It's the end of Dry January – you did it! (And here are the perfect wines to celebrate...)
In the spirit of a refreshed approach to alcohol, why not embrace a new curiosity when it comes to wine? The Independent’s wine columnist Rosamund Hall lines up four spectacular choices
I think we all need to give ourselves a big collective pat on the back because we did it, we got through 2025’s first month. January - nil. Us - one. What a great result. And now February’s here and the snowdrops are pushing through with their steely commitment to life and the teasing promise of spring. As I like to say to myself every morning, even when it’s dark, “These are the good days.”
As January closes for another year, I wonder: were you one of the 15 million people who Alcohol Change UK estimated would be taking part in Dry January this year? If so, you might be feeling an overwhelming desire to head straight to the booze aisles and stock up. But what I’m really hoping is that your approach to alcohol will be altogether more considered.
Why not take a beat, and think about what you want your 2025 drinking to look like? Is this the year that you decide to embrace less and better? To try new wines and break out of the familiar cycle? Or is it going to be the same old pinot grigio and malbec combo with a bit of prosecco for special occasions? (Absolutely no shade if those are your drinks of choice, just let me help you pick a good one.) I’m the wine friend you always wished for.
Instead, you could see this year as the year to fall in love with wine all over again. There are over 10,000 grape varieties and hundreds upon hundreds of wine regions around the world, each doing something different. The multitude of styles available is staggering; red, white, rosé and orange can be made into still, fortified and sparkling wines. They can range from 8 per cent in alcohol, such as a light Moscato d’Asti to 20 per cent in the case of a vintage port. Stylistically, there is something to suit all palettes, whether you love a fireside rich red, or a poolside crisp rosé – wine can do it all. It is an orchestra of organoleptic pleasure.
Then there are the landscapes that it comes from. The sheer scale of variety and beauty of wine regions could more than sate our wanderlust desire for travel in any given lifetime. Who wouldn’t want to visit Pico Island in the middle of the Atlantic, watching the waves crash into the walled vineyards of the Azores? It takes the meaning of “salinity” in wine to a whole new level. Or to walk underneath the vines in the hills above the Amalfi coast, where the grapes are protected from the Mediterranean sun by a canopy of leaves growing from the branches of vines that are rooted like ancient gods into the ground.
But do you want to know the best part? You don’t even have to leave your home to experience these landscapes – pouring a glass of one of these wines can transport you there all through the power of your palate and imagination. So, in the spirit of a refreshed approach to alcohol, why not embrace a new curiosity when it comes to wine?
Simpsons White Cliffs Sparkling, Blanc de Blancs, England, 2019
Available nationwide and through Simpsons, £45, 11.5 per cent ABV
England is the definition of a marginal climate for winemaking, with inclement weather and precarious sunshine hours – it is a tough place for vines to grow. However, we also have outstanding soils and suitable geography to make some great wines of which Simpsons White Cliffs is a fine example.
Nestled in the North Downs of Kent, Simpsons have discovered a unique site that leads to wines with great character and precision. This 100 per cent sparkling vintage chardonnay has a bright nose that is redolent of the fresh apples of Kent and the baked brioche of its nearby French neighbours. It has great precision thanks to its bracing lemon-zest acidity and is lean, elegant and develops wonderfully the next day. Yes, you don’t have to drink sparkling wine all in one go; just invest in a good stopper and enjoy it over two days.
Bonkers Chardonnay: Bonkers Zombie Robot Alien Monsters from the Future Ate My Brain (Sur Lie), Sugrue, England, 2022
Available nationwide in independents, including Wanderlust Wine, £28.50, 12.5 per cent ABV
If you have never tried a still English wine, please, I urge you, treat yourself to a bottle of this. Made by the dynamic winemaking partnership of Dermot and Ana Sugrue, they are among the best winemakers in the UK (and arguably, the world).
While the name might not exactly trip off the tongue, the wine certainly does – it is outstanding. As with many things in life, it came about by a happy accident: a half-filled barrel of chardonnay from the stand-out 2022 vintage, left to gently oxidise for six months. The resulting wine was then blended with wines from 2023 to craft something that is one of the tastiest chardonnays I have tried recently (and I taste a lot).
It combines so many of my favourite elements of chardonnay – there is a rich kick of lemon-cream filled buttery pastry, alongside sea-mist-in-your-face refreshing acidity, a pillow of spring blossom and a hint of roasted hazelnuts too. Bottles like this capture perfectly the essence of what makes wine so exciting and glorious.
Seleccion Rioja, Bodegas Benito Urbina, Spain, 2000
Available nationwide in Independents including The Good Wine Shop, £22.75, 13 per cent ABV
While many wines are best enjoyed in their youthful, upfront prime, others are destined for a life of refined ageing, something that I always find magical.
Urbina is a producer who focus their attention on creating wines to last, and only releases wines from their cellars, many years after the harvest, when they are ready to drink.
This rioja from 2000 is certainly a stately wine with savoury aromas of woodsmoke, leather and cinnamon spice dominating over the undercurrent of dark berries, and black plums all wrapped up with super smooth velvet tannins.
Chateau Musar Levantine Red Wine, Lebanon, 2022
Available at Majestic, £22.99, 14 per cent ABV
The dedication of winemakers is staggering, working tirelessly throughout the year – pruning in deep cold winters through to harvesting in searing summers. But for some winemakers, meteorological pressures are just one small element of the pressures they face.
Chateau Musar in Lebanon is one of the most stoic and impressive wine operations in the world – throughout the turbulent history of their beautiful country, they have never missed a vintage and consistently produce exceptional wines – now that is commitment to your vines, workers and customers worldwide.
Levantine is part of the range of Musar, though if you have an opportunity to taste the first wine, take it. This blend of cinsault and tempranillo is deep and full-bodied with bright red cherries, concentrated ripe plums, a whiff of pipe tobacco and sweet sticky date pudding. It’s still relatively young and would develop over two to five years.
Rosamund Hall (DipWSET) is a freelance writer, presenter and columnist specialising in wine and spirits as well as travel and lifestyle
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