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date/time
Wed, 10:00PM
clear sky
9.1°C
SSW 15mph
clear sky
9.1°C
SSW 15mph
 | Sunrise | 5:03AM |
| Sunset | 7:04PM |  |
Nathan Lane
Wine Correspondent
P.ublished 11th April 2026
lifestyle
Wine: Outside the Spotlight, Inside the Glass
Wines That Quietly Outclass Their Price Tags
Uruguay is not, traditionally, where most people go looking for greatness in a glass. Yet here we are, on the Atlantic coast, with a winery that has quietly decided it will do things properly, from the ground up, quite literally. Hillside plots, granite soils, ocean breezes, all the right ingredients lined up like a well-drilled kitchen brigade. You can taste that intent. It’s a wine that delivers with military precision.
The colour is a deep, almost theatrical purple, the sort that suggests seriousness before you’ve even lifted the glass. Then comes the nose, all jammy plum and a soft dusting of spice, not overblown, just confident. It smells like it knows exactly what it is.
On the palate, things settle into place. Cherry and bramble fruit lead the charge, bright yet anchored, followed by a gentle herbal edge that keeps it from drifting into anything too plush or obvious. There is structure here, proper structure, the kind that reminds you Tannat is not a grape for the faint-hearted, but it’s been handled with a lightness of touch that keeps everything in check.
The tannins are ripe and present but balanced, and the acidity keeps it moving, never allowing the wine to slump under its own ambition. It’s full-bodied, yes, but not exhausting, which is a rarer trick than many winemakers seem to realise.
What’s most striking is the balance between control and expression. This is clearly a wine made with precision, fermented carefully, and aged with intent, with every step considered. Yet it still feels alive, shaped as much by place as by process.
In a world of increasingly interchangeable reds, this stands apart. One to add to your ‘must drink’ list.
Available from Ocado for £20 a bottle.
Château Cruzelles 2016 comes from exactly that territory. Eleven hectares, modest by Bordeaux standards, but meticulously handled by Denis Durantou, a man who knew how to coax something serious from unfashionable ground. The vineyards lie barely a kilometre from the Pomerol plateau, planted mostly to Merlot with a touch of Cabernet Franc, rooted in the same dense clay that gives the great wines nearby their depth and shape.
The nose opens with cherry, bright and lifted, before deepening into darker fruit, plum, a little bramble, and a gentle thread of spice. There’s a savoury edge too, mushroom, a hint of herb, the sort of detail that stops things feeling too polished. It smells rich, but not overworked.
On the palate, it does exactly what you want it to. Silky smooth, properly composed, with cherry again leading, joined by darker fruits and a soft herbal note running underneath. The texture is the thing, though. Round, refined tannins that give it that velveteen feel without ever tipping into heaviness.
There’s oak, but it’s restrained. Just a slight, well-judged finish, a touch of coffee, a bit of spice, enough to frame the fruit rather than dominate it. It leaves behind a faint chalkiness, a reminder of the soil it came from, and a freshness that keeps everything moving.
This is not a wine trying to prove a point. It’s one that understands where it sits, just outside the limelight, quietly outperforming bottles twice the price.
Available online from around £26 a bottle.
https://campfirepr.com/