Disclaimer: Spain has, by far, the best wine values in the world.

Remember what I said about Jorge Ordonez? No?  Well read up on him here on my post dedicated to his wine.  He’s a legendary wine importer and the 2009 Bodegas Volver Tempranillo is probably his best value ever.  Call me a fanboy.  Go ahead.  Jorge Ordonez is to me what Steve Jobs is to Apple fanatics.

I’ve had this wine for the last three vintages and the 2009 is the best yet.  Volver routinely scores 90 points but this year Robert Parker gave it 92 points saying “I would unquestionably drink as a house wine.”  Parker doesn’t review Spanish wines anymore, but he had this and thought it was so good that he wrote it up in his quarterly publication.  Need a back-up rating? Tanzer gave it 90+ points which is pretty much epic (he’s tough) for a $12 wine.

This wine pours an opaque purple/black and is incredibly polished.  It’s made in a modern style, with ripe flavors and sweet oak, but it’s not obnoxious or over the top.  I would love to do a blind tasting with this wine and a bottle of Numanthia Termes (also a Tempranillo), which is one of my favorites.  My guess is it would be a toss up – and Volver is half the price.  What’s more, as good as this wine is now, I would expect it to get better with a couple of years of bottle age – a perfect argument for buying a whole case.  I’ll be trying that one out on my wife.

According to Wine Searcher (the industry standard in wine price benchmarking), LA Wine Co. has everyone else beat by a full dollar.

Buy Here: 2009 Bodegas Volver Tempranillo 11.95

Robert Parker 92 points

“We next moved to a great value that I would unquestionably drink as a house wine, the 2009 Volver from La Mancha. Made from 50-year old Tempranillo vines, it sells for an astonishing $16-$17 a bottle.”

International Wine Cellar 90+ points

“($16) (100% tempranillo): Bright purple. Dark berries, cherry pit, licorice and tobacco on the nose. Slowly unfolds to offer sappy cassis and bitter cherry flavors lifted by tangy acidity and complicated by a peppery, spicy quality. Finishes gripping and long, with resonating cherry and spice notes. Give this some aeration or a couple more years of bottle age. “

Disclaimer: Spain has, by far, the best wine values in the world.

For my money, Spain has two premier red grapes: Garnacha (Grenache) and Tempranillo, though many other grapes play important supporting roles.  The Spanish version of Grenache can range from light and supple to huge and oaky.  This one forgoes the oak but has plenty of the spicy fruit flavors which define Spanish Grenache vs. the French or American versions.

Hailing from the Navarra region in Northern Spain, near the French border, this Garnacha splits the difference between Spanish spice and Southern Rhone sleek.  The nose is bright – focused on fruit over oak.  Immediately upon opening, this wine was on the lighter side with sweet cherry flavors coating the palate.  I opened it on Friday and today (Monday night), it’s gained weight and firmed up, showing its more serious side.  The wine is great either way, and the fact that it’s still good after having been open 3 days, suggests that it will improve with a few years of bottle age.

Slap a 91 point score on an American red and it could certainly add another digit to the incredible price of this wine.  This wine is more evidence that Spain leads the way when it comes to wine value.  But even with Spain’s proven track record, this is an exceptional value.  Caseworthy.

Buy Here: 2009 Artazuri Garnacha $8.99

Wine Advocate 91 points

“The 2009 Artazuri Garnacha is deep purple in color with an inviting nose of spice box, floral notes, and ripe black cherries. Dense, rich, and nicely proportioned on the palate, it has several years of aging potential but can be approached now.”

From now on, the following note goes at the top of every Spanish wine post.  Disclaimer: Spain has, by far, the best wine values in the world.

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about the latest value.  Any Rioja under $10 is likely a good deal, since Rioja is arguably the most prestigious region in Spain.  So when I came across this 88 pointer for $9.95, I had to try it.  What’s the worst that could happen?  I’m out $10?  Well, for me, not quite actually.  You see every wine I drink has an opportunity cost.  What’s the opportunity?  A better wine of course.  I can only drink so much wine and could never hope to taste every wine in the world, so a crappy bottle isn’t just a waste of money, it’s a waste of the experience of drinking another, better wine. (Cue wife’s rolling of the eyes).

