This Gold winner ticked all the boxes for a house red, with The Don’s Carlos Ferreira describing aromas of ‘strawberry and cherry jam’, and finding it ‘a bit spicy and oaky on a palate that’s very fresh, with an elegant, long finish’, while Manuel Ribeiro of The Bybrook at The Manor House Hotel also found ‘hints of spice, as well as plums and chocolate’. Team leader Martin Lam added his praise for ‘sweet and savoury balance on the palate, with some soft tannins’, and suggested a pairing with lamb.

£4.95 Atlantico UK

Taking Gold in no small part for its versatile food-friendliness, this was described by team leader Tom Forrest as having ‘ripe, stewy red fruits and rhubarb notes on the nose, with more rhubarb and raspberry on the palate, with some ripe notes and light tannins’. ‘Bold and pleasing,’ thought Christopher Parker of Lime Wood Hotel, describing ‘raspberry compote, pepper and baking spice’, while Janusz Pawel Sasiadek of Bottles & Battles praised its ‘intense, fruity nose and soft, creamy palate’.

£5.76 Boutinot

A ‘beautiful bright colour and very pleasant array of aromas’ left an early impression on Yohann Pinol of Wiltons, who also noted this accomplished Gold’s ‘strawberry and raspberry fruit and high structure’. ‘Violet, plum, chocolate with red berry sweetness and smooth, medium body,’ added Markus Dilger of Dilger Sommelier Selection, while Andre Luis Martins of Cavalry & Guards Club enjoyed ‘sweet cassis and fresh-baked cinnamon cake notes, with some baked red fruit leading to a fresh finish’.

£6.00 Matthew Clark

As it picked up a well-deserved Gold medal, Adam Michocki of Glasshouse thought this was the ‘perfect for red wine lovers during summer’, with its ‘perfumed, confectionery nose of ripe strawberries and cherries’, describing it as ‘soft and delicate on the palate but intense with a long finish’. Team leader Jade Koch appreciated its ‘light and lifted’ character and ‘refreshing tea leaf’ notes, while Portland Restaurant’s Carolina Seibel enjoyed its ‘herbaceousness, alongside good dark and red fruit’.

£5.33 Majestic Commercial

This fresh-fruited red took home the Gold with ‘a nice nose with red cherry and strawberry fruit’, according to The Don’s Carlos Ferreira, adding that ‘the balance is good, and ideal for a summer barbecue’. Team leader Jade Koch agreed, calling it ‘very good, with a refreshing, drying finish’, while Michael Fiducia of Coworth Park Ascot praised ‘lifted, perfumed aromas and crunchy fruit’, and Carolina Seibel of Portland Restaurant specifically noted its ‘good grip, with firm tannins’.

£4.74 Majestic Commercial

This Gold winner was made in a ‘friendly, fresh-fruit style’, praised team leader Martin Lam, with Le Gavroche’s Rémi Cousin finding it ‘really pleasant, with strawberries, raspberries and dark cherries, and a soft, velvety texture’. Tatiana Mann of The Vine Eno Gastro Pub described a ‘purple-black wine, with deep, rich, ripe fruits on the nose’, and ‘raisins and fig, appassimento style’, concluding that it was a ‘great by-the-glass option’.

£5.88 Sivipa - Sociedade Vinícola de Palmela, S.A.

A hit with our judges, this Gold winner drew praise from Beaverbrook’s Euan McColm for its ‘red fruit and granite, well-integrated oak and clean finish’, while Andre Luis Martins of Cavalry & Guards Club noted its ‘sweet spicy plum with complex clove notes, gentle red berry with charming sweet Moroccan spices and a delicate finish’. ‘Juicy, ripe fruit and some elegance’ made this, for team leader Laura Rhys MS, a perfect match for ‘roast pork with apple sauce and crackling’.

£5.40 CyT UK

Gold through and through, this was a ‘lively, well-textured wine’, said Yohann Pinol of Wiltons, thinking it ‘elegant with lots of red fruit aromas and a touch leathery, but well balanced with a pleasant finish’. ‘Dark cherries and plums, good body, fresh acidity and medium length,’ added Markus Dilger of Dilger Sommelier Selection, while Tate Catering’s Hamish Anderson thought its ‘dark bramble fruit and spice, with some earthiness and good structure’ couldn't have been a better match for a burger.

