£13 until 9 August, then back to £15, Sainsbury's
This is one of those ultra-pale rosés that looks almost like white wine but is anything but pale in character. It’s wonderfully aromatic – I smelt strawberries, pine trees, wood-smoke, orange and spices, but you might find other things – and it has a lovely silkiness and elegant roundness to the palate. Bandol is a small wine appellation within Provence, more or less on the coast between Marseille and Toulon (hence the name Ad Mare – “towards the sea”), and it’s the Mediterranean warmth and sunshine that ripens the Mourvèdre, the powerful grape variety that’s the mainstay of Bandol’s rosés and reds. The rosés seem made for the Mediterranean diet – fish, vegetables, olive oil, but you could also drink this with chicken, charcuterie or carpaccio, or on its own of course.
Ad Mare Bandol Rosé 2015, Bandol, Provence, France
£13, on offer until 9 August, then back to £15, selected Sainsbury’s and sainsburys.com.
€53.40 for 6, boutique.estandon.fr; €59.90 for 6, valgourmand.com; €11.50, bonsaveur.de