Luckily tonight it was both money and opportunity well spent with the 2010 Luberri Joven Orlegi – a wine clearly not named for the US market.  This is an unoaked wine so it relies completely on the quality of its fruit for its flavor.  Those flavors are bright, fruity and polished with beautiful Tempranillo aromas.  It’s not sweet, a common flaw with low priced wines that don’t have the tannic structure to support the sugar.  Rather this wine is balanced with nice mineral flavors, if slightly on the lighter side.

Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate calls the 2010 Orlegi an outstanding value and I couldn’t agree more.  The only opportunity cost with this wine is the cost of missing the opportunity to buy it.

Buy Here: 2010 Luberri Rioja Joven Orlegi $9.95

Wine Advocate 88 Points

“The 2010 Orlegy is an unoaked cuvee fermented with native yeasts. It is a very perfumed effort with plenty of spice and black fruit characteristics. Savory, ripe, and easygoing, this tasty effort will provide enjoyment for another 4-5 years.

Luberri is located in El Ciego in the heart of Rioja Alavesa. The estate consists of 35 hectares of old vines. All three wines presented (100% Tempranillo) are excellent to outstanding values.”

This guy is THE MAN.  I’ve written extensively on these pages about the incredible values Spain puts out year after year, and recently I’ve come to realize that this guy, Jorge Ordonez, might be singlehandedly responsible.  Jorge is a Spanish importer who specializes in epic values between $6 and $60.  Recently, I started to notice this logo on many of my Spanish wines and quickly realized that all of my favorites had something in common: they were imported by Jorge Ordonez.

Volver?  That’s Jorge.  Alto Moncayo Veraton?  Check.  Tres Picos?  Check-a-roo.  Juan Gil?  Protocolo? Okay you get the picture.  The list goes on and covers some of my very favorite high-end wines as well as the value priced steals.

Tonight I’m drinking a Spanish white – a grape I’ve never had called Albarino – with cherry heirloom tomato pasta.  The wine is absolutely incredible with citric notes, a buttery texture and a crisp finish.  With apologies to Albarino purists, it has the best traits of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, combined into one convenient 750ml package.  Guess whose little logo appears on the back of the bottle?

Jorge Ordonez does two things very well.  He sources incredible Spanish wine values for the U.S. market and he slaps on cool labels that happen to appeal to Americans.  If the labels expose these wines to more Americans, then it’s just fine with me.

Find Jorge’s wines here, including La Cana, the Albarino mentioned in this post.

It’s wines like this that make me ask why I spend $30+ on a single bottle.  I try two to three new wines every week.  Because of the research I put in before purchasing, I’m often (but not always) impressed by the value those wines deliver.  Occasionally, I am totally blown away by what I’m drinking.  This is one of those wines.

I literally can’t wrap my head around how, financially, a wine this good can be made.  The grapes are grown nearly 6000 miles away in a country where, despite their unstable economy, the exchange rate isn’t exactly favorable for us ‘mericans.  Sure Spain has more acres under vine than any other country, but they still have to grow, harvest, ferment, age, bottle, transport and sell each bottle of wine.  Doing that for a wine that tastes this good, and selling it for $11 frankly makes no sense to me.  But I’m not getting too upset by it.

I’ve had Tempranillo approaching 4 times this price that didn’t have the vibrant nose, depth and texture of this wine.  It’s complemented, but not obscured by oak and has a finish that goes on and on.  Sound like a high-end wine?  It tastes like one too…

Buy Here: 2007 Venta Mazzaron $10.95

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar 90 points

“($15; 100% tempranillo) Inky purple. Sexy, high-pitched aromas of black raspberry, licorice, flowers and Moroccan spices. Juicy and mineral-driven, featuring a fine-grained texture and very good intensity to the red fruit and floral flavors. There’s an element of finesse here that’s rare to find in a wine at double the price. Leaves sweet fruit and spice notes behind a long, sappy finish.”

