Made with the garnacha grape, this Spanish red wine pairs with hoagies or tapas

Rioja is arguably Spain’s most famous wine region, known best for its food-friendly dry red wines, which over-deliver on quality for their price. Rioja’s relative proximity to Bordeaux in France led to early adoption of French-style winemaking refinements in the late 19th century, such as aging wine in oak barrels and blending multiple grapes to strike a harmonious balance. Almost all Rioja wines are based on the Spanish tempranillo grape that makes up over 80% of the region’s vines. This variety’s finesse, firm tannic grip, and affinity for long-term aging have come to define expectations for red Rioja wines.

However, a number of other grapes are permitted for cultivation in Rioja and some vintners make varietal wines from these alternate grapes, as with this rustic and robust Rioja made with 100% garnacha.

If tempranillo represents Spain’s most noble red grape, associated with fine wines and special occasions, then garnacha would be its working-class counterpart, better known for delivering great value in sensible, satisfying everyday red wines. Garnacha is native to nearby Aragón in Spain, and is also known as grenache, which dominates France’s Côtes-du-Rhône region. This vine is popular with growers because it can yield freakishly large crops without compromising alcohol content or flavor density. Where Rioja’s tempranillo wines are quite dark, with a brambly flavor profile of blackberries and black plums, garnacha makes paler Riojas like this one that taste more of red fruits like stewed strawberries or brandied cherries. And, like so many garnacha-based wines, it features a rough and tumble scent that is quite meaty and spicy, like the smell of a peppery salami, that is just as suitable for pairing with an Italian hoagie as it is with a fancier tapas meal.

$6.99 (regularly $9.99), 13.5% alcohol

PLCB Item #8551

Sale price through — 8/1

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