Wines of the week: Eight to drink with game

We're well and truly into autumn now, and that means one thing in the food world: game. Terry Kirby picks his favourite reds – and whites – to pair with darker, richer meat

As we head into autumn with cooler evenings to perk up our taste buds, it’s time to samples the pleasures of game – now in season and widely available in supermarkets and specialist butchers’ shops.

Depending on the kind of dish, game meats pair well with medium to full bodied reds and fulsome, creamy, oaky whites. We may still be having some warmer days, but these are the kind of wines to savour around the first open fires of the season with the smell of autumn leaves drifting in from outdoors.

If you are having lighter game, such as partridge or pheasant (or even a roast guinea fowl, which is similar and milder in flavour) then you need a medium-bodied red; Italian ones with a little oak ageing are ideal here, and the Rosso di Montalcino 2015 (£19.95 bbr.com) from Berry Brothers excellent own label range is no exception. It's balanced, with typical bright red fruit Sangiovese notes, underpinned with some earthy, plummy flavours and lighter hints of tar and smoke.

Or try the beguiling and elegant Renato Ratti Ochetti Lange Nebbiolo 2016 (£17.50 farehamwinecellar.co.uk; £18.75 winedirect.co.uk) from Piedmont, which has chewy flavours of Morello cherries and some sweet spice notes. If you are serving pheasant breasts with a cream sauce, a buttery white chardonnay will cut through the richness while complementing creamy flavours. The Macon-Villages appellation in Burgundy is ideal here: the Cave de Lugny Chardonnay Macon Villages 2016 (£9.49 waitrose.com; £9.49 ocado.com) has rounded flavours of yellow melon and honey and just a light citrus edge.

There is no particular season for wild rabbit, but they are best in the early autumn after feasting on rich grass all summer; its best braised with Dijon mustard or in a red wine, bacon and mushroom casserole. If it’s the former, a richer white might suffice, such as the Mount Horrocks 2016 Clare Valley Semillon (£18.50 winedirect.co.uk) a sumptuous Australian white which has a full texture, a little oak and lovely lemon and herb flavours; the latter needs a more substantial southern French red, such as the Chateau Ventenac Cabardes La Reserve de Jeanne 2015 (£10.69 jnwine.com) a robust blend of cabernet franc, syrah, Grenache and merlot, which is packed with smooth, ripe black fruits, with hints of spice and herbs, would also work well, both for the casserole wine and to drink with it.

Pan-fried pigeon breasts, served pink, in perhaps a sweetish, balsamic jus, are a great and inexpensive treat – think of them as mini steaks and serve with a good Argentine malbec like the Zorzal ZZ Tupungato 2017 (£9.50 marksandspencers) where the high altitude at which the grapes are grown adds a leavening quality to the spicy, red berry fruits.

A somewhat more expensive dish is grouse, which has a very limited season, finishing on 10 December, and is prized for its rich but subtle flavours and smooth texture. It’s going to be a special meal, so go for a classic red Burgundy, such as the Louis Latour Savigny Les Beaune 2015 (£18.89 prestigedrinks.com; £26.50 tanners-wines.co.uk), which is packed with bright raspberry flavours.

One of the bonuses of the game season is those packs of mixed game that arrive on supermarket shelves – they are ideal for a warming pie or casserole.

A big Bordeaux-style red would be fitting but we are going back to Italy here and the Tuscan coast for the elegant Insoglio del Cinghiale, Campo Di Sasso Bibbona 2016 (£21.50 corneyandbarrow.com), a rich, silky and voluptuous blend of syrah, petit verdot, merlot and cabernet sauvignon. And, since Cinghiale is Italian for wild boar, it’s also perfect for when you roast a whole one, if you are game enough for that…