Pegos Claros 2010, Palmela, Portugal

14%
€14.99

Available from O’Briens, and independent wine shops.

A bold and very beautiful wine; medium to full-bodied with a dangerously moreish palate of ripe liquorice, figs and dark fruits, finishing on a smooth note. Over-delivers at every stage.

I would go for a big beef or lamb casserole or maybe a nice steak.

This is an old favourite but I hadn’t tasted it for a while and was blown away by it in a tasting yesterday. Palmela is a small region on the Setúbal peninsula, across the river Tagus from the capital Lisbon. In the sandy soils running right down to the Atlantic ocean the Castelão grape produces unique fruit-filled wines, that have the ability to age very well.