October In High Five Wine Academy:
Spain's Signature Red Takes the Spotlight
Imagine pulling the cork on a bottle that has waited five quiet years in a cellar in Rioja. The first aroma smells of ripe cherry. The second brings vanilla, dill and cedar from the influence of oak. Then, slowly, come leather, tobacco and dried fig: the gifts of time in the bottle. That journey from fruit to oak to age is the story of Spanish Tempranillo, and it is the grape we are exploring all October at High Five Wine Academy.
Want to taste it, not just read about it? Join the High Five Wine Club and get started picking out your October Tempranillo. Wine Coach, Tonia - that's me - it's my job to choose the grape (Tempranillo) and the place (Spain!) and your job to go out and choose the label and your price point. It's no use sending you wine to your door when it might not be the bottle you'd ever choose off the shelf. That's really important and what sets High Five Wine Academy apart from any other wine club. Plus tasting notes, food pairing recipes each week and member-only wine education sessions every Wine Wednesday on zoom.
Ok, back to it.
Ok, back to it.
Tempranillo is Spain's most planted red grape and the backbone of its most famous wines, from Rioja and Ribera del Duero to Toro and La Mancha. It is a grape that rewards curiosity. A young (Joven), unoaked Tempranillo is juicy and bright; a long-aged Gran Reserva is silky, savoury and complex. Learning to taste the difference is one of the most satisfying skills in wine tasting.
In this guide, you will learn where Tempranillo comes from, how to identify its primary, secondary and tertiary aromas, and what the Spanish aging classifications of Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva really mean in your glass. Whether you are new to wine or studying for your next certification, this is your complete Spanish Tempranillo tasting guide.
Meet Tempranillo: The "Little Early One"
The name Tempranillo comes from the Spanish word temprano, meaning "early." The grape ripens several weeks before Garnacha and other Spanish reds, which made it a natural fit for the cooler, higher-altitude vineyards of northern Spain. It is a thick-skinned black grape that gives wines with deep ruby colour, medium acidity, medium to high tannins and medium to full body.
On its own, Tempranillo has a relatively neutral, fruit-forward personality. That is exactly why it is so beloved by winemakers: it takes beautifully to oak aging and long cellaring. It is often blended with Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuelo (Carignan) or, in some regions, Cabernet Sauvignon, though many of Spain's top wines are 100% Tempranillo.
Tempranillo's Many Names
Tempranillo travels under a surprising number of local names, which is useful to know when reading Spanish wine labels:
- Tinto Fino or Tinta del País in Ribera del Duero
- Tinta de Toro in Toro
- Cencibel in La Mancha and Valdepeñas
- Ull de Llebre in Catalonia
- Tinta Roriz or Aragonez across the border in Portugal
Key Spanish Tempranillo Regions
- Rioja: The classic home of Tempranillo. Expect elegant red fruit, bright acidity and a long tradition of American oak aging that gives sweet vanilla and coconut notes.
- Ribera del Duero: High-altitude vineyards on the Duero River plateau produce darker, more powerful, more structured Tempranillo with black fruit and firm tannins.
- Toro: Hot days and old vines make Tinta de Toro bold, ripe and high in alcohol, with dense blackberry and plum.
- La Mancha and Valdepeñas: Warm central Spain makes approachable, great-value Cencibel, often in the Joven style.
The climate of each region shapes the fruit, and the winemaker's choices shape everything else. That brings us to the heart of wine tasting: the three layers of aroma.
Primary Aromas: The Taste of the Grape
Primary aromas come from the grape itself and the vineyard where it grew. They are the fruity, floral and herbal notes you smell first, and they are most vivid in young, unoaked Joven Tempranillo. As a wine ages, these fresh notes soften and evolve into dried and cooked fruit.
In cooler sites like Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa, Spanish Tempranillo leans toward red fruit and fresh herbs. In warmer regions like Toro, it shifts toward ripe black fruit and jammy plum.
