ALDI's Spring/Summer collection 2025

My tasting notes

Specially Selected Crèmant de Loire €14.99

Brilliantly fresh and fully sparkling, this is a combination of Chenin Blanc, as you would expect, with Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc. Crisp and quite dry with citrus zest and luscious pear. 12% abv

Cava Rosado €12.99

Garnacha and Pinot Noir deliver a fully sparkling rosé, very fresh and dry with a juicy strawberry character. 11.5% abv

Sparkling Vinho Verde €12.99

Vinho verde is usually slightly effervescent but this goes much further. Naturally light in alcohol and high in fresh acidity, it’s all about green apples and lemon zest. 11% abv

Specially Selected Pinot Grigio delle Venezie DOC 2024 €9.99

Delightfully straightforward and dry white wine with typical Pinot Grigio hint of grapefruit zest plus a lovely mineral backbone. 12.5% abv

Rueda Verdejo 2024 €8.99

Something different from northern Spain, a very dry, very crisp white wine. If you fancy a change from Sauvignon Blanc, this is a great option: crushed blackcurrant leaf and fennel on the nose, lemony on the palate. 13% abv

Verdicchio 2024 €7.99

Bracingly dry and very food-friendly white wine from the Marche in central Italy. Verdicchio is the grape, known for its zippy acidity and there’s just a touch of nuttiness. 12.5% abv

Assyrtiko 2024 €9.99

Assyrtiko is a native Greek grape renowned for its ability to keep its freshness even when very ripe. Here it’s blended with a little Chardonnay to produce a deliciously different dry white wine with lots of citrus, a touch of chamomile and ripe apricot. 12% abv

Specially Selected Picpoul de Pinet 2024 €9.99

In Languedoc dialect “picpoul” means “lip-stinger” reflecting this local grape’s ability to keep its fresh acidity intact even in very hot vineyards. Actually, it’s lovely: zingy, zesty, with grapefruit zest and a touch of white peach. Made for seafood. 12.5% abv

Soave 2024 €6.99

Astonishing value for money! This very dry and uncomplicated white wine is made mainly from the local Garganega grape in the Veneto, northeastern Italy. Very food-friendly and useful as a palate-cleansing aperitvo, it’s highly versatile. 11% abv

Rioja Bianco 2024 €8.99

Bone dry and as fresh as a frosty morning, this unoaked white wine is made mainly from Viura and Garnacha Bianca in a region must better known for big oaky reds, quite the contrast. Floral on the nose, crunchy Granny Smith apple on the palate. 11% abv

Aimone Pinot Grigio €4.99/37.5cl

Very easy drinking style of Pinot Grigio, blended from several Italian regions. 11% abv

Specially Selected Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc 2024 €10.99

Stylish and subtle, this very dry white wine owes a lot to the relatively cool climate of a particular and highly prized wine region in Western Australia. Unlike NZ versions, this is more like a Loire Sauvignon, refined and delicate but with plenty going on. 13.5% abv

German Riesling 2024 €8.49

This 100% Riesling wine from the Rheinhessen is a little old-fashioned in that it combines the varietal acidity and green apples with a surprising amount of sweetness, rather like a kabinett right down to the low alcohol. A style that is becoming quite rare in Germany, so carpe diem! 9% abv

Côtes de Gascogne 2024 €7.99

Cracking value for a brilliantly fragrant white wine which may appeal to people looking for a change from Sauvignon Blanc. The Colombard grape produces similar aromas and the whole thing is very dry and refreshingly zesty. Low alcohol is a bonus! 10.5% abv

Cambalala Pinot Grigio 2024 €7.99

A very easy-drinking Pinot Grigio from South Africa’s Western Cape. Fruity, approachable, citrus and apple, maybe a touch of peach. 11% abv

Specially Selected Buenas Vides Viognier 2024 €8.99

Most unusual, a Viognier from Argentina! But it’s true to the grape with a luscious sense of ripe peach while finishing very, very dry. Assertive at first, but subtle and stylish. 12.5% abv

Specially Selected Organic New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc 2024 €9.99

Organic wine production is really taking off in New Zealand and this is a fine example with all the pungent, zingy, zesty crushed nettles, green peppers, asparagus and what have you that go with the Kiwi style. 13% abv

Specially Selected Costières de Nîmes Blanc 2024 €9.99

An utterly delicious of local grapes grown in the Mediterranean climate of the Southern Rhône, this is a real rarity as less than 4% of wine here is white. Peach and lime with a richness to the texture that suggests a much dearer wine. 12.5% abv

Specially Selected Baron Amarillo Godello 2024 €11.99

Godello is probably Spain’s most fashionable white wine grape even though it almost died out back in the 1980s. This example offers astonishing value for money. It’s very dry with a crisp mineral backbone, apples and pears, maybe a squeeze of lime. Elegant. 13.5% abv

Specially Selected Côteaux de Beziers Rosé 2024 €8.99

An exceptionally attractive pink wine from very close to the Med in the far south of France, combining local favourites Cinsault and Grenache Noir. Dry but not austere, with plenty of ripe strawberry fruit and a hint of black cherry. 12% abv

Unearthed Thracian Valley Pinot Noir Rosé 2024 €8.99

Glorious dry yet exuberantly fruity pink Pinot Noir from Bulgaria’s emerging Thracian Valley reason. Raspberries and red currants, crisp, food-friendly and amazingly good value.

