Can anyone recommend affordable wines from Spain available at large or chain U.S. stores.

Last week I was surprised to find Albariño Mar de Frades ($20) at HyVee. It is really good. It has become my favorite white wine. I also tried Borsao ($8), which I don´t recommend...may be for sangria.

Seems to me the World Market chain in the USA carried a number of Spanish wines, mostly red, but likely also carry the more-and-more-commonly-found Albariño. You can usually find the red wines Marquez de Riscal and Faustino VI in most large grocery stores like Giant Eagle.

Check the " Spanish Red Wine Help " & " Wines from Spain: USA " threads for other ideas for Spanish wines in the USA.

Saludos, MadridMan

Hi jabch ,

I suppose it can also depend upon where the heck you are in the USA>...!

Do you have access or are in California or Nevada? Go to Trader Joe's and try Santonegro, from Jumilla, or Castillo de Jumilla Monastrell Tempranillo, also from Jumilla. Those are both great wines for the $.

Personally, I think there is a lot of mediocre Spanish wine in the USA, especially from the ' brands of always' that you can find anywhere...

The real quaffers are at Trader Joe's and Beverages and More, at least in California and some other western states....

Good luck finding some!!

megia writes: I agree! Because of that I have lately been concentrating more on Chilean or Argentinian Wines for 'table wine.' Premium Spanish wines, like Marques de Riscal Rioja Reserva are very expensive in New Jersey. I assume that's the case all over.

Hi megia and everyone: Well I am in Kansas City, MO, that's why I was looking for chain stores...Here you find some good Spanish wines, but they are the same I've seen all my life...Sangre de Toro, Marques de Caceres and Marques de Riscal...nothing new.

It's really weird, there aren't many Spanish wines in the $10-$20 range. You find mostly the very cheap $5, bad tasting wine or the $30 and up expensive bottles...So like Eddie I've been trying the Argentinian wines, especially Malbecs.

Thanks for the links MM, I'll check them out.

Definitely I recommend your try a good Albarino for you Christmas dinner ...

see www.classicalwines.com . he american she spanish in sleepless Seattle. they can help you find them or sell you direct. they used to do that a few years back. they import spanish wines to the US.

You really don't like Borsao, Jabch? That's too bad, because I actually think it's a pretty good wine for the price. In Spain, the young wine goes for just a few euros. The winery has a more upscale red called Tres Picos, which I would recommend. I think it goes for something like $12.

But many of you are binging up a point which should worry Spanish winemakers, and that is some bodegas are getting careless about what works in the American market. You get the feelng they think that because Americans are used to paying more fore their wine, they will pay more. But there is a lot of competition with very reasonably priced wines.

Having said that, I would like to give Spanish wine a fair chance. Every time I go back I find more and more Spanish wine in wine stores, so the offer must be improving. For good generally good nice-priced reds try the wines from these regions:
Navarra, La Mancha, Jumilla, Somontano, some Toros (though they are getting pricey), Campo de Borja.

For whites, try the Ruedas.

Good Luck!

Thanks! Murdy.

I've got to add that I've yet to have a Borsao that I've liked. I really tried to like them too, buying several bottles of inexpensive Borsao reds in the USA. The first one make me sick. The next several were not pleasing at all either. One of those, I recall, after it being open (but corked) 2 days it turned bad, really sour. Maybe I was only trying the lower-quality exported Borsao reds. In fact, it was the one shown in the photo below, the bottle with the blue label.

Saludos, MadridMan

Murdy,
As one of the resident wine experts I'm hoping you can educate me - I have seen a huge increase in Yecla lately in the States -Can you shed some light on history, trends, quality?

I must say that the ones I have had were quite good - but I'm another who absolutley will not drink Borsao

Oh the blue label is the worst, now I know why!!

Actually, the good thing about wine drinking is that everyone is entitled to their opinion because we all have different tastes. Sticking to your photo, though, I'd try the one on the top, the yellow-labeled one (the joven), and I also see the Tres Picos.

Other regions nearby to keep in mind are those from Calatayud and Cariñena.

From something meaty but different, try the Montsant wines from Cataluña, which are similar to the Priorat wines (the regions are next door to each other), but are half the price.

This is so funny. With the arrival of each new post, the reviews only get worse!!! I don't know, maybe they send the crap stuff over to the States, because honestly these wines are pretty good and are generally well-regarded in wine fairs and guides alike. The winery is really a cooperative in disguise, so it does have a wide range to offer, in price, and apparently in quality. But, as I said before, not everyone has to like the same wine.

