A Wine Lover's Weekly Guide To $10 Wines - A Termpranillo From Ribera de Guardiana (Spain)
Author: Levi Reiss

This article reports on my findings for a Spanish red wine
based on Spain's signature grape, Tempranillo. The
Extremadura region of southwestern Spain is a volume
producer of wine but most of its grapes end up in Sherries.
I think this is my first wine from Extremadura, if I drank
any previously they didn't make a great impression on me.
My office mate suggested the wine but didn't enjoy the
second bottle as much as the first.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review
are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed Campobarro, Ribera del Guadiana (Spain)
Tempranillo, 2007 13% alcohol about $8

Let's start by quoting the back label. The appellation
RIBERA DEL GUADIANA is located in the south west of Spain.
We produce great wines at very affordable prices. This
tempranillo of Campobarro had a beautiful dark red and
violet overtones color. It has very good aromas, with lots
of fruits (raspberries and plums). The taste is wonderful,
very well balanced and it's a good wine for any occasions.
Combine with beef, pork, veal, or poultry. And now for my
reactions.

I first tried this Tempranillo with a beef stew accompanied
by carrots and potatoes. The wine was very long, round, and
fruity with melt in your mouth tannins. There were dark
fruits and the wine was fairly lengthy. At this price, I
would have expected a harsh wine, but such was not the
case. The wine was not very subtle. I definitely tasted
some cherries, dark cherries.

The following meal consisted of a Middle-Eastern specialty,
ground meat in ground bulgar and semolina jackets with a
peppery tomato sauce. I tasted dark fruits. The wine was
very refreshing and nicely acidic. On the downside it
seemed thin. Yet I liked it, it was simple and uncluttered.

My final food pairing involved commercially prepared
barbecued chicken thighs with the paprika skin on,
accompanied by potatoes roasted in chicken fat and green
beans. The wine was nicely acidic and cut through the
grease. It was refreshing. The fruit, mostly black cherry,
maintained itself.

I finished the bottle with two local cheeses. In the
presence of a white Muenster the wine tingled a bit. While
refreshing it didn't have a lot of taste. Once again, the
main taste was black cherry. With a yellow Cheddar this
Tempranillo became somewhat more acidic and tasted of
tobacco. There seemed to be no tannins and the wine was
short.

Final verdict. This wine started off well but went downhill
a bit. Would I buy it again? Yes, if I weren't doing this
column. Of course there are better wines in this price
range, but for something refreshing with a simple meal you
could do worse. Think of this wine as an $8 refreshment.


About the Author:

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten computer and
Internet books, but frankly prefers drinking fine German or
other wine, accompanied by the right foods and the right
people. He teaches computer classes at an Ontario
French-language community college. Check out his wine
website http://www.theworldwidewine.com with a weekly
column reviewing $10 wines and new sections writing about
(theory) and tasting (practice) organic and kosher wines.