When I wrote up the last vintage of this awesome Spanish Garnacha, I compared it to a fine northern Rhone.  If anything, the 2009 vintage is even better than the 2008.  I’ve mentioned this several times, but if you are looking for value in the $8-15 range, start with Spain and especially their Grenache/Garnacha.  It’s difficult to find better drinking wines for the price.

Bodegas Borsao Tres Picos Garnacha is not subtle but it is balanced.  This wine is made for the pleasure seeker.  It’s aged half in stainless and half in oak so you get a nice freshness with the added rich texture from the oak.  That said, the oak influence is definitely not prominent compared to many Spanish Garnacha which use strongly flavored new American Oak.

Finding any 91 point red under $15 is rare.  When you do find one, it’s sometimes an anomaly.  That’s what is so great about Tres Picos – this wine has been rated over 90 points for the last several vintages.  It’s great to make a list of “go to” wines and I can officially add one more to mine!

Buy Here: Bodegas Borsao Tres Picos Garnacha $12.95

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar 91 points

“($17; aged half in stainless steel and half in French barriques Glass-staining ruby. An explosive, flamboyantly perfumed bouquet exudes scents of blackberry, cherry cola, violet and cracked pepper, plus a hint of smokiness. Deeply pitched flavors of dark fruits and candied flowers remind me of syrah, but red fruit notes emerge with air, confirming that this is garnacha, not syrah. Intense, focused and impressively persistent on the finish, which echoes the sweet red and dark fruit notes and leaves a subtle smoky quality. This serious wine should be even better in a couple of years. (Fine Estates from Spain, Dedham, MA)”

If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been way in to the Rhone varietals lately.  High quality, value priced Rhones are coming from the U.S., France, Australia and Spain, in impressive quantities.  In addition to taking mid-day naps, the Spanish are known for their unique take on Rhone grape Grenache (one of my favorites), but they also excel at another popular Rhone grape, Monastrell, or what we know as Mourvedre.  This grape, along with Syrah and Grenache are the main ingredients of Chateauneuf-du-Pape reds.

Too many weird sounding foreign words in this post?  Don’t be intimidated.  This is just fermented grape juice and it doesn’t have to be complicated or intimidating.  Look for a post on how to understand international wines soon.

For this international wine, all you need to know is that it tastes awesome.  The Mourvedre grape’s signature earthiness comes through in this wine and creates a complexity and depth of flavor that isn’t easily matched in this price range.  There is absolutely no way I would have guessed I was drinking a $13 bottle when I first took a sip of this wine.  It’s serious.

The full name of this wine is Bodegas Hijos de Juan Gil Juan Gil.  That naming convention is typical of Spanish wines and may be confusing to many.  Think of the name this way: imagine that I started a winery called Mason Hewitt Vineyards.  I might make several wines of different names but my main wine is simply called Mason Hewitt.  So, in full, my main wine is called Mason Hewitt Vineyards Mason Hewitt.

Regardless of the name, this is a wine to watch for every year.  It’s been rated at least 90 points for the last seven vintages – an impressive track record indeed.  Spain continues to set the world standard for QPR (Quality Price Ratio), which is why you will find a high concentration of Spanish wines on this blog.

Buy Here: 2008 Bodegas Hijos de Juan Gil Juan Gil $12.95

International Wine Cellar 90 points

“($16) Made from vines that are reportedly 50 years old Vivid ruby. An expressive, mineral-accented bouquet displays blackberry, cherry cola and smoked meat, with suave floral and spice qualities that gain strength with aeration. Juicy and nicely focused, with precise dark berry flavors and silken texture. The spice and smoke notes linger on a long, sappy finish. This will benefit from a bit more bottle age or a little air.”

I’m a fan of Chris Ringland’s wines.  If you aren’t, because you find his wines too bold, high alcohol, or in your face, you’re not wrong and neither am I.  Wine comes down to individual taste, and that’s what makes it so great.  That said, a lot of individual tastes must be in line with Ringland’s because his wines are wildly popular.  So in summary, if you don’t like it, you’re weird but not wrong.

Last year I wrote about the 2007 Bodegas Alto Moncayo Alto Moncayo, which is the big brother of this wine.  For such a marketing genius, Ringland should think about making the naming convention of this wine simplier.  I’ll try to make it as simple as possible, because it’s worth understanding and more in this line will likely show up on these pages.

