Thanks to Netflix, and a new TV, we’ve been spending a fair bit of time in front of the box lately and it has struck me that some wines make better TV companions than others.

A good TV wine isn’t too alcoholic, otherwise you’ll fall asleep before the end of the show.

A good TV wine isn’t too complex – you don’t want to be considering the attributes ahead of the plot.

And of course, it has to be under $20.

So here are a couple of wines that are well worth drinking, along with a couple of shows that are well-worth watching.

First, Skillogalee Clare Riesling 2015 $20.90, which went down very well with Bloodline, 2015.

Skillogalee is a small family run winery established in 1970. As far as I know they only make Riesling and do it very well. Clare may be famous for this variety, but it’s a variety that is a bit out of fashion so you get a very well made wine for your money.

It has a floral nose, full and mouth watering citrus on the palate with a hint of something mineral, followed by a crisp lingering finish. Yum.

The show is more complex, dark and menacing. Ben Mendlesohn is the elder son who returns to the family in Florida. The only one who is pleased to see him is his mum. Everyone else is worried that he is up to something, which indeed he is. It was painful to watch at times and the wine was light relief.

But before we discovered Bloodline we were hooked on The Tunnel, an Anglo-French production about two cops on either side of the Channel tunnel attempting to find the killer of a corpse found at the mid point of the tunnel – in both jurisdictions.

The British cop, Roebuck, played by Stephen Dillane is a seasoned detective, driven by his heart (and occasionally other parts). His counterpart, Wasserman is played by Clemence Poesy and her character is one of the most original cop creations ever. She is way out on the spectrum, utterly rational and strangely loveable. They make a great team as they set off to investigate a series of increasingly horrible crimes.

The perfect wine for that comes from the plains of Spain, Proximo Marques de Riscal, 2014 Rioja, 13.5% $8.90 from Dan Murphy.

You read right. Under $10 for a decent Rioja. I guess this is the entry-level wine made from younger vines and kept fruity. The blurb says ‘bursting with dark blackberry fruit with notes of rich, ripe plums. Hints of liquorice and star anise’. I didn’t get to the star anise, but that could have been because I was transfixed with the tunnel.

The wine reminded me of a bouncy young pup, determined to please everyone it meets. Quite the opposite to the ruthless killer in the show.