THE EXPERT Arabella Woodrow Master of Wine and wine buyer for Forth Wines Looks Australian, tastes Australian­and is of course Italian. Dark yellow colour with a creamy grapefruit, melon and hazelnut nose. The oak is slightly less subtle than the description implies. The oak dominates this dryish wine, is a nice buttery chardonnay that does not have much length or concentration. Having had other wines from Càntele, often at £1 cheaper, this is a bit disappointing, but I expect the packaging, which is clever and amusing, adds quite a bit to the cost. Not a great wine, but should sell like hot cakes. Success rating out of 25 ­ 11 THE DESIGNER Matt Thompson Associate director of Blackburn's, a brand packaging designer Full marks for breaking the rules. Cap and frosted bottle create instant standout (and chill out!) in the increasingly competitive wine fixture. But after giving it the attention it craves, one wonders who Marc Xero is or the significance of the label's big blue rectangle. With no reassurances of quality, the consumer has to make a leap of faith about the product based on looks alone. Its radical presentation may be enough to provoke a trial, even with the metal closure, but without any understandable brand personality to fall back on, I fear it's only a matter of time before a new, more charismatic face attracts the attention. Success rating out of 25 ­ 17 . THE BUYER Adam Marshall Licensed trading controller at Nisa-Today's The packaging certainly stands out on the shelf, and I am always keen to see producers pushing the idea of screw caps on more than just Lambrusco. The clear "image conscious" labelling is interesting and again hammers home the youthfulness and freshness of the product. The only concern is the rather strong yellow of the liquid, which through the frosting looks disconcertingly like a sample for the doctors! As to the liquid, it has a warm, ripe nose and quite a developed, full palate with nice crisp acidity on the finish. This wine is not subtle but delivers all of the profiles the packaging suggests. Altogether, as a brand at £4.99 ­ with regular promotion ­ it will do well. Success rating out of 25 ­ 20 Total score out of 100 ­ 61 {{DRINKS }}

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