In the course of my tastings each year of thousands of new wine releases for the International Wine Cellar, I run into plenty of great values. But no other country offers as many as Spain does, or with such consistency. READ MORE »
For years I’ve been telling International Wine Cellar subscribers that no country or region on earth can match Spain for red wine values. If anything, I found even more remarkable buys during my annual tastings of new Spanish releases in recent months.
Spain has two key advantages that enable it to produce high-quality red wine across much of the country. First, its mostly warm, dry climate produces consistently ripe grapes, prevents most vine diseases, and normally allows for a dry harvest. Second, large swaths of land are planted to older vines, which yield more concentrated, flavorful wines. Luckily for American wine drinkers, a growing number of American importers are latching onto Spain’s potential and now bringing in a variety of wines that deliver astonishing bang for the buck. READ MORE »
If there’s any region producing a greater number of outstanding red wine values than Spain’s Catalunya (Catalonia) and Aragón right now, I’m unaware of it. I’m reminded of their stunning quality/price rapport every year I conduct my annual tastings of new releases from Spain for my report in the International Wine Cellar (published in the current issue)—all the more so with the excellent 2009 and 2010 vintages on deck. Most of these wines are made from garnacha (grenache) and monastrell (mourvèdre, or mataró), emphasizing intense red and dark berry fruit, velvety texture and serious upfront appeal. In Catalunya a number of other varieties are grown, notably cariñena (carignan) but also cabernet sauvignon, syrah and merlot, among others. READ MORE »
As the outsized, fruit-bomb style of Australian red wine continues to fall from favor with American wine lovers, an unfortunate side-effect is that many consumers are lumping all Australian red wines into that category. This is ironic because prior to the late 1990s, few wines in the too-much-ain’t-enough style were available here at all. In fact, back then Australia was viewed as a bountiful source of suave, structured wines made mostly in a Bordeaux mold rather than as late-harvest zinfandel or Port substitutes, as many people consider them today. READ MORE »
