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Wines from the countries still in Euro 2024

28 June 2024 By James Evison

As the Euro 2024 Championship reaches the knock-out stages of the tournament, db looks at special wines to enjoy from all the countries still featured.

Switzerland

Pinot Noir de Vex Clos de la Couta AOC VS Bio

Producer: Domaine Jean-René Gemanier

Region: Valais Bourgeon

Grape varieties: 100% Pinot Noir

ABV: 13%

Approx. retail price: £70-80

This wine won a gold medal at our Pinot Noir Masters last year and is an excellent choice with Patricia Stefanowicz MW describing it as a “stunningly beautiful wine”.

See all the medal winning wines from the Global Pinot Noir Masters 2024 here.

Italy

Musivum

Producer: Mezzacorona

Region: Trentino-Alto Adige

Grape varieties: Pinot Grigio

ABV: 13.5%

Approx. retail price: £50

This won a Master medal at our annual Global Pinot Gris/Grigio Masters competition. With Italy taking on Switzerland in the round of 16 match, it is a great compliment to the Pinot mentioned above. A red and a white for a game of two halves.

Germany

Vintages

Producer: Dreissiagacker

Region: Rheinhessen

Grape varieties: 100% Riesling

ABV: 12.5%

Approx. retail price: £28

It feels appropriate to go for a German Riesling to enjoy with the match, and this Masters medal winning wine is a great example.

See all of the medallists from the Global Riesling Masters here.

Denmark

Vintage

Producer: Frederiksdal

Fruit: Cherries

ABV: 14%

Approx. retail price: £25

This cherry wine is fermented on skins and stones for four to five days to add complexity and flavour. Cherries are pressed and fermented in steel tanks.

England

Hambledon Vineyard Classic Cuvée

Producer: Hambledon

Region: Hampshire

Grape varieties: 52% Chardonnay, 32% Pinot Noir, 16% Meunier

ABV: 12%

Approx. retail price: £34

Patrick Schmitt MW said: “A first-rate example of English sparkling wine, with its typical mix of fresh apple fruit and firm acidity, this Classic Cuvée from Hambledon also features notes of pastry and pear, lemon and quince, with a creamytextured mousse and a very dry, somewhat tart finish.”

See all the winners of the Global Sparkling Masters 2024 here.

Georgia

Saperavi

Producer: Tbivino

Region: Kakheti

Grape variety: Saperavi

ABV: 13%

Approx. retail price: £15

Saperavi is Georgia’s most widely planted red wine grape and is often blended with other grape varieties. This is 100% Saperavi – the grapes that make it are all hand-selected. It has a deep ruby red colour, good depth, complexity, and an authentic local character.

There are hints of coffee, cinnamon and vanilla overlaying black fruit, particularly blackberry. On the palate, it displays typical Saperavi notes of cassis and a hint of liquorice, along with good acidity and slightly more tannin grip than other Saperavis.

A tasty choice with hearty winter soups and stews, or with barbecues, and marinated lamb kebabs. Try it with pizza too.

France

Éminence de Bijou Pinot Noir 2023

Producer: Bijou

Region: Languedoc

Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir

ABV: 13%

Residual sugar: 1g/l

Approx. retail price: £16

Patrick Schmitt said: “Like Gerard Bertrand, Bijou is proving that the Languedoc can yield fine, barrel-influenced Pinot Noir, and in this case, at an impressively good price. For a little more than £15, this smartly-packaged Pinot Noir delivers a range of appealing flavours, from ripe cherry to blackberry, wild strawberry, juicy blood orange and then toast and cedar, along with a touch of vanilla. The tannins are slightly chunky for Pinot, but the generous fruit profile provides a suitable foil for the dry, grippy finish.”

Belgium

Brut Blanc de Blancs

Producer: Domaine du Chant d’Eole

Region: Quévy-le-Grand

Grape varieties: Chardonnay: 98%, Pinot blanc 2%

Approx. retail price: £15-£20

Dosage: 7,8g/L

ABV: 12.5%

This traditional method sparkling won a silver at our Global Sparkling Masters. It’s time to see if the Belgium team can finally fizz or whether the bubble will burst as the country’s ‘golden generation’ of players comes to an end.

Portugal

Vintage 2020

Producer: Alves de Sousa

Region: Douro (Port)

Grape varieties: Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca

ABV: 20%

Vintage: 2020

Approx. retail price: £60-70

Patricia Stefanowicz MW said: “With a long history of agriculture in the Douro, supplying grapes to important producers and the best co-operatives, in 1992 Alves de Sousa was approved to produce its own port. This wine deserves its Master. From the top-quality vintage of 2020, this very young, opaque purple-black hued wine exhibits blackberry, bramble, dark plums, raisins and chocolate with tobacco, new leather and a floral lift on the nose.