Primary Tasting Notes for Spanish Tempranillo
Red fruit
- Red cherry
- Sour cherry
- Strawberry
- Raspberry
- Red plum
- Redcurrant
- Cranberry
Black fruit
- Black cherry
- Blackberry
- Black plum
- Blackcurrant
- Mulberry
Floral
- Violet
- Red rose
Herbal and earthy
- Dried herbs (thyme, rosemary)
- Tomato leaf
- Bay leaf
- Black pepper
- Red clay and dusty earth
- Licorice
Tasting tip: Swirl your glass and smell before you sip. Can you pick out a red fruit and a black fruit? Most Spanish Tempranillo shows both, and the balance between them tells you a lot about the climate and ripeness of the vintage.
Secondary Aromas: The Fingerprint of the Winemaker
Secondary aromas come from winemaking: fermentation, malolactic conversion and, above all, oak aging. For Spanish Tempranillo, oak is the star. The choice between American oak and French oak, new or used barrels, and how long the wine spends in them shapes its flavour profile more than any other decision in the winery. These are tid bits we talk about often in High Five Wine Academy so you become familiar with the terms over time without the feeling of being in a lecture about wine. One more unique benefit of being of our
American oak is the traditional choice in Rioja. It gives sweet, bold flavours like vanilla, coconut and dill. French oak, increasingly popular in modern Rioja and Ribera del Duero, is subtler, with notes of toast, clove, cedar and baking spice. Many winemakers now use both.
Secondary Tasting Notes for Spanish Tempranillo
From American oak
- Vanilla
- Coconut
- Dill
- Sweet spice
- Caramel and butterscotch
From French oak
- Toast
- Clove
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Cedar
- Smoke
From toasted barrels
- Coffee and mocha
- Dark chocolate and cocoa
- Toffee
From fermentation and malolactic conversion
- Cream and butter (from malolactic conversion)
- Yogurt
- Bubblegum and banana (in carbonic maceration Joven wines)
The oak notes are strongest in younger oak-aged wines like Crianza and younger versions of Reserva, where the wood has not yet fully integrated with the fruit. Over time in bottle, these flavours mellow and weave together with the primary fruit.
Tertiary Aromas: The Rewards of Bottle Aging
Tertiary aromas develop slowly as a wine ages, through gentle oxidation in barrel and chemical changes in the bottle over the months and years. Fresh fruit turns to dried fruit, tannins soften into silk, and a savoury, earthy complexity appears. This is where Spanish Tempranillo truly shines, and it is why Reserva and Gran Reserva wines are so treasured by collectors.
You can also see age in the glass. Young Tempranillo is deep purple-ruby; mature Gran Reserva fades to garnet and brick, with a paler, tawny rim.
Tertiary Tasting Notes for Spanish Tempranillo
Dried and cooked fruit
- Dried cherry
- Prune
- Dried fig
- Raisin
- Fruitcake
Savoury and animal
- Leather
- Meat and cured ham
- Game
- Soy
Earth and forest
- Forest floor
- Mushroom
- Truffle
- Wet leaves
Spice and wood
- Tobacco and cigar box
- Cedar
- Sweet spice
Nutty and sweet
- Walnut and almond
- Toffee
- Brown sugar
When these tertiary notes balance with lingering fruit and integrated oak, you have a wine of real harmony. A great Gran Reserva tastes like all three layers speaking at once.
Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva: Spain's Aging Classifications
Spain is one of the few wine countries that labels its red wines by how long they have aged before release. These terms tell you how much time a Tempranillo spent in oak barrels and in bottle, and so which aromas will dominate your glass. Spanish law sets national minimums, and regions like Rioja and Ribera del Duero set stricter rules of their own.
Category | Minimum total aging | Minimum in oak | Style in the glass |
|---|---|---|---|
Joven | None | None (or brief) | Fresh, fruity, primary aromas |
Crianza | 2 years | 1 year (Rioja, Ribera del Duero) | Fruit plus vanilla and spice |
Reserva | 3 years | 1 year | Balanced fruit, oak and early savoury notes |
Gran Reserva | 5 years | 2 years (Rioja, Ribera del Duero) | Silky, complex, tertiary aromas |
Joven: Young and Vibrant
Joven means "young." These wines see little or no oak and are released within a year or so of harvest. In Rioja you may see them labelled Genérico or simply without an aging term. Joven Tempranillo is all about primary aromas: juicy red cherry, strawberry, raspberry, violet and a hint of herbs. Some are made by carbonic maceration, adding soft, playful notes of bubblegum and banana.