Bodegas Alto Moncayo is the name of the winery (“Bodegas” actually means wineries).  This Bodega has three wines:

The confusing part is when you put the winery name with the wine name, you end up with Bodegas Alto Moncayo Alto Moncayo for one of the wines.  Look at it this way: Veraton (the one featured here) is like a second wine, Alto Moncayo is their main wine and Aquilon is a reserve taken from only the very best vineyard blocks and barrels.  Get it?

Now forget everything I just said, because Veraton shows better than most producer’s reserve wines and calling it a second doesn’t do it justice. The grapes for all of these wines are harvested from the same estate vineyards and all spend time in 100% new French and American oak barrels.  Last year, both Tanzer and Parker gave Veraton 92 points and I would be shocked to see it get anything lower this year.   It possesses the same bold, sweet flavors Chris Ringland is known for while achieving an impressive balance and depth of flavor.

Chris Ringland is like the champion rally car driver of wine makers.  He’s almost out of control, but despite sliding the the very edge of the precipice, he always comes out ahead of everyone else.  He has a signature style which he uses to produce a Garnacha that’s richer and more dense than I’ve ever tasted.  At $23.95, it’s even that much more impressive.

Buy Here: 2008 Bodegas Alto Moncayo Veraton $23.95

I’m going to have to start writing up these Spanish wines two at a time because there are just so many bargains available right now.  The fact that there are so many Spanish bargains right now is making me much less motivated to drink $8-15 California reds.  I have one to try later this week, so we’ll see if I change my mind.

The Priorat region of Spain produces some of the most highly regarded and high priced wines in the country.  Almost completely surrounding this tiny region is Montsant, the region in which this wine is made. Montsant, much like Priorat, makes bold wines based around Garnacha (Grenache) while also incorporating other varietals, in this case Syrah.  Master importer Eric Solomon is notorious for tracking down fantastic values and he’s hit it in a major way on this one.

Judging by the cool label, Mas Donis Barrica is what I call a “MFA” wine.  Made for America.  Spaniards don’t care about the label and for better or for worse, Americans do.  You could also call it a “MFM” wine, meaning Made for Mason.  Bold flavors, impressive concentration and great balance make this Montsant a dead ringer for a Priorat.  For, $8.99, almost a full dollar lower than the lowest price I can find online, it’s case worthy to say the least.

Buy Here: 2007 Celler de Capcanes Mas Donis Barrica $8.99

Wine Advocate 90 points

“The purple-colored 2007 Mas Donis Barrica is a blend of 85% Garnacha (from vineyards over 80 years of age) and 15% Syrah. Aged for eight months in French and American oak, it was bottled without fining and filtration. It offers up an alluring bouquet of smoke, pencil lead, earth notes, clove, cinnamon, and black cherry. This leads to a wine with remarkable depth and concentration for its humble price, savory flavors, and a fruit-filled finish. Although it is likely to evolve for 1-2 years, there is no reason to delay gratification. ”

International Wine Cellar 90 points

“($13; 85% garnacha and 15% syrah) Ruby-red. Powerfully scented bouquet of raspberry, blackberry, cocoa powder and smoky minerals, with a sexy floral overtone. Lush and creamy but lively, with strong red berry flavors and supple texture. Highly alluring wine with lingering sweet notes of rose and red berries.” (IWC)

Maybe it’s the euro to dollar exchange rate or just a few great vintages in a row, but Spain is coming out with some absolutely staggering bargains.  In reality, I think that Spain, more than any other European country, is starting to use modern, dare I say American, winemaking techniques that result in high quality, rich but approachable wines from vineyards that have been around for hundreds of years.

Here’s another theory beginning with a question: Which country has the most acreage of vineyards planted?  With over 2.7 million acres, Spain has nearly three times the acreage of the good ole’ US of A according to the Wine Institute.  So naturally Spain would have ample opportunity for ambitious winemakers to choose great grapes from underutilized vineyards to produce so many fantastic values.

Take a look at these bullets from my tasting notes and ask yourself if you are reading about a $12 wine or a $30-50 wine.