Santa Julia Innovacion Malbec/Touriga Nacional 2013

So here’s a special for Malbec World Day - maybe a bit of a cheat as it also includes some Touriga Nacional but I quite like Malbec in a blend.

In this case the Touriga Nacional, which Santa Julia was the first to plant in Argentina apparently, provides a dark, exotic element which takes what can be a jammy edge off Malbec at this price while the Malbec gives the Touriga a fragrant lift.

It’s part of a special parcel of wines that is available at Waitrose until May 3rd with an additional 20% discount for myWaitrose cardholders, presumably as an incentive to get us all to sign up. I wouldn’t be rushing to snap up the other wines though. The whites aren’t nearly as interesting or as well-priced.

The discount makes it a great deal at £6.39 but even at £7.99 it’s a good buy* And if you buy six bottles in total you get a further 5% off

Drink with steak (obviously) or lamb. It would also make a good barbecue wine.

For other malbec pairings see What food to match with Malbec.

*though only available in store and apparently through waitrose.com though I can't find it on the website.

I was sent this wine by Waitrose as part of a selection of samples.

Off the Shelf: Desconocido 2013

The first of my random wine finds in this new series* is a young Spanish red called Desconocido #1 Tinto Joven 2013 from Alicante which is made from bush-vine Monastrell (or Mourvèdre as they call it in France).

It’s made by one of Spain’s most talented winemakers, Telmo Rodriguez, and is a rich, spicy, but at 13.5% not overly alcoholic red - at least not for that part of the world. The idea behind the range, which is called ‘unknown’ is to feature wines from less well-known wine regions, grape varieties or blends. The word 'desconocido' means 'stranger'.

As the blurb on the back label puts it it’s “an artisanal red that would be difficult not to enjoy with a variety of red wine foods”. It was perfect with the pot roast of pork with orange, fennel and olives that has been my recipe of the week this week but I think would go with other robust pork dishes too and costs a modest £7.99 from the Co-op.

* where I pick a bottle that appeals to me randomly from a wine store. See my blog post for the thinking behind this.

Macedonio Finca del Regajo Monastrell Joven 2012

Those of you who read the Guardian will have spotted that I’ve devoted this week’s column to independent wine merchants but here’s a slightly different business model from a firm called Dashing Wines which bills itself as offering ‘estate wines at everyday prices’.

Instead of holding regular stocks they select a range of wines every two months which get shipped direct from the producer which obviously keeps costs down

The current offer which ends on March 30th (with wines shipped during the week beginning April 20th) includes selections from Bordeaux and south-west France and Spain. I tried some of the Spanish ones and picked out this absolute bargain monastrell (mourvèdre) from Castilla which is selling off the site for £47.70 a case of six or £7.95 a bottle + £4.95 delivery if you order fewer than 12 bottles*. With its smart contemporary label it looks a lot more expensive than that.

Interestingly I discovered that the winemaker had spent time in Chile, Argentina and New Zealand - and it does have that new world generosity of fruit and polish but without being at all jammy. The vines are grown at 700m which lends a real freshness to the wine. The vineyards are in organic conversion.

Unusually for Spain the oak isn’t overdone - the wine was aged on its lees in French and Hungarian oak for 4 months which adds richness rather than tannin.

A generous full-bodied (14.5%) red to take you through these last nippy days of spring and into the barbecue season. I’m not a big one for the term 'lipsmacking' but this wine certainly is.

Two Sainsbury’s Fairtrade wines to try

Every Fairtrade Fortnight I seem to end up bleating about the quality of Fairtrade wines so I thought this year I would give it a break. And then I found - too late for my Guardian column - a couple of better than average examples in Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference range.

I wouldn’t get over excited - they won’t blow you away - but they’re decent, more than fairly priced and some at least of the proceeds will go towards Fairtade projects.

The first is the Taste the Difference 2014 Wild Valley Fairtrade Chenin Blanc (13.5%) a smooth dry white from the Wellington region of South Africa that would make a useful after-work white and a good partner for light chicken dishes and creamy pasta sauces. And it’s only 98 calories per 125ml glass (Sainsbury’s now usefully putting calorie content on their own brand wines).

And the second Sainsbury’s TTD Fairtrade Carmenère 2013 (14%) from Chile which is typically lush, ripe and fruity - a little soft for my taste but I might well be in a minority on that. A good red to drink with a lamb curry or other spicy lamb dish. Or with sausages.

Both are £6 until March 25th which I think you’ll agree is a bit of a steal. I’d have willingly paid the full £8 for them.

The Co-op also has a large selection of Fairtrade wines of which I’ve most enjoyed the Argentinian wines in the past. The vintages are different but here are my recommendations from last year.