Argentinian Malbec Rosé 2024 €7.99

Although it’s bone dry, the aromas are almost sweet: plenty of strawberry and tropical fruits. From Mendoza beneath the Andes, it’s a very food-friendly rosé, robust enough to deal with quite assertive flavours. 12.5% abv

Sainte Victoire Provence Rosé 2024 €12.99

Provence produces some of the most fashionable rosés on the planet thanks to a long tradition of making fresh, dry, pink wines that go with blazing sunshine (or even an Irish Summer). Approachable and fragrant with red berries, it’s gets extra freshness from a small amount of the local Rolle grape, aka Vermentino. 12.5% abv

Le Petit Poulet 2024 €8.99

Dry and delicate, floral on the nose and quite crisp on the palate with a touch of red currants. A fairly typical Mediterranean rosé. 12.5% abv

Specially Selected Pinot Grigio delle Venezie DOC 2024 €7.99

A pink Pinot Grigio thanks to extended skin contact during vinification – and, of course the “grigio” refers to the dark skin of this otherwise white wine grape. Pale pink, grapefruit zest, dry and raspberryish. 12.5% abv

Isla Blanca Spanish Rosé 2024 €9.99

This delicately coloured rosé is made mainly from Garnacha but with some Pinot Noir and Bobal. Dry and subtle, it as a scent of strawberry and a hint of raspberry. 12.5% abv

Specially Selected French Rosorange Rosé 2024 €11.99

The wine is as distinctive as the bottle, a blend of conventional rosé and ultra-fashionable skin-contact white, citrus zest meets tropical fruits. Lovely balance and certainly a little bit different. The colour is what the French tend to call pelure d’oignon or onion skin. 12.5% abv

Specially Selected Lebanese Red 2022 €9.99

If you like the wines of Bordeaux, this one is for you. It’s 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, so far so Bordeaux, but the rest is Cinsault, Syrah and Carignan. Lovely blackcurrant fruit, some spice and a dark chocolate, no oak. Made at Domaine des Tourelles in the Bekaa Valley. 13.5% abv

Specially Selected Vallée du Paradis Rouge 2024 €8.99

A chunky red made equally from the dark Carignan grape, Grenache and Syrah in lovely harmony. Plums, spice, may a hint of very dark chocolate. The grapes are from the Massif de Corbiéres and a small IGP, essentially in the foothills of the Pyrenees. 13.5% abv

Buenas Vides Organic Argentinian Malbec 2024 €10.99

Dark and meaty, with ripe plum and raspberry and a touch of dark chocolate. Rich but deliciously balanced and, of course, organically produced in the high altitude Uco Valley which explains the freshness. 13.5% abv

Nero d’Avola 2024 €8.99

The label looks expensive and the wine tastes expensive! Pure Black Forest gâteau aromas but pretty dry when you taste. Rich, silky, intense with the dark chocolate, black cherry fruit and oak seasoning coming through. A big wine for robust flavours – from Sicily. 13% abv

Mimo Moutinho IG Lisbon Red 2023 €8.99

A very user-friendly red from Portugal and native grapes, Castelão, Alicante Bouchet and Touriga Nacional. The fruit, the whole fruit and nothing but the fruit. A hefty 8g/litre of residual sugar left after fermentation. 13% abv

French Merlot 2024 €7.99

100% Merlot from Languedoc, very dry but full of sunshine and fruit. This is the kind of wine you can imagine drinking from a Luminarc tumbler sitting outside an auberge somewhere on the Canal du Midi. Stupendous value for something that can transport you that far. 13% abv

Mimo Moutinho Dão 2022 €8.99

Ripe, supple, a bit different thanks to all native grape varieties in this big Portuguese red with brambly fruit, black plums and a good dollop of spice. 13% abv

Aimone Puglia Red €4.99/37.5cl

Fruity and slightly sweet red. 13.5% abv

Unearthed Macedonian Primitivo Kratosija 2023 €8.99

This is the latest in ALDI’s inspirational Unearthed range of unusual wines, this time from Northern Macedonia. It’s widely known now that Primitivo and Zinfandel are the same grape but it’s also the same as Kratosija! This is a lovely example, ripe but juicy and fresh, very easy to drink. 13.5%

Specially Selected German Pinot Noir 2023 €9.99

German reds are something of a novelty and this Pinot Noir would be called Blauburgunder or Spätburgunder in its homeland. Light in texture, cherry-scented and very approachable with supple tannins, it comes from the relatively warm wine region of Pfälz. 12.5% abv

Coonawarra Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 €9.99

A fine example of how Australia blends wines from quite different regions, this time from the red soils or terra rossa of Coonawarra to the diverse soils of the Barossa almost 500km away. A subtle combination of relatively cool and quite warm climates, very much reflected in the balance of this serious red. 14.5% abv

Specially Selected Stellenbosch Shiraz 2024 €8.99

A wine that underlines how South Africa is the bridge between Old World and New in terms of wines. This great value Shiraz looks more towards the Rhône than to the Southern hemisphere. Plums, pepper, chocolate. 13.5% abv

South African Macchiato Pinotage 2024 €10.99

A ripe and round Pinotage with supple tannins and a flavour of chocolate and coffee.

Specially Selected Caladoc Rouge 2024 €11.99

Caladoc is a grape that deserves to be better known. A cross between Malbec and Grenache, it has terrific colour as you can see here, along with fairly serious tannins. Intense red fruits, quite juicy with a touch of spice and the herbs of the garrigue as befits a Languedoc red wine. 14% abv

Specially Selected Washington State Syrah 2020 €11.99

A whopper of a red wine with oodles of blackcurrant fruit and a huge oak seasoning. For big dishes as there’s a great deal going on in this stuff! 14.5% abv