Getting back to your question, Yecla is indeed a region which has grown in popularity over the past fews years. It's a tiny denominación de Origen in the north of Murcia. It's close to Jumilla and its wines are similar. Traditionally it was a huge bulk wine produce which sold millions of gallons to Europe. Now it is focussing on bottled wines. They are typically reds made from the regional grape variety called Monastrell. But other varieties like Syrah, Tempranillo and Merlot are included for blending and as varietal (one variety) wine. If you've tried wine from Yecla, chances are it's from the winery Castaño, which is hands down the most important one there. Its wine mostly goes by the same name, but others like Pozuelo and Hécula belong to the winery. There is also a cooperative (La Purísima) which makes some pretty straightfoward simple stuff...some of it is pretty shaky. There are also some very young wineries making some very good wine too, but some of these wines are pricier than the typical Yecla wines.

So, in short, generally good wines at good prices. For the moment, your best bet is Castaño, though there may be dissenting opinions out there!!

Yep - Castano is the winery most predominate in the stores - have also seen Hecula - didn't realize it was the same parent winery.

And I'll bite - Borsao only sends the junk overseas

I have found Osborne wines at Hy-Vees here in Iowa, along with the aformentioned Marques de Riscal and Faustino VI. I have also been lucky on occasion to find a bottle of Freixenet Cava, which is one of my favorites.

hercula is good i try it; and i am certified by the commercial office of spain in new York back in 2001 with its director Julio Becquer. They did tastings of spanish wines all over the US, and I always was in them;met many Spanish growers.
these mentioned are all good
Navarra, La Mancha, Jumilla, Somontano, some Toros (though they are getting pricey), Campo de Borja.
Ruedas the whites still have a way to go for Spain same for the bubblies. The red I think there are up there with the best.

Another good wine region to consider in terms of price/quality ratio is V.T. Castilla, which is basically La Mancha in disguise. It's not a D.O., but some of the best wine coming out of Castilla-La Mancha can be found under this region, so there's another one to keep an eye out for.

cheers!

thanks for the tip on V.T. Castilla, Murdy - nice to have our own resident wine connoisseur

You've got that right, Puna.

I tried a crianza from Rioja, called El Coto this past weekend, and it was yummy!!!!! I found it at Trader Joes for about 7 bucks!

Seeing as Charlotte is finally getting a Trader Joe's I'll keep an eye out for it -

You should be able to get a bottle of Muga for around $20 give or take. I thinks its from rioja (sp?)

Thanks for your kind words guys. It's my pleasure. Muga is a rioja; it's a classic rioja wine, but one of the best there. I don't know if it was a crianza or reserva that you are referring to.

Pedmar mentioned Rueda reds too. That's true, they are starting to make pretty good reds in that region, though, up until about four or five years ago, Rueda was exclusively a white-wine region, and it is still vastly more famous for its white wine than its red. Back then reds were marketed under V.T. Medina del Campo, which was literally the same region with a different name. Fusing the two was rather controversial, but in the end, it seems to have been the best decision. I still think many of Rueda's white wines are some of the best values in Spain. Many go between 3-10 euros.

The bubblies from Rueda (the ones I tried over Christmas were acceptable), by the way, have become quite popular in the last couple of years among hard-core Spaniards looking for an alternative to Catalan cava! My Father-in-law is one of them!!!

...laduque...coincidently i had the same wine (El Coto crianza ) for the first time over the Christmas period which i enjoyed...got mine at Costco. I went back a couple of days ago to restock but it had all gone. I also tried a bottle of Vina Decana crianza from Utiel-Requena for the first time which i didn't care for too much. Got it at Aldi.

Nedi, you know what? I did get it at Costco too, I better rush back and get a case before it's all gone!

try to find there Panarroz,Jumilla DO Bodegas Olivares 2003 Parker gives it a 90 and it should be around 9 to 10 USD
also, Hercula ,Bodegas Castaño 2004 for about 12 USD
Or
Domaine Liberalia ,TRES 2004 DO Toro for about 15 USD
thesea re prices converting the chg rate so there might be different but all are excellent connaisseur wines. I do drink them every day!!

My wine store actually has an entire area for Spanish wines, has recently put up maps/signs pointing out the different D.O.s etc. And you can do a search on line for what they carry: http://www.northsidewine.com/search.php?page=1&s=&k=&v=0&a=Spain

I'm a white/clarete person so my favs are: albariños, peñascal, rueda, cigales.

