Beronia Viñas Viejas 2017 — La Rioja, Spain ($24.95)

Releasing tomorrow at the LCBO is this splendid Tempranillo from a producer that consistently delivers great quality for the price.

The Viñas Viejas (Old Vines) is made from a selection of the best bunches of Tempranillo grapes grown in vineyards that average 50 years of age, which speaks to this wine’s character and complexity.

While the 2017 vintage wasn’t very good as far as sheer quantity was concerned, it was, more important, terrific from a quality standpoint! This edition was aged for nine months in barrels composed of a mix of American and French oak, but it has spent a pile of time further maturing in the bottle since.

In the glass, it’s a deep black plum in colour. On the nose there’s dense smoky oak embers, tobacco, leather, spice, roasted coffee, black plum, cedar and dark cherry.

Dense, rich, dark red fruit take over on the palate, with more smoke and herbal spice. The 14% alcohol is buried nicely in the mix, and there’s a smooth, rounded finish to the spicy Tempranillo grapes. I quite like the dark, earthy complexity of this wine.

If you can, try to serve this particular wine 15-17C (so maybe a half-hour in the fridge if you’re starting it at room temperature).

Pair it up with red meat, cheese and cured meats.

It’ll cellar for another few years if you want, but it’s ready to roll right now. 91