(2023) From Castilla-La Mancha, this is another wine to have adopted the still novel paper bottle which I have introduced with other wines: lightweight, and 100% recyclable. The wine is Merlot, made for Laithwaites by Bodegas Fernando Castro. Deep crimson in colour, with vinous black cherry and spice aromas, a stripe of red liquorice. On the palate brimming with primary fruit, sweet, buoyant and easy drinking. It's perhaps a little too sweet and easy for it's own good, lacking a bit of structure, but a barbecue crowd-pleaser surely. £10.99 in a mixed 12.