Marques de Montanana Garnacha

Grape: Garnacha

Region: Calatayud, Northeastern Spain

Vintage: 2009

Price: $4.99

In the glass: Marques de Montanana is a bright purplish-red color with a semitranslucent core, going out into a fuchsia-purple rim definition with high viscosity.

On the nose: Bright red fruit comes at you like a fruit roll-up express with red cherries, red plums, raspberries, boysenberry sorbet, crushed marionberries and hints of red vines licorice, sweet tobacco and Chinese hibiscus tea.

On the palate: Red fruits coat the inside of the mouth with dominance by the equivalent of cherries jubilee, followed by bright acidity to go along with a forward red fruit melee complimented by soft underlying tannins. The midpalate is equally fruity, but in the dry sense of the word, being endowed with red plum skins and cranberry juice going into the nicely balanced finish, flicking a soft touch of licorice at the very end. This is not a wine that has any brettanomyces or volatile acidity, nor does it have any astringent acidity or tannins.

Odds and ends: Calatayud is one of those vast winegrowing areas in Spain that is producing an abundance of solid tasting inexpensive wines. Almost all the wines from these regions are available at less than $10 and deliver immense bang-for-the-buck. More Americans now prefer wine over beer and you can purchase an entire bottle as easily drinkable as this Marques de Montanana wine for less than $5. Drink it now through 2012, and have it with a Spanish omelet full of mushrooms and peppers.

Gil Lempert-Schwarz’s wine column appears Wednesdays. Write him at P.O. Box 50749, Henderson, NV 89016-0749, or e-mail him at gil@winevegas.com.