One of my former coworkers and I enjoy sparring with each other over wine.  He tends to prefer the very traditional, French-type wines, while shunning many of the big California wines.  I, on the other hand, am not as picky about style, which he enjoys teasing me about.  The truth is, though, it doesn’t really matter if it’s a light unoaked Chardonnay from Chablis or big, spicy California Zin as much as I expect the wine to be high quality and deliver what it promises.

2011 Herencia Altes Garnatxa Negra

Spanish wine tends to be the focus of our debates over “good” wine, as I am rabid fan of both the reds and whites, and not just a drinker of the well-known (and often delicious) Rioja.  My coworker, on the other hand, is not.  If I bring wine into work for a happy hour, he will make jokes about leaving the Spanish stuff at home, and he always finds an alternative on the happy hour wine list so he can avoid ordering Spanish wine.  Therefore, I was shocked when he told me he bought a case of Spanish Garnacha from the not-well-known region of Terra Alta and said that I should grab two of the bottles for myself.  I’m so glad I listened to him.

The Herencia Altés Garnatxa Negra (winery) is from the Terra Alta region of Spain and is made with 100% Garnatxa Negra (Garnacha/Grenache) grapes.  The wine had a deep, bright purple color.  On the nose, there were strawberries and raspberries mixed with hints of white pepper.  In the mouth, there were more red berries and white pepper with hints of minerality.  The wine had a medium body and soft tannins.

Is this worth a glass after work? It’s worth more than one!  What are you waiting for?  At $10, the quality/price ratio for this wine is out of this world. Plus, it’s incredibly food friendly, which makes it the type of wine you could not only open after work, but also bring to a party.  It was a beautiful pairing for the lamb burgers and roasted pesto potatoes that Hubby made for dinner, as the minerality in the wine kept it fresh, while keeping the red fruits in check so as not to overpower the food’s flavor.  I actually enjoyed a second glass after dinner, which is a rare thing on a work night, but I wanted to see how the wine held up on it’s own.  It turned out to be an absolute delight as I knitted and caught up with the shows I had on TiVo.  All in all, if you tasted the wine blind, you would never guess that it was so inexpensive.  It has personality without being overbearing and is perfect for A Glass After Work.

Question of the Day: Do you only drink wines from certain countries or regions?

Price: $10
Purchased at Recieved as present
Overall: 4.5 Corks