Tipping’s Tipples: Wine of the Week – an irresistible Aussie

Truly Irresistible Mount Benson Shiraz 2013

There was a time when you could nip down to the supermarket and grab a bottle of drinkable Aussie shiraz and get change from a fiver. Sadly, those days are gone unless you hunt around and perhaps pay a little more.

I don’t think many affordable Aussie reds taste like they used to do. I remember them as big, spicy and a tad sweeter than their stuffy Old World counterparts with unpronounceable names.

Such vinous bargains had their uses, especially at barbecue time paired with a well-garnished burger, bread bun and chips.

All hope is not lost however as the Co-op stocks an Aussie red under its own label, Truly Irresistible Mount Benson Shiraz 2013, and gives its wicket away cheaply at £6.99.

Bold and peppery, its sweet-edged blueberry and bramble fruit mingles nicely with hints of vanilla oak.