Autumn is well and truly here - the days are shorter, the house is colder, and each week the kids bring a new rare and exotic disease home from school.

This time of year also calls for food with a bit more oomph - whether that’s hearty Sunday roasts, big bowls of pasta, or slow-cooked stews brimming with rich and comforting flavour.

If this is how the next few months look for you, you’ll need the right wines to match.

So I’ve put together a 6-pack of Autumn Classics so you can do the same.

In the case you’ll get:

• Frédéric Leydet's Château Leydet-Valentin Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2020 - the brand new vintage of this huge customer favourite - a refined and elegant blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot. It was also the venue of our big Bordeaux trip in September
• Olivier Hillaire’s Côtes du Rhône Vieilles Vignes 2021 - there’s something so comforting about the juicy fruit, wild herbs and savouriness of a Syrah/Grenache blend - fading light, howling wind, and sideways rain outside add even more to the enjoyment
• Serena Cordero’s Hica Barbera d’Alba 2019 - some people light a fire, others pull on their favourite onesie. Hand me a bottle of this with anything rich and mushroomy and it’s all the warmth I need
• Mike Paterson's Meltwater Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2022 - Think the bright tropical fruit of New Zealand, with the texture and minerality of a great Sancerre
• Natalia Poblete's Carigno del Maule Carignan 2020 - a rich, refined red made from 75 year-old Carignan vines in Chile. If you like your classic French and Italian reds - Bordeaux, Barbera, Barolo... give this a try
  
• Danie Carinus' Family Chenin Blanc 2022 - from Danie’s Premier Cru-equivalent Swartland vineyards, it tastes of limes, florals, pears and apples, with a lovely creaminess too. Pound for pound it’s hard to find a better value white wine in South Africa right now.