8 SEPTEMBER 2001, Page 57

Simon Hoggart

WHAT a treat, on a hot summer's day, to be in Southwold. This is a lovely seaside town in Suffolk, described as a funky version of Frinton. It's dominated by Adnams, the brewers and now wine merchants. They own two gorgeous hotels, the Swan and the Crown, plus a pair of enticing wine stores. And there's the brewery, situated in the centre of the town, which produces rich, fragrant, traditional beers.

So I was in a very good mood before we started our tasting. I was in an even better mood when I'd sampled the 30 or so wines that Simon Loftus and his colleagues had lined up. All were fine, some were magnificent, and I could easily have found two full monthly offers. I found it impossible to whittle the choice down to fewer than seven, so Alastair Marshall, the senior wine-buyer sensibly suggested we made use of their special 15-bottle cases for our sampler. He also offered several deep discounts.

First, the 2000 Jean des Vignes Secw, a white wine made exclusively for Adnams in Gascony. Nobody has the right to complain about any good wine which costs £3.65 a bottle, and I doubt if anyone will kvetch about this. It's refreshing, juicy, and the Colombard and Ugni blanc grapes give it real body and flavour. Perfect with a picnic, or as a kir — the kind of wine of which you need a few cases at hand, in case thirst strikes, as I find it so often does.

For not much more you can enjoy the 2000 Casa Rivas Chardonnay:2) from the Maipo Valley in Chile. Rather rounder and meatier, not over-oaked, this confirms the astonishing value of so many South American wines. How they make it, bottle it, ship it to Southwold and then send it to your door for £4.95 a bottle, I simply do not know.

The 2000 Riesling from the Martinborough Estate in New Zealand''' is a wondrous wine. At £7.95 a bottle (that's a hefty reduction) it beggars belief. It is peppery, it is oily, it is smoky, it is floral, it has lovely silky fruit flavours. I hate to bang on like Jilly Goolden, but there really is no other way of describing the rich complexity of such a wine, and the heady, perfumed aroma that assails anyone lucky enough to have a glass in his hand.

The 2000 Domaine Limbardie (it means Lizard's Patch)4' is one of those red wines pretending to he a rosé. It's made from Carignan and Merlot grapes, which give it a powerful taste and great weight. But it's perfect for the end of the summer, because you can drink it as cold as you like and still be knocked over by all that flavour hitting your tongue like paratroopers landing on D-Day.

The 1999 Baso Garnacha'' from Navarra is another terrific find. Garnacha is Spanish for Grenache, a grape in Rhone, and you can tell the similarity. At the same time it's a very different drop: lively, fresh, minty, a joy to sling back. Alastair must have had a brainstorm, because he cut our price from £4.95 to £3.95, a lavish 21 per cent.

I like to include a claret, and I especially like to include one that is actually good

value. This one, Les Iris de Ch. Charnel), . is from the younger vines at Château Chantelys. Unlike much cheap Bordeaux, which tastes of floor sweepings, this is packed with fruit and has that lovely cigaiy, leathery nose (think of an old gent in a gentleman's club) of a much pricier claret, At a discounted £5.95 this is superb.

After anguished thought and bibbing, I selected an Australian Shiraz as our last choice. This, from the Montara Estate''', is one of those huge, knock-your-socks-off wines. Some people find this kind of thing overpowering. I don't: I think of it as the first of the autumn wines, rich, lush, generous, perfect with roasts, game, stews, and anything else which has a flavour to match its strength. Again, it's £1 off at 0.95, and worth every penny.

All wines are by the case of 12, or there's the sampler case of 15. which contains two bottles of each wine, and three of the Jean des Vignes. It includes a further discount. Delivery is free, and there's yet another 5 per cent off if you buy five of any cases or more.