The best red wines for Christmas 2024

Now is the time to buy a magnum if one is offered, rather than a brace of bottles. They look so handsome and special, and are popularly supposed to mature wine at an ideal pace.

Waitrose continues its December offer of a few wines reduced to £10, while stocks last.

Those below I would have been happy to recommend at their usual price of £15.99.

KEY
🔴 Would go with turkey
🟠 House wine candidate
🟡 For the adventurous drinker
🟢 For the classicist
🔵 Environmentally friendly/worth supporting
🟣 Eye-catching label
🟤 To cellar for a future Christmas
⚫ Has a story to tell
🟥 Suitable for drinking without food

🟢 Ch La Grave de Bertin, Gentleman Vigneron Merlot 2023 Bordeaux (13.5%)
No oak, but fruit and tannin have been extracted to the max. A bargain for classicists, who are unlikely to approve of the label.
£7.95 The Wine Society

🟡 Bolgrad Saperavi 2023 Ukraine (14%)
You don’t often find a wine worth ageing for less than £8.
£7.99 Lidl

🟥 Ferdinand Mayr, Exclusiv Blaufränkisch 2022 Burgenland (13.5%)
Underpriced example of the red wine grape of which Austrians are so proud. I recently had a 1973 from Kollwentz that was still in great shape. But drink this bittersweet bargain over the next two years.
£8.95 The Wine Society

🟥 Huteau-Boulanger, La Muse Gamay 2023 Val de Loire (12.5%)
More fun than many a Beaujolais, from the same grape.
£9.25 The Wine Society

Vergelegen, Fairtrade Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 2020 Stellenbosch (14%)
A deal if ever there was one.
£10 Co-op

🟠 Croix des Coteaux 2020 St-Émilion (13.5%)
Unoaked, fragrant, underpriced. 50:50 Cabernet Franc and Merlot.
£10 this month, reduced from £15.99 Waitrose

Doña Paula, El Alto Single Vineyard Malbec 2022 Luján de Cuyo (14%)
Excellent value for a wine aged for 10 months in French oak.
£10 this month, reduced from £15.99 Waitrose

Montecillo, Reserva 2017 Rioja (13.5%)
Old-vine fruit subtly matured in barrel for two years.
£10 this month, reduced from £15.99 Waitrose

🟥 🟣 Querencia Garnacha 2023 Calatayud (14.3%)
Old Grenache vines in the Spanish countryside provide some of the wine world’s best value currently. Round, light, charming, unoaked.
£11 Tesco

🟣 Care Nativa Garnacha 2022 Cariñena (14.5%)
Oaked, beefier version of the wine above. Equally good value.
£11 Tesco

🟣 Fasoli Gino, Abbondanza 2022 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo (13.5%)

Very unusual offering in a screwcapped bottle with fruit and Italian bite.
£14.99 a litre Adnams (equivalent to £11.24 for 75cl)

🟣 Salvaje del Moncayo, Le Garnacha 2021 VDT Ribera del Guíeles (14%)
Hand-harvested old vines then five months in French oak barrels. Both sweet fruit and structure.
£11.49 Majestic

Guigal 2020 Côtes-du-Rhône (14.5%)
Syrah/Grenache/Mourvèdre blend from a titan of the northern Rhône, with some maturity already.
£11.50 Ocado, £13.49 Waitrose Cellar and many an independent

Boas Quintas, Agenda Manager’s Choice 2021 Dão (13%)
Proper, complex wine from a blend of northern Portuguese grapes.
£11.99 Majestic

🟥 Dom la Portelle 2018 Fleurie (13%)
Gentle, unusually mature Beaujolais.
£12.75 The Wine Society

🔵 Classica, El Pacto 2020 Rioja (14%)
Organic charmer that could already be enjoyed.
£12.95 The Wine Society

🟡 🟣 Casa Relvas, Ciconia Touriga Nacional 2023 VR Alentejano (14%)
A textbook example of Portugal’s most famous red wine grape.
£12.99 Tivoli Wines

Ch Jamard Belcour 2019 Lussac-St-Émilion (13.5%)
The Society works hard at picking out the bargains in Bordeaux. Merlot ready to enjoy.
£13.95 The Wine Society

