire Love of Loves Consultancy as this Chilean Merlot joined the Gold list. Team Leader Nigel Lister found ‘an earthy, smoky green capsicum nose with a dense, ripe black fruit core’, while Dave Cushley of Prestonfield House noted a ‘smoky and savoury underbelly with good lilac and plum character’, before describing it as ‘a rather grown-up wine with more than a little grip and rich fruit’.

£5.50 CyT UK

‘With its lovely dark berry character and notes of cedar, some red bush tea and leather, along with fairly high tannins, this seems too serious a wine for such a low price!’ remarked team leader Laurent Richet MS, among plenty of other generous praise for this well-deserved Gold winner. Equally impressed, Kai Mayfair’s Elisa Soggia described ‘well-managed alcohol, leather and earthy notes, with a hint of peppermint on the finish’.

£5.50 C&D Wines

Taking home a Gold medal for its ‘easy-drinking, ripe fruit style’, according to Rémi Cousin of Le Gavroche, this had ‘cherry, liquorice and plums with a bit of vanilla oak’, for team leader Carlos Ferreira, who went on to describe it as ‘quite floral on the fresh palate, with good balance and a long finish’. ‘A great all-rounder, with structure in the background to hold it all together,’ added team leader Hamish Anderson.

£5.83 Unity Wines & Spirits

This had all the makings of a Gold medal House Red, with Olivier Gasselin of Hakkasan describing it as ‘a spicy, meaty, dark currant wine with a fine texture, elegant tannins and an easy, juicy finish’. Its ‘damson, black cherry, cassis and smoky, graphite notes’ led The Harrow at Little Bedwyn’s Sue Jones to recommend it as ‘a match for barbecued meats’, while Quentin Loisel of Restaurant Sat Bains declared it ‘generous, silky and impressive’.

£5.85 Direct Wines

Christopher Delalonde MS of The Dorchester found ‘dark fruit and plum with notes of olives, smoke and spice’. He went on to describe a ‘juicy, lifted mid-palate with fruity berry flavours, good texture of ripe fruit and a balanced, spicy finish’.

£5.70 Molson Coors

Team leader Nigel Lister noted ‘soft red fruit berries with a touch of pencil lead’ and ‘easy blackcurrant and raspberry coulis with a hint of liquorice; very quaffable’. Woodhead 17’s James Fryer picked out ‘an aniseed and herbal note with a juicy black fruit mid-palate’.

£4.90 Broadland Wineries

‘Easy drinking style but well done, great body with pleasant tannin. A great value everyday drinker,’ said Janusz Sasiadek of Bottles & Battles, while team leader Andres Ituarte found a ‘super floral nose with a candied palate’, adding: ‘A touch of residual sugar but a good, easy-drinking house red.’

£5.75 Inverarity Morton

‘Good quality and nice complexity; the red fruit flavours also have a nice farmyard character,’ said Corina Stanila of La Dame de Pic at Ten Trinity Square, with Michael Fiducia of The Royal Automobile Club noting ‘ripe cherry aromas with herbaceous notes and an elegantly soft palate’.

£5.95 Ellis of Richmond

‘Lovely texture’, commented Valentin Radosav of Gymkhana Restaurant, adding that it had ‘ripe red and black fruit, finely grained tannin and a juicy finish’. The Royal Automobile Club’s Michael Fiducia, meanwhile, noted ‘lifted pretty aromas of cherry and cranberries with a structured, smooth palate’.

£5.90 Boutinot

Team leader Lionel Periner picked up ‘red fruit with a hint of cacao’. He commented that the ‘dry, balanced palate suggests raspberries and a touch of rhubarb, while the well-integrated tannins lead to a decent finish with attractive freshness’, and described it as ‘versatile’.

£5.03 Majestic Commercial

Joshua Castle of Noble Rot found this to have ‘a nose of ripe blue fruits and violets and a lush texture’, and noted that its ‘nuanced, elegant tannins provide a persistent finish’. Team leader Lionel Periner, meanwhile, remarked on the ‘crunchy berries, fairly high acidity and meaty, fleshy, body’.

£5.75 Bibendum

Rémi Cousin of Le Gavroche enjoyed a ‘slightly gamey, vegetal nose with a simple juicy, fruity palate, good balance and a nicely bitter finish’.

£5.66 Matthew Clark

Andre Luis Martins of Cavalry & Guards Club described this as having ‘ripe cassis and sweet spices, black pepper over jammy notes and a long finish’.

£5.35 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

Tobias Gorn of Boisdale Restaurants remarked on ‘an easy-drinking, juicy, red fruit style at an excellent price’.

£3.60 Broadland Wineries

This had ‘an attractive nose of spice and bramble’ with ‘a touch of green pepper’ for team leader Hamish Anderson.

£5.85 Grand Mayne

Team leader Carlos Ferreira found a ‘very smoky nose with lots of rosemary, pine nuts and pepper’ and ‘a fresh, floral palate of soft stewed fruit’.

£5.50 CyT UK

Bianca Potenza of Bluespoon Andaz Hotel - Amsterdam noted a ‘smoky, liquorice nose with a lick of oaky vanilla and a perhaps slightly under ripe, herbaceous note’.

£4.50 Molson Coors, Treasury Wine Estates

‘Good black, jammy fruits with a plum-driven mid-palate warmed by the alcohol on the finish,’ said Aster Restaurant’s Marco Marcuzzo, describing it as ‘good with food’.

£6.00 Molson Coors, Treasury Wine Estates

‘Fruity and juicy wine with notes of plum, cherry and a touch of leather. Very good balance between tannins and acidity,’ commented Elisa Soggia of Kai Mayfair.

£4.85 Majestic Commercial

£4.95 Adnams

£5.93 Matthew Clark

£6.00 Matthew Clark

£5.55 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£5.09 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£5.09 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£5.99 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£5.35 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£5.95 LWC Drinks Ltd (Merchant and Shippers)

£3.40 Broadland Wineries

£3.90 Broadland Wineries

£4.00 Raymond Reynolds

£5.97 R D Wines

£5.95 Portugalia Wines UK

£5.65 Boutinot

£5.90 Boutinot

£6.38 C&D Wines

£5.23 Majestic Commercial

£5.92 Majestic Commercial

£4.98 Majestic Commercial

£4.72 Majestic Commercial

£5.56 Majestic Commercial

£5.60 Unity Wines & Spirits

£5.50 Unity Wines & Spirits

£5.81 Hallgarten & Novum Wines

£5.95 Bibendum

£5.55 Bibendum