The Lidl July Wine Tour is now underway. I wasn’t able to attend the press tasting for this release as I happened to be on holiday. Fortunately, Lidl kindly sent over a few bottles from the range for me to try.
Lidl’s Wine Tours tend to run for roughly two months, offering a limited window in which to pick up these wines, subject to stock availability. Some of the more popular bottles usually sell out quickly, which is a deliberate move to keep the wine line-up feeling fresh and ever-changing. As with previous tours, the wines are assessed by Richard Bampfield, Master of Wine, whose tasting notes appear on the wooden display crates in store.
This wine is produced by Vignobles Foncalieu, a co-operative that brings together over a thousand growers from across the South of France. This bottle is from the 2023 vintage, with an ABV of 13%, and Richard awarded it 90 points out of 100.
At first, the wine didn’t offer much in the way of scent, but patience pays off. After about 40 minutes, it began to reveal itself much more fully, and it was even more enjoyable the next day. The aroma then leaned towards plum and grape, and although one might usually expect a red-fruited character from Syrah/Shiraz, this example leans instead towards darker fruits and a hint of chocolate. On the tongue, it’s rounded and very smooth, with just a touch of tannin. By the second day, the tannins had mellowed, leaving behind a soft, chocolatey finish.
All in all, it feels like a wine that punches well above its price point of £8.49 at Lidl.