🟤 Ch La Liquière, Terre du Sud 2022 Faugères (13%)

From arguably the Languedoc’s most reliable appellation, where schist adds energy and tension to this spicy blend.
£13.99 Majestic

⚫ 🟡 Lyrarakis Liatiko 2023 PGI Crete (13.5%)
Liatiko is a native Cretan grape offering light earthiness.
£13.99 Majestic

Lorgeril, Le St-Martin 2022 Côtes du Roussillon-Villages (14%)
Pure, sweet, convincing blend. Lighter than most wines from this Catalan corner of southern France.
£13.99 Majestic

🟥 Cap Maritime Pinot Noir 2023 Cape South Coast (13%)
From Marc Kent of Chocolate Box fame, this is a cooler, fresher South African red in Burgundian style.
£14 Tesco

🟤 Dom Maby, Variations 2021 Côtes du Rhône (14%)
Great-value blend that could be enjoyed well into the future.
£14.95 Yapp

The Liberator, God’s Own Country II Hemel-en-Aarde Valley (14.5%)
Rhône blend from one of South Africa’s cooler wine regions.
£14.95 The Wine Society

Viña Pomal, Selección 106 Reserva 2019 Rioja (14.5%)
For fans of mature, traditional, vanilla-oaky rioja. Good price.
£14.99 Majestic

Ch Veyran 2021 St-Chinian (14%)
Transparent, meaty Grenache dominates the blend of this fresh, characterful Languedoc red.
£14.99 Majestic

🔵 Joostenberg, Family Blend 2021 Paarl (13.5%)
Certified organic. Exceptionally well-mannered Syrah-based blend.
£15.25 Corney & Barrow

🔴 Samartzis, M Merlot/Mouhtaro 2022 PGI Central Greece (13.5%)
Lovely, luminous Greek blend that’s already delicious in a cranberry sort of way.
£16.90 Tanners

🟤 Ch Barréjat, Vieux Ceps 2022 Madiran (14.5%)
An unusually approachable oaked blend of Tannat from very old vines plus both Cabernets, but it should continue to evolve. Needs food.
£16.95 Stone, Vine & Sun

🟢 Ch Lanessan 2012 Haut-Médoc (13%)
Bordeaux’s red 2012s are drinking beautifully now. A charming mature classic.
£17 The Wine Society

🔵 Alberta 2022 Barbera d’Alba (14.5%)
Certified organic. Fine example of the new school of Piemontese red without obvious oak.

£17.50 Haynes Hanson & Clark

🔵 Springfontein, Terroir Selection Pinotage 2018 Springfontein Rim (14.5%)
Jeanne Vito, “an Afropean wine entrepreneur brought up in Chablis”, has been shaking up this isolated wine farm. Sumptuous and unusually mature.
£17.95 Private Cellar

Victor Blachet, Bourgogne 2022 Hautes Côtes de Beaune (12.5%)
Look for a big Bourgogne on the label, not the producer name. Of course, this is no rival to the finest red burgundy — but all credit to Tesco’s buyer for finding something that tastes vaguely like it at this price.
£18 Tesco

The Long Road Syrah 2022 Cape South Coast (13%)
From the super-talented Samantha O’Keefe of Lismore in South Africa. Clever buying again.
£18 Tesco

Paolo Scavino Nebbiolo 2021 Langhe (14.5%)
Perfect for those looking for a bargain alternative to Barolo.
£19.40 Justerini & Brooks

🔴 Fossil Point Pinot Noir 2020 Edna Valley (14.5%)
Light but convincing Pinot aroma. Some sweet fruit and freshness. One of Corney’s real finds, though not for ageing.
£19.95 Corney & Barrow

🔵 Chapoutier 2022 Crozes-Hermitage (13%)
Certified organic. Classic, peppery northern Rhône red.
£20 Tesco

🔵 Bernard Baudry 2021 Chinon (12%)
Certified organic. Classic Cabernet Franc taffeta and pencil-shavings character. Delicious now.
£20.50 Lea & Sandeman

Dom Pellé, Les Cris 2021 Menetou-Salon (13%)
A fine-value alternative to a Côte de Beaune, based on Pinot Noir vines planted in 1967.
£21 The Wine Society

