I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region.
It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap.
Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado.
While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done.
Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste.
For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost.
I compared Whispering Angel rosé wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again.
I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated.
After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle.
The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest)
The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview.
While the design was very close, how would the taste compare?
I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out.
In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out.
The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest)
A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink.
After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste.
It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature.
The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily.
There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest)
I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be.
After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise.
What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them.
Recommended reading:
Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other.
Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them.
However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
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Glasgow Times
7 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
I tried Glasgow's newest food and drink tour
Gillian says she was inspired to start the business as the loves 'doing food tours everywhere I go' and wanted to combine the city's food scene with its history. She told the Glasgow Times: 'I did my first ever food tour in New York in 2008 and I just got hooked and thought this would be a great idea to set up in Glasgow.' She continued: 'I thought it would be great to combine the two [food and history] because Scotland's produce is amazing, and it's not always recognised, and Glasgow's history is really interesting. We love sharing stories of Glasgow's past. 'I also wanted to support local and independent businesses. You don't get many about these days so it's great to support them as well as the local community and economy.' READ NEXT: New restaurant opens in Southside bringing a taste of Algeria to Glasgow Mercat Cross (Image: David Dixon via The Merchant City Stroll, which launched in April, was developed alongside Visit Glasgow with Gillian using sources such as Slow Food Glasgow's Sustainable Food Directory to develop a route around the oldest part of the city. She explained: 'I looked at the route and how it would not only cover local and sustainable produce but also logistics, looking at how I would incorporate the city's history into the tour. 'This tour is all about great food and drink, trying traditional and multicultural tastings - it's a city of many cultures. The businesses I work with focus on sustainable produce.' She added: 'We not only want locals to come and enjoy their city, but also want visitors to come and explore the city the way I see it. Glasgow's got so much to offer.' Saint Mungo mural (Image: Newsquest) The Merchant City Stroll starts at the Mercat Cross where I met our tour guide Rae, who was a fountain of knowledge on Glasgow's history. I was on the tour alongside a family of four visiting from the USA. Our first stop was a short walk around the corner to coffee shop and bakery Outlier on London Road. Outlier, which opened in 2022, makes all of their baked goods on site. Here we were each given a coconut macaroon which gives a nod to multicultural influences in Scottish cuisine. READ NEXT: Further details revealed for brunch spots new 'bigger and better' eatery Macaroons at Outlier (Image: Newsquest) This is not my favourite sweet treat but on taking a bit I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one. It was nice and moist with the perfect amount of coconut flavour for me. On leaving Outlier, we headed into the historic Barras and to Crossbill Distilling, who have been producing their range of award-winning Scottish gins in the city since 2017and are the only distillery in the country to source their own juniper berries in Scotland. A sample of Crossbill Green Dry Gin at Crossbill Distilling (Image: Newsquest) I didn't plan on sipping on straight gin before 12pm - specifically their Green Dry which takes on the flavours of blue and red juniper berries and juniper needles - but it was surprisingly smooth, and you could pick up the fresh flavour from the needles. Our next stop was at the award-winning Bare Bones chocolate which came at the perfect time as it gave us an escape from a heavy dump of rain which started suddenly (but thankfully stopped just as quickly). At this stop, we were able to sample their chocolate and we each got a hot chocolate with a homemade marshmallow and were told a little about the process. Hot chocolate at Bare Bones Chocolate (Image: Newsquest) The hot chocolate was really rich and was a nice size, and I liked having the freedom to choose what chocolate we sampled. The second half of the tour was a much more food heavy as we made our way to Merchant Square for stop number three Table Twenty Eight. We were served a small portion of Barra scallops with asparagus and squid ink risotto, which gives a nod to the city's Italian population and influence. The scallops were perfectly cooked, and the risotto and asparagus were delicious. Scallops, asparagus at risotto at Table Twenty Eight (Image: Newsquest) We then made a quick dash across the road to Mharsanta where we each got a taste of Stobcross Lowland Single malt whiskey, a small bowl of Cullen skink and shared some plates of haggis, neeps and tatties with a whisky cream sauce. The Cullen skink in particular stood out to me here, it was creamy and full of flavour with a lot of smoked haddock flakes in the portion. Haggis, neeps & tatties and Cullen skink (Image: Newsquest) For our final food stop, we headed out east again to Drygate brewery where we had a small portion of fish and chips (well, skinny fries) with a glass of their Seven Peaks IPA which is also in the batter. The batter was nice and crisp with delicious flaky fish, and by the end of this last stop I was officially stuffed. Fish and chips at Drygate (Image: Newsquest) Throughout the tour we also stopped at sites such as The Barras, Glasgow Cathedral, the Necropolis, and St Andrews in the Square, as well as seeing several of the city's murals including the Big Yin, Saint Mungo and Fellow Glasgow Residents. I really enjoyed the balance of history and food and learnt a lot of interesting facts about Glasgow I didn't know thanks to Rae and I found there to be a good mix of dishes on the tour. Although the tour was four hours, with the stops spaced out how they were it was about 5000 steps in total so it wasn't a tiring walk. Both the Merchant City and West End tours are limited to a maximum of 10 people on each tour, and think being on a small tour better for being able to hear Rae, as well as for being able to chat with other guests. Archive image of Glasgow Cathedral (Image: Supplied) My tour-mates have done several food and drink tours in different cities, with them saying the Boston Food Tour would be hard to beat. So, what did they think of the Merchant City Stroll? 