12 under $12

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.

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