Drink it: Lightly chilled, within one to two years, with tapas, pizza, burgers or charcuterie.
Crianza: The Sweet Spot of Fruit and Oak
Crianza means "upbringing" or "nurturing." Under Spanish law a red Crianza must age at least two years before release, with at least six months in oak. Rioja and Ribera del Duero require a full year in barrel. Crianza Tempranillo keeps plenty of red and black fruit but adds secondary aromas of vanilla, coconut, cinnamon and toast. It is often the best-value bottle on the shelf and a perfect everyday Spanish red.
Drink it: Now or within about five years, with roast chicken, lamb chops, chorizo or Manchego cheese.
Reserva: Elegance and Balance
A Reserva must age at least three years, with at least one year in oak. Producers usually make Reserva only in better vintages, from their best grapes. Here the three layers start to meet: ripe and slightly dried fruit, well-integrated oak spice and early tertiary hints of leather, tobacco and earth. Reserva Tempranillo is smooth, structured and very food-friendly.
Drink it: From release to ten years or more, with roast lamb, beef tenderloin, mushroom risotto or aged cheeses.
Gran Reserva: The Pinnacle of Patience
Gran Reserva is reserved for exceptional vintages. These wines must age at least five years before release, with a minimum of 18 months in oak under national law and two years in Rioja and Ribera del Duero. The rest is spent in bottle in the winery's cellar. The result is a silky, layered wine dominated by tertiary aromas: dried cherry, fig, leather, cigar box, forest floor and mushroom, with soft tannins and a long finish. Traditional Rioja Gran Reservas are among the most age-worthy wines in the world, often thriving for 20 years or more.
Drink it: Decant gently to separate any sediment, and serve with slow-roasted lamb, game, truffle dishes or simply on its own.
How to Taste Spanish Tempranillo Like a Pro
The best way to understand Tempranillo is a vertical-style flight: one Joven, one Crianza, one Reserva and one Gran Reserva, ideally from the same region or producer. Taste them from youngest to oldest and notice how the wine changes.
- Look: Watch the colour move from purple-ruby to garnet and brick.
- Smell: Find the primary fruit first, then the oak, then the savoury tertiary notes.
- Taste: Notice how tannins soften from grippy to velvety with age.
- Finish: Older wines usually linger longer and show more layers.
Serving tips: Serve Joven at about 14°C (57°F) and Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva at 16 to 18°C (61 to 64°F). Use a large red wine glass, and give older wines time to breathe.
Perfect Food Pairings for Tempranillo
Tempranillo is one of the most versatile food wines in the world. Classic pairings include roast lamb, jamón ibérico, chorizo, grilled steak, paella with meat, roasted mushrooms, Manchego and other aged sheep's milk cheeses, and smoky barbecue. Its savoury side also loves autumn dishes like braised short ribs and mushroom stew, which makes it a perfect October wine.
Join Us for Tempranillo Month
Spanish Tempranillo is a grape with a story in every bottle: bright fruit from the vineyard, warm spice from the barrel and quiet complexity from years in the cellar. Reading about primary, secondary and tertiary aromas is a great start, but nothing beats tasting them side by side.
All October, High Five Wine Academy members are exploring Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva Tempranillo from Rioja, Ribera del Duero and beyond, with perfectly paired recipes each week.
Ready to taste the difference?
Join the High Five Wine Club today and start your Spanish wine journey this month.
Colin used to work on Saturdays back when we lived in Calgary so I would get up early with him and head to hot yoga. One particular day, a day I would not soon forget, I walked to my yoga studio for some extra exercise. Yoga mat strapped to my side, I was ready to take on my day. I remember feeling like a warrior. Like, ‘Girl, you got this!’.
