Wines of the week

Vidal-Fleury Côtes du Rhône, France, 2009 (£8.99, or £6.99 if you buy two bottles, Majestic ) A trio of warming winter reds this week kicks off with a sunny Côtes du Rhône blend of grenache, syrah, mourvèdre and carignan at a great offer price. There's a tender succulence here, along with a shake of black pepper that adds grit to the lively hedgerow fruit and soft tannins. Drink it with meaty French sausages or lamb chops for the full spirit-lifting effect. La Rioja Alta Viña Arana, Rioja, Spain 2004 (£19.99, Waitrose ) When they are as beautifully put together as this example from La Rioja Alta, old-fashioned Rioja reds are among the most mellow wines known to man. Taken from a particularly good vintage in Rioja, it offers delightfully aromatic strawberry fruit swathed in vanilla, coconut and gentle tannin, and an umami quality that recalls the kind of slow-cooked meat that would also make a perfect accompaniment. Château Romanin Les Baux de Provence L'Etoile de Romanin 2007 (£13.99, M&S ) A little further south from the Rhône Valley and you find yourself in Provence, a region still best known for its rosés, but with some very original reds, too. This one takes the same grapes as the Vidal-Fleury, chucks in a portion of cabernet sauvignon and comes up with an exceptionally deep and full-flavoured dry red, with some very expressive sweet blackcurrant and blackberry fruit and an intriguingly savoury edge.