Karen

This weekend we were happily surprised to see an Albariño on the menu at a very local Italian place in Yonkers, NY. It was good to see some delicious wines from Galicia being sold in this type of a restaurant. mmm...albariño...it was great!

you may want to check these stores in your part of the world for Spanish wines and others. i am in it same ID pedmar.

http://splendidwines.com

The front label says:
Venta
Mazzaron
2004 Tempranillo

the back label says it's "de Tierra Del Vino De Zamora"
AND IT'S DELICIOUS!! and not too expensive. I can't say exactly what it costs but I know the person who buys it for me and she's no spendthrift!

mmm... Olivares has a ' Dulce Monastrell' dessert wine that's *fantastic!* About $20/bottle...

Laduque, you found ' El Coto' at TJ's in San Diego?? How crazy! I like their crianza...

Muga is a *huge* producer that makes wine in Spain, Chile, and Mexico. I think ' Gurpegui' is the owner / family holding name. ' Pintoresco' is a Gurpegui Muga wine and is pretty darn tasty. Also, try ' Monte Ory' DO Navarra, it's a rosado, also a Gurpegui Muga wine. Good stuff!

Murdy, I think I'm still partial to the verdejo's of Rueda... I have not tried any reds from DO Rueda that stand out. Any tips?

Whoops, forgot to add:

MadridMan, I'm sorry you don't like the Borsao wines! There is one, ' Borsao' that is something like $4.99 in the Cost Plus markets in AZ that is killer for the $...! I haven't seen any Borsao wines, except in spain, that cost more than that...

Eddie and Jbach, yes, the Marques de Riscal and Marques de Caceres are getting tired and old, especially for the $. *BUT*, I did just buy a Marques de Riscal *DO RUEDA* at a Trader Joe's in Scottsdale for $5.99 - 100% Verdejo. Best Marques de Riscal I've ever had! hehehehe... No surprise that all the big money producers in spain have expanded to many other DO's.. Smart move on their part. I suspect pioneers like Alejandro Fernandez ( Pesquera, Condado de Haza, etc.) has had something to do with that trend... I do *love* anything ' Casa Lapostolle.' Haven't had a bad one yet, Eddie.

I finally have a Borsao ally!!! Thanks Megia!

You mention a lot of interest wines and regions. Jumilla, where the Olivares is from, has some bodegas making very good sweet wine from Monastrell grape. Traditionally many Spanish wines were sweet, and it's good to see them making a comeback.

Muga and Gurpegui Muga are two entirely different wineries. There may be some family relationship there since both have been around for a long time, but I haven't found any. Wines from Gurpegui Muga are definitely more economical (and are perfectly sound), but Mugas are rated as some of the best Riojas around.

As for D.O. Rueda, well you are partial to their white wine because that is still their best bet. As for the Marqués de Riscal, I'm glad to hear you like it. Actually Marqués de Riscal was the pioneer in that region. In the 1970s, ruedas were very different wines (almost sherry-like), but it was Marqués de Riscal, in search of a new outlet for its white wine market, which moved into town and changed the direction of that region forever. So in a sense, we have Marqués de Riscal to thank.

As for rueda reds? There's not much available, but you might want to ask around for one of these two: Vacceos Crianza(tempranillo) or Monasterio de Palazuelos Crianza (thought this was pretty good). They are genrally good values.

I agree on Marques de Riscal and not only in whites but in reds too; very well known brand and a historical house in Spanish winemaking indeed. I have met the winemakers in spain and US.Great folks too.

That's interesting Pedmar. I think winemakers in general tend to be very open and friendly people (buena gente). And they love talking about their wine.

Your comment also made realize that I was a little vague in the previous post and that maybe I should clarify a point to other readers who might not be as familiar with this winery.

Marqués de Riscal is a classic Rioja winery and one of the oldest. Basically it was one of the "founding fathers" of Rioja wine region. Here it is most famous for its excellent red wine.

In the 1970s, this winery decided to expand and look for a different region to make white wine. Rioja makes white wine and although some are quite good (Muga, for example makes a good one), they can be a little heavy and, back then, they were rather inconsistent. After a little searching, the decided upon Rueda as a region with a lot of white wine potential. And they were right!

So, when we talk about Marqués de Riscal whites we refer to Rueda, and when we talk about the Marqués de Riscal reds, we refer to Rioja.

Come to think of it, Marqués de Riscal has been a pioneer in both regions!