Gold Medal Euro Reds

With stops in Italy, Spain and Portugal to meet some local wine royalty, this is a luxury taste tour giving you the chance to relish a quartet of cracking reds each with at least two Golds to their name. 13 in total, plus a several high scores as well. The sun-drenched, isle of Sicily is something of a winemaking heaven, and in red, Nero d’Avola is king – as dark as the name suggests but with deeply satisfying layers of flavour. Two-Gold Tenuta Fenice is a fabulous example. Made by winemaker Dino Taschetta using fruit from a lovingly restored vineyard planted by his Grandfather and destroyed in a devastating earthquake. On to Spain’s Valencia for Marta Martínez’s silky Palacio del Conde Tempranillo, and then Cariñena for Javier Domeque’s gorgeously concentrated El Bombero Garnacha – two Golds apiece. Lastly, hop over to just north of Lisbon, Portugal to meet winemaker José Neiva Correia for his remarkable Aluado Allicante Bousquet, a velvety red that has won no fewer than seven Golds.