'This is our favourite one we've ever done,' they said, also praising the mix of food and history. Next time I have friends visiting from outside Glasgow and I'm not sure where to take them, I think this would be the perfect option. The Merchant City Stroll takes place Monday to Thursday and Saturday and costs £95 per person. You can find out more at
South Wales Argus
8 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
This 75cl light pink concoction costs £10.99 per bottle and was made as an alternative to Whispering Angel. Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region. It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap. Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado. While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done. Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste. For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost. I compared Whispering Angel rosé wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again. I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated. After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle. The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest) The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview. While the design was very close, how would the taste compare? I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out. In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out. The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest) A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink. After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste. It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature. The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily. There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest) I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be. After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise. What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them. Recommended reading: Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other. Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them. However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
South Wales Guardian
8 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
I tested Whispering Angel wine to Lidl's Breath of Paradise
This 75cl light pink concoction costs £10.99 per bottle and was made as an alternative to Whispering Angel. Produced by Château d'Esclans it is made from choice grapes in the Esclans Valley and the Cotes de Provence region. It has proved to be quite a popular option for the summer season, but it's not exactly cheap. A post shared by Lidl GB (@lidlgb) Most sites I've found list it for around £22.50, which is what I picked it up for from Ocado. While I am not a massive wine drinker, the fact that Lidl had prioritised quite a bit of their marketing for Breath of Paradise in highlighting it as an alternative to Whispering Angel begged for a comparison to be done. Both wines are bottled in France, with Lidl's option being made from grenache, syrah and cinsault grapes, so it would be interesting to see if that made enough of a difference in the taste. For Lidl, a £10.99 wine is expensive for them, so it still had a lot to live up to, but the emphasis was still on Whispering Angel to justify the extra cost. As mentioned previously, I am not a big wine drinker, but I have slowly progressed from liking prosecco to white wine and rosé every now and again. I'm still not quite there with red wine yet, but I hope in the next few years my palate expands a bit and becomes more sophisticated. After purchasing the wines, it was interesting to see how much inspiration Lidl had taken in the design of the bottle. The two bottles were very similar in design (Image: Newsquest) The gold seal, white label, calligraphic writing and crest in the centre of the bottle all added up to a very similar overview. While the design was very close, how would the taste compare? I decided to try the Whispering Angel first, as it was the original, and there was a bit of trouble in getting the cork out. In my first go of it, the corkscrew got in, but then partially disintegrated the cork in the attempt to pull it out. The Whispering Angel was crisp and went down smoothly (Image: Newsquest) A second attempt was more successful, but it did mean bits of cork were now floating about in the light pink drink. After filtering the wine to make sure we got bits out, it was finally time to give it a taste. It should be said that both wines had been placed in the fridge at the same time, so they were at the same temperature. The wine was crisp, had floral notes in the taste and went down fairly easily. There wasn't much to separate the two wines (Image: Newsquest) I've not had a huge amount of rosé wine in my time, but it seemed decent, although with the price tag attached, it should be. After cleansing my palate with a bit of water (I'm told that's what wine critics do), I then went onto Breath of Paradise. What I found remarkable is outside of some subtle differences in flavour, there really wasn't much to separate them. Recommended reading: I tested Aldi's new 'wine of the summer' and almost lost all my street cred The 3 delightful Rosés from Aldi you don't want to miss and the 1 to avoid The own-brand supermarket wines that beat bottles costing hundreds Both are crisp and go down quite nicely on a warm evening, but there's not a lot to indicate that one is £11 more expensive than the other. Obviously, it should be noted I am not a professional wine critic, and I imagine there are those in the industry who would take my observations with a grain of salt, saying there's plenty to differentiate them. However, the average shopper isn't going to be at that level, and I imagine they might arrive at the same conclusion.
