Gorgeous black fruit characters with plenty of new oak character (smokey caramel). Great with barbecued - or any - food! Ciaràn varies the blend according to the vintage - sometimes it is heavily Grenache but in the better years, the Ventoux yields some remarkable Syrah and Ciaran is, quite frankly, not daft enough to pass up such a good opportunity to make a truly great wine. 2004 was such a year (I am persuading Ciaran that this is his finest vintage since he arrived in 1998) and, whilst the wine needs a little time to mellow in the bottle, there is no denying its incredible potential. The best value on our list? It's certainly one of them. See blog.

2009 to 2014

75% Syrah, 25% Grenache

Aged 10 months in one third new oak

14.5%

"I've known Domaine des Anges for ages, hidden up in the hills to the east of the Rhone Valley, and this is as good as anything they've produced. It has a ripe, rich smell of chocolate and plum, and a fascinating array of semi-conflicting flavours - blackberry and damson, milk chocolate, pepper and the rasp of herbs, even a hint of lime acidity - that truly evokes the warm wild hills of the Ventoux." (Oz Clarke's 250 Best Wines 2009)

"This Archange has generous aromas of blackcurrant and enchanting blackberry before revealing its power and complexity, its voluptuousness and finesse. It is built for ageing but it will give immediate pleasure if served with a Provencal daube." Two stars (Guide Hachette)

"Forget the price tag. What you are drinking here is a wine worth almost another fiver." (Matthew Nugent, Evening Herald)

"Opulent, zesty and full of ripe fruit flavours. It’s quite delicious." (Ronan Ferran, Sunday Independent)

Barbecued food (the smokey oak matches the flavour exceptionally well)