I did not in fact have this.
Let me start by saying I have never made it out of Savasana alive. I cry every time. There is this unbelievable release that happens after an intense guided yoga flow that just overcomes me as we lay honoring our practice. This particular day, though.... Nothing could have prepared me for what happened.
One thing that bothers me now is that I don’t know the name of the Yoga teacher that day. I’m actually not sure if I even remember what she looks like or if I even looked at her because it was as if I practiced alone in the packed room of 49 other yogis. To me, there was only her and I.
For those of you who might not have had the opportunity to attend a hot yoga class, generally speaking you would quietly walk in, place your mat on the floor and set up your space appropriately. Once you’re settled in, you stretch your way down into a comfortable Savasana or Corpse pose position until the Yoga Instructor slowly engages you in practice. This day I knew I was really in for it as soon as she started talking. I was always worried when there was an instructor I don’t know yet because I’d wonder how intense her practice would be. Every Yogi is different. What I didn’t expect or ever worry about was a tiny little yogi kicking my ass emotionally that day.
Laying in Savasana she began to ask us to imagine standing up and leaving the room again only to return to the yoga studio, but this time we had to leave our suitcase at the door before we came in to lay down in Savasana. In other words, our baggage was not allowed any further into this room, but we’d spend the next hour and fifteen minutes talking about why.
Shit. HOW DID SHE KNOW?!
Our eyes closed, she walked us all back to the change room and then right back in and had us stop as soon as we were inside the doors to the hot yoga studio room. We were instructed to imagine our suitcase in our hand and that the entire room was empty save for her and, well… me.
It was surprising how magically she’d taken over my imagination as if her voice was that of my own narrative. I’d actually left my body where it was and followed her wherever she told me to go. I obeyed. She then said to imagine that whatever we were carrying in this suitcase was something we’ve been needing to let go of for a pretty long time now. We absolutely can not bring it any further into this room. It stays at the door. Put it down. I listened.
As if nothing at all had happened we began our flow as she gently awoke our bodies from Savasana to seated, seated to Mountain. I don’t remember anything about the class itself after that. Only her voice. And her message.
She said, if you’re thinking about your suitcase, don’t worry. It will be there waiting for you when you leave.
I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. Where the hell was my regular instructor? I actually remember thinking that. I adored my Saturday afternoon Yoga instructor. This one, she was beating me up! I collected myself and drew in my rib cage and pressed further into down dog. She began to talk about the consequences of carrying around this suitcase with us for the rest of our lives. We don’t even open it anyways, she said. Do you know why we keep it though? It comes with consequences. We’re afraid to be brave enough to save ourselves in case the risk of the consequences is too great. Sucker. Punch.
I was so in my head and in my body the entire class. I don’t remember any yummy stretches or how we got back into Savasana but I remember feeling trapped when I got there. Between me and the outside world was now this suitcase I had to face on my way back out of this room. I remember being almost mad. Ridiculous, right? To be mad at the end of a Yoga practice?
She spoke again, softly. She said, something to the tune of: let me tell you something about the suitcase at the back of the room that you carefully put down at the beginning of our practice today. That suitcase is full of baggage that isn’t yours anymore but you carry it around with you every day as if it means something. You carry it around not because you’re not ready to put it down but because you know there are consequences you’ll have to face for doing so. There will be other people you’ll have to leave behind, other things that will have to be left behind also, even if that’s not what you want.
That suitcase you left at the door? You don’t have to take it with you when you leave.
All of a sudden I heard myself sob out loud. No one moved. No one was surprised. It was me alone in a room with just her and my whole heart cracked open and I felt so much relief. I always cry in Savasana because of this beautiful release of energy I feel, and it usually feels like love and peace. This day it was devastation leaving my body while I sobbed uncontrollably. I knew what I had to do and I knew what I would lose when I did. I’d been waiting for someone to say it was ok to choose me.
Then I felt her over my body as she so gently laid a cold cloth scented with Lemongrass over my eyes. A few more moments passed and the class was over.
