Hope you had a Wonderful Christmas break!

We’re back on the saddle with the final week of Wine Intrigue Awards… and today’s goes to the Best Value of the Year Under $20.

A tough category, as there’s a lot of roughage out there, we know that because all year round one of our most undistinguished ongoing missions is to kiss hundreds of those frogs for you in pursuit of sheer brilliance and mind-blowing deals.

This Rioja neighbor is a GRAN RESERVA – near the tender age of 17 – but youthful as they come?!

The key in delivering this to you for so little? Navarra! Rioja’s lesser known but equally reputable next-door neighbor is where some savvy Rioja producers, like Manzanos, look, and can make the same magic happen, delivering wines that are unbeatable in quality at unbelievable prices. By that we mean $45, the original release price, NOT THE $19 MADNESS you’re looking at that will not last again as the first tranche sold out real fast and we had to go digging deep to find you more for a WIA.

From the highly reputable Rioja family, Manzanos again, a name you’ll recall from a flagship Rioja like THIS ONE. Manzanos was founded in 1890 and today, brothers Victor and David along with David’s wife Laura run the show, having transformed this traditional establishment into a modern powerhouse.

The Drinks Business put a spotlight on them last year: “This is the story of two extremely focused, charming and disgracefully young wine professionals, Víctor and David Fernández de Manzanos, single-handedly transformed their family business in Rioja from a winery in Azagra with 12 employees to a (still family run) business with 5 wineries, employing 160 people… the transformation of Bodegas Manzanos’ history dates back to 1890 in Azagra. The Fernández de Manzanos family has been cultivating vineyards and producing wines for more than a century.”

Then add the fact that Wine Spectator recommends “seeking out the handful of Rioja wineries that largely deliver across-the-board quality at fair prices… producers from which you can buy with relative confidence… such track records include Bodegas Manzanos… adding in the same article that “beyond Rioja, exploring the country’s many D.O.’s yields great results for bargain hunters.”

What’s in the bottle? Pure bliss. Silky smooth tannins, gobs of cherry fruit laced with crushed berries, and nuances of strawberry jam. Vanilla undertones accentuate the fruits, turning to flowers, both fresh and dried. Complex cedar, tobacco, and walnut add to the full-bodied, round, and soft mouthfeel concluding with a long, flavorful finish. Too bad there is a finite amount.

Pile up before this too is gone and shout WIAAA with joy!