Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot

Half Cabernet Sauvignon, half Merlot, all of it from Stellenbosch, which is South Africa's most serious red district for good reason. The Cabernet supplies red cherry and blackcurrant, the Merlot rounds things out with mulberry, and the blend keeps a real tannin structure, which is the hardest thing to hold onto once the alcohol comes out of a red. Color is proper ruby rather than the washed-out pink so many alcohol-free reds settle for. It shows better with food than on its own, so open it for steak, braises, or anything built on tomato. A 150ml serving works out to 20 calories, and the bottle is 750ml like any other. Misty Cliffs was started by Jason Stanley after twenty years in the wine business, and the range is made with hand-selected Cape fruit and no artificial flavoring.