£5.30 Fuller's

Vinoteca’s Charlie Young declared this a ‘good package’ overall, with its ‘plum and berry fruit, dryish character on the palate with some texture, and not overdone’, while Yohann Pinol of Wiltons found it ‘easy drinking, with red berries and light tannins’.

£4.50 Fuller's

Team leader Annette Scarfe MW found a ‘restrained nose, warm and understated on the palate with ripe but studied tannins, well balanced with a dry finish’, while The Vine Eno Gastro Pub’s Tatiana Mann enjoyed its ‘value for money, pleasant style with a spicy and vibrant finish’.

£5.52 Amathus

‘Good intensity, complex nose with some secondary and savoury characteristics, gamey notes on the palate with a thick layer of red and dark fruits and a long finish,’ said a satisfied Jurijs Nemkovs of Hakkasan Mayfair.

£5.24 Majestic Commercial

A ‘light and drinkable’ style, began Debbie Warner of Wild Wine Club, while Aurel Istrate of The Connaught observed ‘red fruit notes on the nose and a pleasant palate with some greener hints on a medium finish’.

£5.94 Boutinot

‘A good all-rounder at a great price,’ began Cheese at Leadenhall’s Robert Mason, who was impressed by its ‘elegant, bright, red fruit nose, soft ripe tannins, good structure and fresh fruit palate with earthy coffee notes, all balanced with good acidity and length’.

£5.31 Berkmann Wine Cellars

Team leader Martin Lam described this as a wine showing ‘raspberry and blackberry fruit, chalky tannins and a good structure, not over-worked’, with Sue Jones of The Harrow at Little Bedwyn adding: ‘Vegetal and spicy, silky and perfumed, with restrained but decent oak flavours.’

£5.75 Boutinot

‘Raspberry aromas with herbs and a hint of mushroom,’ said Yauatcha City’s Javier Alonso Cardoso, noting it as a ‘juicy wine with a lasting fruity flavour and velvety tannins’. ‘Lifted aromatics and bramble fruit, generous and appealing,’ added team leader Angela Reddin.

£5.69 Molson Coors

The Don’s Carlos Ferreira found ‘black berries and cherry with white spices and pine hints, good acidity and a balanced palate full of fruits’, describing the finish as ‘long and clean’, while Tatiana Mann of The Vine Eno Gastro Pub felt ‘the best thing is its velvety structure of tannins’, and would be ‘happy to add it to my list by the glass’.

£5.95 Milton Sandford Wines

‘A fruit bomb with toast, smoke and some spice in a decent-length finish,’ began Royal Automobile Club’s Davide Dall’Amico, with team leader Martin Lam describing it as a ‘light, quaffable blend, balanced, with a funky nose and dark berry fruit’.

£4.75 CellarVino

This was a good all-rounder for Coq d’Argent’s Lazaros Engonopoulos, revealing ‘sweet redcurrant and black cherries with good integration, elegance and roundness, easy drinking and very pleasant’.

£5.94 Majestic Commercial

Yauatcha City’s Javier Alonso Cardoso enjoyed this wine’s ‘earthy aromas and smoky herbs, good balance of tannin and acids with red fruit and good length’, while Robert Mason of Cheese at Leadenhall picked it as ‘a good by-the-glass pub wine, with baked fruit, raisins and sweet spice on the palate’.

£5.11 Direct Wines Production

James Fryer of Woodhead 17 liked this wine’s ‘carbonic maceration-style purple floral notes with some pepper and violet and a crunchy finish’, while Sumilier’s Sumita Sarma picked out ‘deep black cherry and soft silky tannins’, describing it as‘ very food-friendly yet easy to drink on its own’.

£5.69 Boutinot

Janusz Pawel Sasiadek of Bottles & Battles found this ‘great value, with intense cherry and violet aromas, soft creamy taste and soft tannins’. Cheese at Leadenhall’s Robert Mason agreed, adding: ‘A crowd-pleasing wine, perfect for barbecues, smooth and easy – a Lionel Richie wine.’

£3.77 Rodney Densem

Michael Fiducia of Coworth Park Ascot liked this wine’s ‘fresh, perfumed, cherry fruit aromas’, and its ‘jamminess on the palate, making it simple and approachable’, while The Don’s Carlos Ferreira found it ‘well made with good acidity, a good wine for the price’.

