Valentine's wines!

Happy Valentine's everyone! The most polarising of celebration days is fast approaching once again, so do take this as your reminder to stock up on roses, chocolates and whatever array of erotic lingerie for your other half you so desire. Whether you get on board fully with the day or not, the 14th of February is always a great excuse for wine lovers to stock up on an alluring little number or two, or perhaps to splash out on a special bottle for the occasion. So here are some of my Valentine's picks to help make the night memorable.

Sparkling

Of course, the most obvious wine style to opt for at this time of year is sparkling, and more specifically Champagne. For me, there's nothing quite like the real thing on a special occasion, although a fantastic budget option would be Tesco's Cava Brut NV (£5). Made by Catalan giant Cordoníu for the UK retailer, this bona fide sparkler boasts fresh orchard flavours on the nose and on the palate, complemented with good acidity and a lovely creamy finish. A fraction of the price of other sparklers, let alone Champagne, Tesco's house Cava has received praise across the board, with the Telegraph's wine correspondent Susy Atkins commenting that it "beats the socks off many fancier high street cavas".

If, however, you do fancy the real deal, then look no further than Veuve Monsigny Brut NV, produced by Reuil-based vintners Philizot et Fils and sold in the UK by the German retailer Aldi. Currently offered at an astonishing £9.99, this wine was rated Highly Recommended by Decanter magazine in January 2015 in a panel tasting of own-label Champagnes, seeing off competition from more prestigious retailers costing three times as much. Of Aldi's Champagne, tasters Michael Edwards, Antony Moss MW and Angela Mount - who gave it a score of 90 - said:

"Smooth, creamy stone-fruit character with a certain vinosity. Bold and fruity with vibrant, yet well-integrated acid. Good structure and weight with a refreshing lift and balance on the finish".

I have a bottle held back for this Valentine's Day, and my mouth is positively watering at the prospect of tasting it. Aside from anything else, this really does go to prove that it is eminently possible for wine lovers to buy fantastic wines without needing to take out a second mortgage.

Rosé

A cliché perhaps, but for poetry's sake, you might wish to opt for a bottle of the pink stuff to see in this Valentine's Day. Often panned by some in the wine trade, there is no doubt that rosé wine is an increasingly popular choice for many consumers, with 1 in every 8 bottles of table wine sold in the UK being of the pink variety (Ned Halley, The Best Wines in the Supermarkets 2015, p. 12). Speaking on a personal level, at this time of year when it seems apt to go for rosé over white, the best examples come from the south of France, and specifically the Côtes de Provence appellation. If elegant, restrained, perfumed rosés are your thing, then you could do a lot worse than the Co-op's Coeur de Cardeline Provence 2013, Lidl's Coteaux d'Aix en Provence Nuit de Provence 2013 or Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Côtes de Provence 2013. However, if you want to broaden your horizons, one of my favourite rosés is the perennial Tesco Finest Nero d'Avola Rosé. The current 2013 vintage is on sale at £5.79, which makes it a slightly better value alternative to the Riviera rosés. Strikingly salmon-pink with a sweet cider applely nose, the wine is light-bodied and refreshing, with a reasonably sharp citrussy tang and one of the longest finishes on a rosé I've ever tasted. Serve this with some breadcrumbed white fish or a simple salad, and your other half will never know that you parted with fewer than six of your pounds for such a superb bottle of pink!

Red

If, on the other hand, your Valentine's meal calls for something fuller, then a bottle of red should be your stopping point. Forcefully tannic New World Cabernets might be the first choice with a nice piece of rare sirloin, but for my money Old World reds offer the perfect amount of poise and sophistication for a night of romance. Classic Bordeaux blends would be great, as would seductive Burgundies from the Pinot Noir grape. If you have cash to spare, splash out on a bottle of Premier Cru Bourgogne, like the Lucien Jacob Beaune 1er Cru Les Toussaints 2004 - which I would probably consider the best wine I've ever had the pleasure of drinking. Alternatively, you could visit another one of Europe's fine wine regions, Rioja, for a bottle of Asda's Extra Special Marques del Norte Rioja Reserva 2009.

With one year spent in the barrel and another two in the bottle before release, this Reserva from Asda is brilliantly pitched between fruit and oak: offering the balance of ripe red fruits and warming vanilla that buyers of Rioja wines love. The 2008 vintage was highly sought-after, scoring 90 points in Decanter magazine's September 2013 panel tasting. Ned Halley in The Best Wines noted the wine's "sweet, plump, silky fruit", and Martin Smith in the Star commented on the "big juicy flavours, rounded vanilla from the oak and sweet, strawberry spice" (http://www.thestar.co.uk/what-s-on/out-about/food-drink/top-tipple-extra-special-marques-del-norte-rioja-reserva-2008-5-from-7-48-until-april-24-asda-1-5566878). The 2009 vintage (a full £2.50 cheaper at £5.75) also fared well with the critics: Susy Atkins in the Telegraph describing the wine as "a great-value reserva from a fine vintage year in Rioja" (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinkadvice/11361111/Why-Ill-be-drinking-red-wine-not-whisky-with-my-haggis.html). Like Atkins, I too thought that the wine offered great value, and I'd happily buy it at a higher price point. For me, the attractively aromatic nose of strawberry bonbons and vanilla would be perfect for Valentine's Day, followed up by a serious Rioja full of grip, texture and dark fruits. I would advise a couple more years in the bottle before the wine really opens up and expresses itself fully, however it's perfectly drinkable now and very difficult to resist doing so!

So whether you're a fan of the day or not, I hope I've given you some useful suggestions of very good wines to help celebrate this Valentine's Day. If you've got any brilliant bottles or preferred styles for February 14th, please feel free to share in the comment section below. Happy Valentine's everyone!