Arnaud Lambert, Mazurique 2022 Saumur (13.5%)
Fresh and zippy from 40-year-old Cabernet Franc vines. Unoaked.
£21 Berry Bros & Rudd

🔴 Battenfeld-Spanier Spätburgunder 2020 Rheinhessen (12.5%)
Aromatic, refined texture with true Pinot Noir flavours. Drink now!
£22 Chanctonbury Wines

Lelie van Saron Syrah 2021 Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley (13%)
Admirable enterprise on the part of celebrated young winemaker Natasha Williams. For Jamet fans.
£22 The Wine Society

Band of Vintners, Consortium Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 Napa Valley (14.5%)
Extraordinary value. Long, rich, but not heavy.
£22.08 reduced from £29.76 Justerini & Brooks

🔴 Pascal and Nicolas Reverdy, Terre de Maimbray Sancerre Rouge (13.5%)

Proof that Sancerre can give red burgundy a run for its money.
£25, £14 a half Haynes Hanson & Clark

Weinert, Cavas Weinert 2012 Mendoza (14.9%)
Look at that vintage! Long aged in oak to provide a wine as welcoming as your slippers. Potent, mind.
£25 The Wine Society

Poggio Landi 2018 Brunello di Montalcino (14%)
Excellent price for a recognisable mature Brunello.
£26 Tesco

Dom Cébène, Les Bancels 2020 Faugères (13.5%)
Brigitte Chevalier delivers unbelievable value and complexity from her little Languedoc winery.
£30 Highbury Vintners

Les Griffons de Pichon Baron 2018 Pauillac (14.5%)
From one of the most reliable châteaux in the whole of the Médoc, a mellow second wine with real class. Why pay more?
£34 R&B, £37.50 Honest Grapes

Bibi Graetz, Casamatta 2022 IGP Toscana (13.5%)
High-altitude Sangiovese from Fiesole just outside Florence.
£35 Berry Bros & Rudd

🟤 Rhys, Alesia Pinot Noir 2018 Santa Cruz Mountains (13%)
Appetisingly savoury rather than sweet.
£37.01 Justerini & Brooks

Sette Cieli, Noi 4 2022 Bolgheri (14.5%)
From one of the highest estates to be found in this fashionable source of glamorous Bordeaux blends.
£42 The Wine Society

🟤 Maison Roche de Bellene, Vieilles Vignes 2021 Volnay (13%)
Really successful Volnay-with-a-future from Nicolas Potel. His family used to own Domaine de la Pousse d’Or in Volnay so presumably he has an especially good supplier there.
£43 Tanners

🔴 Dom Génot-Boulanger, Vieilles Vignes 2018 Pommard (13.5%)
Lots of personality here. Help Justerini offload their stock!
£43.40 Justerini & Brooks

Newfound, Shake Ridge Vineyard Grenache 2019 Amador County (13.9%)
This is quite a discovery, from one of California’s most highly regarded vineyards, in this case in gold country.
£46 Jeroboams

Marengo, Brunate 2018 Barolo (14%)
This beautifully made wine from a famous cru is looking gorgeous now.
£54.05 Justerini & Brooks

🔴 Camille Giroud, Les Lurets Premier Cru 2017 Volnay (12%)
2017 is the red burgundy vintage to drink now. Delicate Volnay with lots of fruit and charm. Not overpriced in a Burgundy context.
£55 Berry Bros & Rudd

Familia Torres, Mas la Plana 2018 Penedes (14.5%)
This was the Cabernet that “won” the famous Gault & Millau Wine Olympics in 1979 and the Torres family continue to ensure it keeps its place.
£57.99 Majestic

🟤 Frédéric Magnien, Vieilles Vignes 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin (13%)
Really satisfying round, interesting fruit with good fruit/acid balance on the palate. Only just ready to drink. Classic Gevrey with zip and persistence.
£58 Yapp

🟤 Don Melchor 2021 Puente Alto (14.5%)
An absolutely glorious vintage of this classic from Chile’s heartland of tip-top Bordeaux-like reds. Wine Spectator’s wine of the year, deservedly.
£118.80 Penistone Cellars, £120 Cellar Door Wines