Eight great high street wines for Mother’s Day

or the second year in a row, this is not going to be an ordinary Mothering Sunday. This time last year we stood on the brink of the pandemic and were being advised not to meet up with elderly relatives; that made it difficult in itself, but this year it may feel even worse – so many of us have lost our mothers and the mothers of our children, while other families are simply unable to meet up, except perhaps online. But where we can meet up, on Zoom or in our support and family bubbles, we can and should raise a glass: most definitely to motherhood, but also to those mothers we have lost and, hopefully, to a future that feels brighter, thanks to the vaccine. And time when actual hugs can replace virtual ones and bottles shared, not just waved on screen.

So, today may be about finding the right wines for that occasion tomorrow – whether it’s a simple drink, perhaps a glass of something fizzy, or to accompany a sit down meal in our family bubble – during our essential shopping and supermarket trips. And I’m also highlighting a couple of wines made by women winemakers, for which I didn’t quite have space in my column last week on women winemakers in honour of International Women’s Day.