Mas Querido white field blend

In these early days of September it’s good to drink a wine that reminds you it is still summer and I found it at the Majestic tasting this week in a Spanish white from La Mancha called Mas Querido.

It’s what is called a field blend - a wine made from vines that are all mixed up together in the same vineyard as opposed to being grown separately as is usual nowadays (although field blends used to be the norm way back). I’m not sure why - I’ve never managed to get a satisfactory explanation from a winemaker - but they seem to give the wine a special vibrancy.

In this case the grapes are apparently macabeo, airen, moscatel, chardonnay, pedro ximenez, merseguero, sauvignon blanc, verdejo and albillo - a real hotchpotch of varieties which results in a deliciously fragrant, almost gewürztraminer-like wine that would go really well with Asian-style (particularly Cantonese and Thai) food. Think light stir-fries and noodles.

It’s £7.99 a single bottle which isn’t a bad price but is on a mix six deal at £6.99 currently which makes it a bit of a bargain.

(If you don’t want to make up the six with the Mas Querido I suggest a couple of bottles of the cheerful, gluggable El Aviador tempranillo which appears to be only £4.66 on the mix six deal (good for end of season barbies), the very decent Vaison la Romaine Côtes du Rhone (£8.99) and - a more serious wine altogether - the 2010 Parcel Series Chilean Blend which is available as a limited parcel at £14.99 if you buy any six bottles and knocks spots off most Bordeaux at the price.