Valserrano, Rioja, Gran Reserva 2016

Ah, wine from Rioja. We drink a lot of Riojas. These come from the Rioja region of northern Spain, and they're made from a grape called Tempranillo. They're Katie's favorite! So this one surprised us a little from the very start. Riojas often smell like fresh-turned, damp earth and mulch and leather saddles, but this one smelled like red licorice. As you might imagine, then, it tasted like strawberry preserves and dried red fruits. To be honest, as we said, we drink a lot of Riojas, and this one was not our favorite. If you're a Rioja-lover like us, or if you're wanting to try one for the first time and get a good idea of what Rioja wines taste like, we'd probably skip over this one. If you're just interested in trying all of the Riojas you can, however, this one sells for $37 at Total Wine.

Food pairing idea: charcuterie board

In a nutshell,

The wine: B

The price: $37 at Total Wine

Would we buy it again? We're split on this one. Bart thought it was nice for the price. Katie would buy a different Rioja.