WINE OF THE WEEK: Vinamas Garnacha Tempranillo

Grapes: Garnacha (70 percent), Tempranillo (30 percent)

Region: Valencia, Spain

Vintage: 2010

Price: $4.99

Availability: Lee’s Discount Liquor, Total Wine

In the glass: Vinamas is an inky blood-red color with a pitch black core going out into a deep purplish-red rim definition with high viscosity.

On the nose: It is very open and inviting with layers of soft raspberry crush, black-pepper laced sauteed strawberries, vanilla bean stalk, black cherry marmalade and hints of underlying damp wood and touches of that classic dill pickle.

On the palate: There is a swift fruity, juicy attack laden with mushed raspberries, strawberries drizzled with peppery notes, definite spice and white pepper components, and again that unmistakable hint of creamy vanilla from the American oak. It is very clean and rounded throughout. The midpalate is ripe with firm tannins, yet there is supple fruit and a polished backbone in the wine through the nice finish.

Odds and ends: Packaged in an attractive bottle that is inspired by one of the great masters of Spanish art, Joan Miro, this is more than just a packaging job. While many have become familiar with the indigenous Spanish grape variety tempranillo, which is usually aged in American Oak rather than French, thereby producing the “dill pickle and vanilla” effect, not so many have been properly introduced to the garnacha grape variety. Originating in the Rhone Valley of France where it is called grenache and found widely in wines from Chateauneuf-du-Pape, it was transplanted sometime in the early part of the 19th century and was found to be very successful in the poor Spanish soils. This Vinamas wine is a blend of those two varieties from the Valencia area of Spain and brings all the good components of both together. It is handily packaged with a screw cap, by far the most practical closure for buy-and-drink wines. Vinamas is also extremely gentle on the wallet, at less than $5 per bottle, which in and of itself is still remarkable in today’s world, but definitely in the great value-for-money category. It drinks so well, one could be fooled to think it was four -plus times more expensive, so it’s a good one to stock up on for the spring barbecue parties to perfectly match those grilled kielbasa sausages. Drink it now through 2015.

Gil Lempert-Schwarz’s wine column appears Wednesdays. Write him at P.O. Box 50749, Henderson, NV 89106-0749, or email him at gil@winevegas.com.