Wine match Climbing Merlot 2010, Orange, NSWThis dish has a lovely, comforting Mediterranean feel to it and so should an accompanying wine. The key ingredients to think about are the thick tomato sauce and the chilli. Even only mild heat will push you towards a softer, fruitier red, rather than a big tannic beast. And this style will work nicely with the tomato, too. How about a merlot? The Coonawarra is a great region for this grape, so you could look there, but I fancy Orange as the emerging home of great, modern Aussie merlot, so look for this little beauty called Climbing – just the roundness that you want, while still having good structure, with ripe fruit leading the way.
-Dan Coward