The Story
The Garnacha de Fuego 2018 is an old vine (between 39 and 79 years old) Garnacha sourced from mountainside vineyards in the Calatayud district of the Aragon DO in northeast Spain. This is one of Jorge Ordóñez Selections line of imported wines, he is a major importer of Spanish wines and his wines are well distributed and should be found in most parts of the country. An easy way of exploring imported wine is to “follow the importer” if you like an Importer’s wines there is a good chance you will enjoy others in their portfolio. So let them find the wines and bring them to you. This is a young Garnacha, meaning it has very little aging before release and should be consumed in the first couple of years, the sooner the better.
The Garnacha/Grenache grape is indigenous to the Aragon region, it’s the home base for Garnacha. The climate is hot in the day and cools at night, grapes like wide temperature swings between night and day. The vineyards are dry-farmed, the water the vines get comes from whatever rainfall there is and the vineyards are farmed with traditional methods, no high tech here. After fermentation, the Garnacha is aged in stainless steel tanks or cement vats. The alcohol content is a stout 15.5%.
The Tasting Notes
The color is scarlet red with black highlights. The nose is smokey and spicey, with bright red berries. This is a medium-bodied red with intense flavors and a solid dose of spice. It starts with extracted blackberry, black pepper, a slight pull from the tannins, and black licorice. The mid-palate shows a balanced display of spice, dried strawberry pieces and a late hit od cooling blueberry. The acidity allows the flavors to shine and the finish is last a long, long time.
The Summary
- This is a sub-ten buck Garnacha that made Wine Spectator Top 100 Value Wines (the 2016 vintage) and has reviewed well for years.
- If you want the best cheap wine, learn to like Garnacha/Grenache, there are multiple solid well-priced Garnacha based red wines from Spain and France.
- The Garnache de Fuego gives a sense of place while still being easy to understand for those used to American wines.
