Five fantastic organic red wines for under £10

We bring you five fantastic reds wines that prove it’s possible to craft something delicious and organic for under £10.

Spain’s Finca Constancia, a source of brilliant-value barrel-aged organic red wines

All the wines that feature over the following pages have been selected ‘blind’ – which means that they were tasted without any knowledge as to their source or varietal components – as part of db’s Organic Wine Masters.

This annual competition is the largest organic-only wine tasting in the UK, and has been devised to single out the best samples in this growing sector, with the only stipulation for entries being that the grapes and / or wine must be certified organic and / or biodynamic.

The selection below follows our previous handful of great-value organic white wines, which you can see by clicking here.

And, as we observed when tasting the whites from this year’s tasting, with organic grapes generally considered around 20% more expensive to grow compared to conventionally-managed vineyards, it was particularly pleasing to see a high standard of relatively cheap wines feature in the competition.

In terms of the selection below, the wines hail from just two countries, Italy and Spain, with the latter taking as many as four of the five spots.

While this year’s Organic Masters did feature a wide range of source areas, including inexpensive wines from France, Chile and Argentina, the best red wines for the money in the sub-£10 wine flights were from Mediterranean Europe, above all Spain.

With this country’s combination of naturally-adapted native grapes, established old vines, dry climes with little disease pressure, and low-cost winemaking expertise, it is no wonder that Spain dominates our choices of organic red wine bargains.

But, if you think you deserve a place on this list, please visit The Global Masters website for more information, or, to enter future competitions, please call: +44 (0) 20 7803 2420 or email Sophie Raichura at: sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com

5. Masso Antico Negroamaro del Salento IGT Bio

Producer: Masso Antico
Region: Puglia
Country: Italy
Grape variety: Negroamaro
Abv: 13.5%
Vintage: 2019
Closure: Plastic cork
Approx. retail price: £8
Medal: Silver – Organic Wine Masters 2020

Finding wines with personality, quality, and organic certification at this price – just £8 – is unusual, and so I was delighted by this red made from the Negroamaro variety by Masso Antico. For those of you who have ever tried wines from this Puglian native grape, you won’t be surprised to hear that the wine has plenty of dry, grippy tannins, and cherry fruit flavours, but I also picked up attractive plummy notes, a touch of soft raspberry sweetness and even some chocolate, although this red has not seen any barrels – it is made entirely in stainless steel.

In short, it’s a great value red in a typically Italian mould – by which I mean it is reasonably light, with fresh acidity, and plenty of dry tannins, making it an ideal partner for a range of foods, particularly fatty red meats and mouth-coating cheeses such as parmesan. My only gripe is the choice of closure – it seems wrong to me to seal an organic wine with a plastic cork.

4. Pacheco Monastrell Organic

Producer: Bodegas Vina Elena
Region: Jumilla
Country: Spain
Grape variety: Monastrell
Abv: 14.5%
Vintage: 2019
Closure: Natural cork
Approx. retail price: £8
Medal: Silver – Organic Wine Masters 2020

Bearing in mind that the Monastrell grape – called Mouvedre in France – is famous for producing highly tannic reds, it was a welcome surprise to find that this wine from Spain, with its abundance of soft ripe freshly crushed strawberry character was made entirely with this variety. While you can still detect some of Monastrell’s grippy tannins, this brings a welcome dryness to the palate after all the juicy berry fruit. Hailing from Monastrell heartland, Spain’s Jumilla wine region, and made by respected producer, Vina Elena, this is a brilliant starting point for tasting the Monastrell grape, along with the wines of this area of Iberia, and, more generally, organic reds. And if none of those criteria matter to you, then just think of this as an excellent bottle of inexpensive red.

3. Honoro Vera Organic

Producer: Juan Gil
Region: Jumilla
Country: Spain
Grape variety: Monastrell
Abv: 14.5%
Vintage: 2019
Closure: Agglomerated cork
Approx. retail price: £9
Medal: Silver – Organic Wine Masters 2020

If you like powerful red wines, with plenty of colour, sweet fruit, spice, and tannins, then this won’t disappoint. Like the wine from Bodegas Vina Elena mentioned above, this red made by Juan Gil is also from Jumilla, and employs the Monastrell grape. But the Honoro Vera differs in its style – while it does have plenty of red berry juiciness, it is a stronger wine, with prune-like flavours, pepper, black cherry, some warming alcohol and a firm, dry, grippy finish. This is definitely the sort of red for hearty meals or cold evenings. But, however you enjoy it, take comfort in the fact you are getting a lot of wine for your money, and the grapes have been grown without the use of synthetic inputs.

2. Luzon Verde Organic

Producer: Bodegas Luzon
Region: Jumilla
Country: Spain
Grape variety: Monastrell
Abv: 14.5%
Vintage: 2019
Closure: Natural cork
Approx. retail price: £9
Medal: Silver – Organic Wine Masters 2020

If you wanted proof that the combination of Jumilla’s hot, dry climate and the Monastrell grape variety’s tough skins were suitable for the challenge of employing organic viticulture for inexpensive wine, then it has surely been provided by the fact that three of our five recommendations for sub-£10 organic reds are Monastrell-based wines from Jumilla. And so, here is this organic red from Bodegas Luzon, another respected name of Jumilla and a specialist in the production of wine without synthetic inputs. In terms of style, it sits somewhere between the two other wines from Jumilla, with some of prune-like hot-climate fruit character of the Honora Vera and a touch of the fresher red berry flavours of the Pacheco Monastrell. But, in keeping with it region, and grape variety, it has masses of bramble fruit and sandy tannins, making it an ideal partner for red meat or cheese.

1. Entre Lunas Organic Moon Wine

Producer: Finca Constancia
Region: Castilla la Mancha
Country: Spain
Grape variety: Tempranillo
Vintage: 2018
Abv: 14%
Closure: Agglomerate cork
Approx. retail price: £8.50
Medal: Silver – Organic Wine Masters 2020

Whatever your criteria, this is an outstanding value red wine – with masses of ripe, sweet, fleshy red cherry fruit, spice, milk chocolate, tannins and warmth. And it is organic – produced at the impressive Finca Constancia estate, where the grapes are grown without synthetic inputs and soil health is promoted through a range of natural measures, such as the use of cover crops and regular compost applications. A great buy whether or not you want an organic red. And, among the category of sub £10 organic wines, this barrel-aged red is an outstanding option.