12 under $12

The 2024 Grand Bateau is wonderfully aromatic, fresh and vibrant, opening with citrus, white peach and tropical fruit along with delicate white flowers.

The palate is bright and energetic, driven by mouthwatering acidity, but there is also a lovely fleshy quality to the fruit that gives the wine substance and texture without sacrificing freshness. Citrus and stone fruit carry through the palate, with a subtle tropical note and a clean, refreshing finish.

What we particularly like about the 2024 is the balance.

It is bright and energetic, but not thin. Fresh, but not austere. Fruity and expressive, yet beautifully balanced by its acidity.

In short, it is the kind of white wine that makes you want another glass.

91 Points! The young entry-level 2024 Laya was produced with 70% Garnacha Tintorera and 30% Monastrell from dry-farmed 30-year-old vines on limestone and stony soils. It fermented in 20,000-liter open-top stainless steel vats with neutral yeasts and matured for four months in used French oak barrels, where it also underwent malolactic. It's heady, with notes of very ripe dark berries and is young and primary, fruit-driven, easy to drink and juicy, with velvety tannins, 14% alcohol, a pH of 3.76 and 5.4 grams of acidity. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

91 Points! A ripe nose of blackberries, dark cherries, dried violets, potpourri and sweet spices. Full-bodied with powdery tannins. Textured and creamy. Supple, chocolatey finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

90 Points! The ripe and juicy 2019 Casar Mencía has a fruit-driven nose with notes of ripe berries and some flowers. It's at the higher end of ripeness on the Mencía spectrum and has 14.5% alcohol. It matured in 500- and 700-liter oak barrels for one year. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

The vineyards lie on the initial slopes of the Iberian System, where altitude, stony soils, and a stark continental climate—scorching summers, frigid winters, and the fierce, dry north wind known as the Cierzo—naturally limit yields and concentrate flavor in Garnacha. Cariñena, in Aragón’s Ebro Valley, is one of Spain’s historic wine heartlands: viticulture here predates the Romans, the town was established as a Roman settlement around 50 BC, and the region was officially recognized as a Denominación de Origen in 1932, making it one of the country’s earliest protected appellations. Today, Garnacha is the dominant grape, and many vineyards—often bush-pruned old vines—sit on poor, rocky soils and endure hot days and cold nights, conditions that drive phenolic ripeness while preserving the grape’s naturally vibrant acidity and spicy, red-fruited profile.

The grapes are destemmed and fermented with wild yeasts in temperature-controlled stainless steel. The wine rests on the lees for about seven months without racking. The cold climate naturally calrifies the wine which is bottled with only a slight filtration needed.

91 Points! 70% Syrah, 30% Grenache. Complex bouquet of cherries, spices, tobacco and olives. Ripe fruits and herbal notes on the palate, fine grained tannins and a long, succulent finish. - Decanter World Wine Awards

90 Points! Very crisp and bright, the Cantina Andriano (Kellerei Andrian) 2022 Alto Adige Pinot Grigio has aromas of citrus, crushed stone, star fruit and white grapefruit. Those bright aromas join a lean-bodied finish. There is a subtle hint of fleshy citrus, with something like a tangerine sorbet on the close. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

Gorgeous now! What a screaming bargain...

90 Points! Fresh verbena and lime lend zip to white grapefruit and peach in this juicy blend of Grenache Blanc, Clairette and Bourboulenc. Bright in fruit and thirst quenching, it's an easy-drinking, fruity dry white with crowd appeal. - Wine Enthusiast

90 Points! Brimming with fresh black-cherry fruit, this light and crisp Julienas has a very engaging balance of full fruit, gentle tannin and lively acidity. Good length, thanks to those tannins!  - JamesSuckling.com

Old cherry trees are planted in this plot of 60 year old vines giving to the wine distinct note of cherries, stone fruits, pepper and kirsch every year. 

The vineyard is located on terraces of galets roules, 60% Grenache Blanc and 40% Clairette.

The 2020 La Belle Citadelle Cabernet Sauvignon opens with aromas of crushed blackberries, cassis, violets, pepper, and a touch of cedar. On the palate, it delivers layers of ripe currant, black cherry, and plum framed by smooth tannins and lively acidity. There’s enough richness to satisfy Cabernet lovers, but the freshness and balance keep it dangerously drinkable. It’s medium to full-bodied with a clean, polished finish that makes it incredibly versatile at the table.

92 Points! A restrained wine that’s typical for this grape, with aromas of dark fruit, chocolate and graphite. Medium-bodied with crisp yet slightly lifted acidity and firm, chalky tannins that are well balanced in the finish. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

Definitely the finest deal on a Pinot Grigio we've tasted. This one has more body, weight and complexity than anything else out there under $15, guaranteed...

97 Points! Focused herbal, wild black fruit and tobacco nose. The youthful palate is poised and approachable with a soft texture, high tannins and brisk acidity. It has an intensity of flavour in the mouth and an energetic, impressively long, finish. A very accomplished expression of Graciano. The value here is superb! - Decanter World Wine Awards

From the winery: With a name meaning “out of” in Latin, EX speaks to our focus on expressing the personality and characteristics of our Certified Sustainable (SIP) estatevineyard. Our 2021 EX Chardonnay comes from the original 35+-year old, own-rooted Clone 4 planted on our estate vineyard. It is fermented (primary only) and aged for 3 months in stainless steel. The resulting unoaked wine is bright and direct, yet deceptively rich. The nose has a subtle tropical note and flavors offer guava, banana and green apple. There is a noticeable but balanced
acidity with a full mouthfeel.

This ain't your parents Martini & Rossi, this is SERIOUS Moscato Spumate from estate vineyards that is an absolute joy to drink! Like a more bubbly Moscato d'Asti, too much fun...

#Fruity_Sparklers

The Rudy Zinfandel ‘North Coast’ 2018, definitely shows its Napa roots with plenty of firm, bluer fruits and a nice streak of pepper, all mediated with time in the bottle.  All in all, it’s a very fine representation of Zinfandel, the varietal, with a lot of character and an easier demeanor probably thanks to that bottle age.  Super-classy, textbook old-vine Napa Zin (of which there’s almost none left with the race to plant more Cabernet), we liked the wine before we even heard the price.