When Hermann Schroeder decided to build a winery in 2001, little did he expect to unearth the fossilised bones of a 75-million-year-old dinosaur, later named Panamericansaurus Schroederi after the family. Aside from dabbling in accidental palaeontology, the Schroeders also make a range of award-winning wines. Their brand ‘Saurus’ paid tribute to the amazing discovery, whereas ‘Bariloche’ is named after a modern treasure of Patagonia.

The quaint town of Bariloche, a hot spot for winter sports, hosts the source of a number of meltwater rivers that feed into the valley where Schroeder’s vineyards lie. Made from handpicked Malbec grapes with a touch of oak, its bright cherry fruits come forth with a swirl of the glass. Ideal with grilled meats.

Wine Enthusiast calls Amarone “one of 15 icons in Italian wine”. They are certainly some of the country’s most treasured reds. Rooted in the ancient tradition of sun-drying grapes before fermentation, Amarone wines offer exceptional richness and a glorious combination of power and complexity that cellars well, too. No wonder they are sought after worldwide. This 2020 from esteemed Cantina Negrar pays tribute to 18th century poet Bartolomeo Lorenzi, whose epic poems celebrating rural life made Valpolicella wines famous.

The grapes are from the ancient, dry, stone terraces of the cool Marano Valley, where they ripen slowly. They are then air-dried for 120 days to intensify flavours. Decant early and enjoy with hearty dishes, or cellar.

If you enjoy the food-friendly reds of northern Italy, especially the Valpolicella Ripasso style, you'll love this. We have worked with Italian Winery of the Year Cantina di Negrar for years. They own a vineyard in the Marano Valley and they’ve offered us a deal on their Rosso Veronese – a wine usually reserved for their Italian fans. It’s named after Bartolomeo Lorenzi, whose epic 18th-century poem of rural life made Valpolicella wines famous the world over.

The Marano Valley is especially cool, so grapes take longer to ripen, which adds depth, character and freshness to the wines. Also included is a dash of dark Amarone. With black cherry fruit and Christmas cake spice, it’s hard to imagine a more appealing Veronese red. Great with game.

They own Bodegas Muriel in the Rioja Alavesa, a winery established in 1926 by Jose Villaverde, the father of the current owner, Julián.

Julián and his son, Javier, have for years made our customers the much-loved red Barón de Barbón.

Always a top seller, it's adored for its generous, ripe fruit and value for money. This fresh white is in the same class – no doubt why our customers order it more often than any other blanco.

It’s pure Viura, fermented at a cool temperature in stainless steel to capture every single flicker of freshness.

it's ideal served chilled with tapas, barbecued chicken or spicy prawns with noodles.

Chai winemaker Mark Hoddy reserves the Belle Roche label for a red wine made from the best parcel of grapes of the vintage. In 2022 he found just the ticket in a few rows of dark, thick-skinned Cabernet, grown in high-up Languedoc vineyards close to Carcassonne. There the climate benefits both from Mediterranean and Atlantic influences, hence a wine that echoes both of the warm ripeness of the Med with the structure of Bordeaux.

It's a densely flavoured red, its colour almost black – the reason he calls it his precious ‘black diamond’ of the vintage. Meticulously crafted by Mark at the cellar, Belle Roche is best decanted an hour before serving, just like a claret. It’s ideal with a juicy steak, a rich lasagne or a hearty casserole. Decant.

Winemaker Jean-Marc Sauboua has made wine all over the world. He's won loads of prizes too. But Bordeaux was where he was born and raised and where he's searched out the grapes for this snappy fresh white. He's worked with an award-winning ecological cellar on Bordeaux's Right Bank, Les Vignerons de Tutiac in the Côtes de Bordeaux. This is where you'll find some excellent clarets, but Jean-Marc was out to prove that white grapes could perform just as well. It's pure Sauvignon Blanc, taken from a variety of vineyards in both Côtes de Bourg and Blaye, each parcel contributing a different character to the wine. Bright, lemony and intense, it's an elegant white, as you'd expect from Bordeaux. Chill and serve with panfried white fish or solo.

This juicy, full-of-fruit red sums up the best of Aussie wine – gorgeous ripe flavour, good intensity and freshness. Way & Cat is short for ‘wayfaring catador’, catador being Spanish for taster.

So the name is a tribute to how the team source their fruit – they head out into the vineyards to taste the grapes of their grower friends. When they find the selections they like, they vinify each parcel separately, then blend the results into fruit first expressions of the varieties they chose. That blend changes vintage by vintage, depending on what performs well that year. It's top for versatility too – great as a glass on its own, tasty with roasted vegetable quiche, sausage and mash. And just the ticket at a barbecue.

Black Saint Peter comes to you from California’s premium Lodi district, the self-proclaimed ‘Zinfandel Capital of the World’. This grape thrives in the very warm temperatures of this inland region, particularly when grown on gnarly, old, low-yielding vines, some dating back to the 1880s. Zinfandel was brought to California in the 1850s by incomers from the East Coast attracted by the Gold Rush. Some of the first vines were called ‘Black Saint Peters’ until, 20 years later, they were identified as the same grape as Zinfandel.

This weighty, velvety red uses grapes from vines over 50 years old, making for deep and complex flavour in the glass. At a generous 15.5%, it’s a splendid food companion. Serve with barbecued spare-ribs or spicy tagine.

Bleasdale Vineyards have been proudly owned by the Potts family for five generations. Founder Frank Potts was born in Hounslow, and joined the Royal Navy at the tender age of 9! He started his career as a powder monkey and travelled the world several times, before settling in South Australia in 1836. Originally a carpenter, in 1850 he spotted a great plot of land near the town of Langhorne Creek. He and his new wife decided to buy it and began farming. Theirs was the first winery of the region.

In 2007, Paul Hotker became their winemaker (Winemaker of the Year in 2018) and since then they've won 60+ Trophies. For 25 years, they've used Cabernet Franc in blends, but here have bottled it solo. Enjoy its crunchy fruit freshness. Serve cool.