If it's spring again, we'll bring again, the Irish Times Readers' Wine Competition. The general idea remains the same as in our spring competition last year, a nationwide trawl for worthwhile bottles which brought hundreds of replies. The focus is firmly on wines that offer oodles of pleasure at a reasonable price. Wines you'd be happy to uncork with friends, or relieved to find on a restaurant list studded with uncertainties. Wines you'd open in a flash at home some evening.
In the 15 months since our last name-your-favourites competition, new wines beyond number have arrived in this booming wine market of ours, while the vintages of longer established labels have moved on. I'd like you to nominate bottles that are currently available - wines you have especially enjoyed since the beginning of the year 2000.
Unlike last year, wines already mentioned in this column won't be excluded. At the same time, it's fair to say I'll be hoping for heaps of new discoveries.
Because the average spend per bottle has jumped in the past year, we've widened the price band. All wines costing £8.50 and under (punts, please note - not sterling) are eligible, so that gives you plenty of scope. Over the next three weeks, please drop me a line and give me the details of one or several wines in that price bracket which you've recently sampled and consider exceptional, in terms of value. Remember to mention the name of the wine, the producer, the vintage, where you bought it and the price.
I'd also like to know what you liked about the wine, and if possible - voyeuristic creature that I am - in what circumstances it slipped down so well. Friday night in front of the telly? Best friend's wedding? Rocking party where everybody knocked back three bottles a head? This year there will be the special extra prize of a magnum of champagne from Bubbles Brothers, the Cork fizz specialists, for the reader who provides the wittiest comments. Be brief, and don't tell me anything you don't want to tell 100,000 readers of the Irish Times. The winning quote will be published in the wine column in a few weeks' time, along with the winning wines.
Back to the competition proper. As your recommendations roll in, I'll source them all, taste them all and finally (after endless agonising, if it's anything like last year) choose the six wines which seem to me to offer the most drinking pleasure. Everybody who has nominated one of these stars will receive a case of their beloved wine as a prize - except in the situation where several readers nominate the same wines; if that happens, the prizewinner's name will be drawn at random.
This competition requires no specialist knowledge, no rarified skills - just a corkscrew and an honest opinion.
Send your suggestions to Mary Dowey, Features Department, The Irish Times, 13-16 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2, or to winesearch@irish-times.ie to arrive by Friday, May 12th. The winning bottles will appear in the wine column of June 10th, and the prizes will be despatched during that week.