ENTERTAINING this Easter?

Try pairing some wonderful wines for Good Friday fish and Easter Sunday roasts.

Celebrating Easter and the arrival of spring gives wine lovers the perfect opportunity to hunt down something special, or crack open some classics to complement the superb food on offer.

Whether it’s Good Friday fish, Easter lamb or roast beef, these fresh whites and powerful reds will not only delight family and friends, but add another dimension to your well-earned feast.

FOR FRIDAY FISH

1. Finest Picpoul de Pinet 2015, France, £6 at Tesco. Picpoul is a crisp, dry white from the South of France that works like a dream with shellfish and seafood starters. Fresh with balanced acidity, there’s plenty of lemony citrus fruit at its core, a floral nose and a lovely flinty edge that keeps you reaching for this high-necked green bottle.

2. La Escondida Reserve Chardonnay 2014, Mendoza, Argentina, £10.99 from laithwaites.co.uk.

This elegant chardonnay has a subtle oak influence and the crisp citrus and tropical fruit flavours flow through to the fresh, honeyed finish.

3. Land of Hope Reserve Chenin Blanc 2013, South Africa, £16 at Marks & Spencer. Rich and complex, it’s flowing with pear, apple and tropical fruit flavours, honeyed toasty notes, oak, spice and juicy acidity on the finish. Enjoy with a gourmet fish pie or any seafood in a creamy white sauce.

FOR SUNDAY ROASTS

1. Don Lotario Navarra Gran Reserva 2005, Spain, £8.99 at virginwines.co.uk. Spanish reds are a natural bedfellow with lamb and, with a decent amount of ageing, this definitely hits all the right notes. A blend of merlot, graciano, tempranillo and garnacha, it’s rich and velvety smooth with vivid forest fruit aromas leading to a symphony of soft blackberry fruits, spice, cedar, smoke, oak and a trace of herbs.

2. Taste the Difference Cepa Alegro Rioja Reserva 2010, Spain, £10 at Sainsbury’s. An excellent vintage for Rioja, the tempranillo is topped up with graciano for excellent depth of flavour and every sip suggests savoury undertones of vanilla oak. Packed with black cherry fruits supported by firm, ripe tannins with aromas of vanilla spice, it’s a great choice with leg of lamb.

3. Waitrose Valpolicella Ripasso 2013, Italy, Currently £8.99 at Waitrose. The cherry-fruited bouquet follows through on the smooth palate with concentrated cherry, spiced plum, bitter chocolate and a lingering finish. A crowd pleaser with roast beef.

4. Chateau La Vielle Cure, Fronsac 2004, Bordeaux, France, £18.95 from fromvineyardsdirect.com.

If you’re planning to invest in a mixed case for the Easter holidays, this top-notch claret should be on your radar.

Cited as a sleeper vintage, the merlot-dominated blend is drinking beautifully and deftly balances elegance with power.

The violet bouquet leads to jammy fruits entwined with cedar, cigar box, cassis, ripe tannins and a beautifully textured, savoury mouthfeel.

Class in a glass.