£7.89, Booths supermarkets and independents
This flowing, soft red from Languedoc ticks all sort of useful January boxes. It’s made from Cabernet Franc, a grape variety that should be on every trend-spotter’s radar this year, but it’s not one of those niche wines with achingly challenging flavours. Its suppleness gives it an instant, cold-weather comfort factor, but at the same time it has a refreshing red-berry juiciness. And it’s easy to match to food: it won’t overwhelm chicken but won’t be cowed by red meats (provided they’re not in too intense a sauce) and its good with herbs, spices (not too hot) and root vegetables. If you’re not in Booths’ catchment area, you can find other UK stockists (who deliver nationwide) and stockists in other countries at wine-searcher.com
Domaine Mas Barrau Cabernet Franc 2014, Pays du Gard, Languedoc, France
£7.89, Booths supermarkets, Hampton Wine, Drinkmonger, Palmers Wine Store, Wines of Interest, The Bottle Bank, Cheers Wine Merchants, Wine Poole, Raffles Fine Wines; and see wine-searcher.com for stockists in other countries.