£4.95 Boutinot

‘A fruit-driven, quite savoury and spicy, big and chunky wine,’ said Hakkasan’s Olivier Gasselin, who thought it showed ‘forest floor notes with a gamey, leafy edge and a savoury, earthy finish’.

£5.38 Boutinot

‘Some richness here,’ began The Harrow at Little Bedwyn’s Sue Jones, ‘with good red and black fruits, tannic but good length and balance on the finish, which has a savoury and pleasing nature.’

£5.98 Boutinot

Andre Luis Martins of Cavalry & Guards Club found ‘fresh raspberry with gentle sweet spices on the nose, then crushed plum with baked notes, light cinnamon suggestions and a fresh finish’.

£5.30 Frederic Robinson

‘Moderate intensity with spices, good entry and velvety tannins, medium length,’ began The Social Company’s Masahito Suzuki, with Hakkasan’s Olivier Gasselin noting ‘gamey, smoky, tertiary character, supple cherry and plum in brandy notes’.

£5.96 Majestic Commercial

A ‘good value’ wine showing ‘blackberries and black plums on the nose with soft and smoky tannins on the palate’, said Sumilier’s Sumita Sarma, who found it a wine with ‘an ease of style’.

£4.51 Molson Coors

Gymkhana’s Valentin Radosav found ‘red and black fruit, an earthy and savoury character with slight tobacco and bell pepper notes’, while Michael Fiducia of Coworth Park Ascot picked up on ‘herbaceous eucalyptus/menthol and dark fruit with a soft, elegant palate’.

£5.70 Boutinot

An enjoyable style said Valentin Radosav of Gymkhana, who found ‘fresh red fruit, plum and cherry, floral and delicate aromas, sweet spice and ripe tannins on the mid-palate’, describing it as ‘juicy and well balanced with good weight’.

£5.50 Fuller's

This left an impression on Michael Fiducia of Coworth Park Ascot, with its ‘dark blackberry and mocha aromas, with a good, crowd-pleasing, creamy mouthfeel’, while team leader Laurent Richet MS found it ‘easy, rounded with a delicate structure, a great option by the glass’.

£3.79 Broadland Wineries

Adam Michocki of Glasshouse loved the ‘baked plums, black cherries and meaty spices, with well-balanced tannins mellowing on the palate with great fruitiness’, making it ‘smooth, easy drinking and amazing value for money’.

£3.78 Broadland Wineries

A ‘simple, carbonic style with fresh redcurrant and soft tannins, but an amazing price’, began team leader Annette Scarfe MW, with Hakkasan Mayfair’s Jurijs Nemkovs enjoying its ‘fresh, dark fruit dominating the nose, but red fruit on a juicy palate with some floral notes and ripe, soft tannins’.

£4.17 Tees

‘Fresh and approachable, some greenness but berries followed by a hint of leaf and stalk,’ said Sue Jones of The Harrow at Little Bedwyn, while Royal Automobile Club’s Davide Dall’Amico found ‘fruity, floral notes and a touch of spice, light tannins and lovely freshness’.

£5.04 Boutinot

Team leader Simon Woods described this wine as ‘rich and juicy, tender and fleshy, with fragrant plum, damson and blackberry fruit’, while Beaverbrook’s Euan McColm found it a ‘classic, juicy house red, with black cherry pie character, young and supple, very pleasant’.

£5.95 Boutinot

Sue Jones of The Harrow at Little Bedwyn found this a ‘richer, gamier style with blackberry and boysenberry, meaty and savoury’, while team leader Martin Lam noted: ‘Dark red fruit, smoky nose, sweet oak a little dominant but overall a good glass at this level.’

£5.27 Atlantico UK

£5.92 Davy's Wine Merchants

£5.95 Fuller's

£4.50 Fuller's

£5.57 Boutinot

£6.00 Davy's Wine Merchants

£5.84 Tolchards

£5.22 Frederic Robinson

£5.85 Boutinot

£5.74 Boutinot

£5.67 Davy's Wine Merchants

£5.88 CyT UK

£5.40 CyT UK

£4.75 CellarVino

£4.94 Boutinot

£5.93 Boutinot

£5.09 Boutinot

£5.34 Boutinot

£5.50 Fuller's

£5.95 Fuller's

£3.77 Tolchards Ltd, Cheers Wine Merchants

£4.80 Boutinot

£4.79 Boutinot

£5.07 Boutinot

£5.08 Boutinot

£5.15 Lisbon Wines