“Sweet, with great acidity and dense silky tannins balancing the flavours on the palate, the wine is layered, textured and complex with a lengthy, textured and complex with a lengthy, savoury-spicy finish. A long-keeper, to savour in up to 20-plus years as a true vinho de meditacao to share with a few special friends, and a couple of pasteis de nata.”

Romania

Sorcova Pinot Noir 2022

Producer: Cramele Recas

Region: Banat/Recas

Country: Romania

Vintage: 2022

Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir

ABV: 12.5%

Residual sugar: 5.6g/l,

Approx. retail price: £6.50

Patrick Schmitt MW said: “Taking its name from a Romanian New Year ’s Day well-wishing custom, Sorcova is a brilliant-value red by any measure. Brimming with soft, ripe, slightly jammy red berry fruit, allied to notes of creamy milk chocolate, this is an appealing, crowd-pleasing Pinot Noir with a medium-weight feel and dry, mouth-cleansing tannins too. The fact that it packs this much Pinot punch for not much more than a fiver in the current inflationary environment is nothing short of remarkable.

“If you thought that it wasn’t possible to make fruity-fresh Pinot for the price of cheap Garnacha, you’d be wrong: this Romanian operator has managed it.”

Netherlands

Prestige Brut Nature

Producer: St. Martius

Region: Vijlen

Country: Netherlands

Grape variety: Souvignier Gris

ABV: 12.5%

Approx. retail price: £35-40

Austria

Riesling Smaragd 2022

Producer: Domäne Wachau

Region: Wachau

Country: Austria

Grape variety: 100% Riesling

ABV: 13.5%

Approx. retail price: £35

Patricia Stefanowicz said: “Ried Achleiten is 22 hectares of celebrated vineyard in Weissenkirchen in the Wachau, first documented in the 12th century. Smaragd is the top wine designation in the Wachau’s Vinea Wachau Nobilis Districtus hierarchy.

“It is named after a lizard sometimes seen sunning itself in the stony vineyards during hot spells. This wine lives up to the vineyard’s reputation for structured rather than opulent wines, showing ripe peach and apricot flavours, and hints of apple flowers and woodland honey. The powerful palate has high extract, balanced by lively acidity, with excellent balance and concentration. A wine with ageing potential, it works well now with rôtisserie chicken or turkey breast with pecan stuffing.”

Turkey

Sui Generis 2020

Producer: Chamlija

Region: Strandja Mountain

Grape varieties: 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot

ABV: 15%

Approximate retail price: £33

Siobhan Turner MW said: “It feels as if every one of these tastings has at least one fantastic wine from Turkey in the line-up, which is very exciting to see – and taste. This one has an opulent, ripe and pure nose, with blackberry and some oak spice. On the palate it is warming and ripe, with chunky tannins and beautiful fruit purity.

“Perfect with grilled lamb and spicy aubergines.”

See all the winners from the Global Cabernet Sauvignon Masters.

Spain

Gaudium

Producer: Bodegas Marqués de Cáceres

Grape variety: 100% Tempranillo

Approx. retail price: £55

Patrick Schmitt MW said: “An outstanding wine, whether judged alongside Rioja or other great, powerful reds of the world, Gaudium is the top expression from Marqués de Caceres. It’s based on the fruit from very old Tempranillo – some of which are pie franco plantings from more than 100 years ago – and painstaking winemaking, followed by 18 months ageing in the finest new French oak.

“The result is a reserva Rioja with concentration and elegance, mixing notes of dark chocolate, leather and cedar, then fleshy dark and red berry fruit, from blackberry to Morello cherry. Following all this is a wonderfully persistent finish, with some toast and a lingering, mouthwatering combination of orange zest and fine, dry, dense tannins. An ideal partner for barbecued lamb with rosemary and garlic, or any grilled meat dish.”

Slovenia

Renski Rizling

Producer: Joannes Protner

Region: Styria

Grape variety: 100% Riesling

ABV: 13%

Approx. retail price: £12-15

This wine is described as ‘elegant’ and ‘rich’ with roses and linden blossoms. It is fresh and lively, a bit like the Slovenia team, and the sweet taste of victory that fans would have should they succeed in the knockout stages is matched with the fruity apricot and peach flavours of this wine.