The Rhône & Spain, a Dynamic Duo

As we were perusing inventory to feature in today’s offer, it struck us how much Spain and the Rhône have in common. A countless list of great producers, but only a handful of true icons. A shared thread of varieties and soil types. Incredible values from one appellation to the next. Yet for all their similarities, they have both carved out very specific identities. Today we highlight both of these unique regions with a star-studded list of great wines.

While our Northern Rhône choices might be few today, the selections are among the very best. Cornas stars Allemand and Clape have a trio of extraordinary, well-aged wines that range from in the zone to nearly there—but all with life ahead still. Two other superstars—Guigal and Chapoutier—show off their Syrah chops, with famed and critic-dazzling bottlings from Côte Rotie and Hermitage. Delas, still a relative rising star, also brings the back vintages, with well-matured bottles of 2005 Hermitage. The Southern Rhône really shines, with icons like Henri Bonneau, Beaucastel, Clos des Papes and Pégau. These producers have helped define an appellation’s presence in the global marketplace, and offer quite a diverse range of styles, ages, and vintages. We also have some of the “new school” crowd as well, including St. Préfert, Vieille Julienne, Clos St. Jean, Janasse and more.

Spain’s presence today is a veritable full tour of the country, and with some of its brightest stars. Priorat leads the pack, with Clos Erasmus, Clos Mogador, and Finca Dofí—basically exactly what you’d recommend to a collector who’s unfamiliar with Priorat but wants to discover it. These are global ambassadors of an extraordinary, totally unique winegrowing region. Living legend Raul Pérez makes two appearances with wines from the other side of country, with his Vizcaina project that reliably releases wines of almost laughably high quality for their modest prices. Finally, the superstar appellations of Spain close us out, with a small but eye-raising selection from Rioja and Ribera del Duero, including Muga, Pesquera, and Artadi. Quantities are low, however, so you’ll want to act fast to avoid missing out.