This week, MIKE TIPPING reconsiders the appeal of jammy reds and finds three to his liking.

THERE'S a thin red line that divides jammy and not jammy when describing wine. However, I swear I come across far fewer truly jammy reds than I used to.

Once upon a time, jammy wines were two a penny (or two for £10 to be more accurate) at the supermarket. Most commonly they hailed from Oz, or sometimes Chile, and could be filed under 'fruit-bomb' for future reference.

I am not a big fan of jammy wines, if I want those sort of flavours I'll buy a carton of Ribena but I am certainly not opposed to a wine having a fruity side, as long as it is balanced.

Which leads nicely to this week's recommendations; a trio of reds that are quite serious but not too shy to flirt with a little fruitiness.

Château Pey La Tour Réserve du Château 2010 is a modern tasting Bordeaux Supérieur and a top-quality wine for around a tenner.

Made predominantly with merlot grapes, there's a little cabernet and petit verdot in the mix too, it is rich and smooth. Plum and raspberry fruit flavours, which are not overplayed, combine with polished leather, chocolate and some spicy, toasted oak notes.

On offer at Waitrose, until May 12, is a Bordeaux blend from the Stellenbosch wine-producing region in South Africa, Rustenberg John X Merriman 2012.

This is a full-bodied and really well made cuvée of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, petit verdot and malbec. Long flavours of raspberries, cassis and plum, mix with cedarwood, vanilla and spice, held in place by fine tannins.

Or for a very special treat, pick a ripper cab' from Oz, Grant Burge Cameron Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2012. This is a juicy but not jammy, full-on cabernet, Aussie style, and happens to be very well balanced to boot. A structured wine, it has lingering flavours of cassis and cherry, with spices, smoky oak and a hint of black treacle.


Château Pey La Tour Réserve du Château 2010, Bordeaux Supérieur, £10.50 from The Wine Society 18/20

Rustenberg John X Merriman 2012, Stellenbosch, down to £11.24 at Waitrose 18/20

Grant Burge Cameron Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2012, around £18 from selected independents 18/20