After we’d finished our practice I took an extra minute or two to gather my water bottle, blocks, towels and mats. I really just needed to let everything set in.
It has been many years since I left that suitcase behind. I did choose me. There were consequences and they hurt like hell, but I saved myself. I continue to save me every day and every day I am more of the woman, wife, mother, leader and friend I strive to be. The suitcase represented a part of my life no one should ever have to face. I chose to leave a parent behind, knowing that others wouldn’t understand and also that relationships would suffer because of my choice. Or else I would.
I chose me.
I chose to save me because if I didn’t then what kind of a leader would I be?
With Purpose,
Tonia
Pizza is to wine like cream is to coffee. It is such a universal meal for any occasion. The trouble is most of us are left wondering which wine pairs *best* with our favourite pizza.
Rather than list all of the kinds of pizzas and offer you a few examples of wines that you could try, I’m going to do you one better.
Let’s break pizza down by all of its components, much like we do with wine in our High Five Wine Scoring System books so that you can refer back to this same blog over and over. Use it as a reference point for Pizza Lovers and book mark this blog!
Let’s dive in.
What is the #1 rule when matching food and wine?
I often tell my High Five Wine Academy wine club members to consider the flavours and aromas of their wines. One thing to remember is you want to either match flavours and texture (like creaminess, for example) or contrast them for balance.
If you are having a spicy pizza you’ll want an off-dry wine to help balance the heat, for example. Another idea is to balance a pizza with white sauce up against either an equally creamy wine (this can also be called viscosity) to match the mouthfeel or you could try a highly acidic wine to contrast and balance. You have some options and the best news is there is no wrong answer. Choose your own adventure.
How To Use This Blog
Cross reference your favourite ingredients to narrow down a couple of wines that is on a majority of the lists I’m about to give you. For example, if you want pizza with tomato sauce, olives, goat cheese and mushrooms, peek at each of the wines in those categories and narrow it down to the most common wine(s). From there you can simply choose your favourite. If, out of a bunch of ingredients, your favourite wine only shows up once or twice…. It might be time to spread your wings and try a different wine that frequently shows up as a great match with your desired ingredients.
This is where the experiment can get really interesting! What if you find a new favourite wine? Win-win!
The other way to put this blog to good use is to peruse the lists and find all of the ingredients that pair with your favourite kind of wine and voila! Those will make your perfect pizza. Talk about a fun way to make the ultimate food and pizza pairing recipes! An example of that would be to say, ok I love Pinot Noir. What are the ingredients that pair best with that kind of wine? Narrow down your ingredients and there’s your grocery list.
Here we go!
There's nothing left to do but start exploring! Tag me on instagram with your pizza and wine pairings and I'll share them into my stories! Find my instagram page here!
Happy Pairing!
A common and simple gift during the holiday season is sometimes a bottle of red wine but the questions remains… how do you decide?
What is considered a good wine gift?
Of course we the time of year, the occasion, what you might be eating and finally, your budget. What if I told you that In High Five Wine Club for the last three months we have been scoring the perfect three wines for you to choose from for the perfect gifts that hit all of those points.
Each of these three wines pair nicely with Christmas dinners and plenty of other comforting winter time meals, they’re consistent in quality, they are remarkably affordable and most importantly, they’re red. Because, you know, Christmas colours and all that! 🍷
What they are not is your typical Cabernet Sauvignons or Pinot Noirs. And while these options are perfectly well and good, they differ substantially from winery to winery. They can be from the same place and taste completely different. That’s great fun for someone like me who studies wine for a living but for the average every day wine drinker what we know is that people like consistency and a bang for their buck. So let’s introduce our friends and family to wines offering exactly that!
Tempranillo From Spain
$20 is plenty for a good, even great Tempranillo. In fact many of my online wine club members scored HIGH FIVES in the five weeks we spent scoring Tempranillo together and they were all $23 or less. Look for wines from the Spanish section that say Rioja or Tempranillo and read the back of the label to see if the wine mentions being a blend. To be sure you can even spend a minute googling the wine by name and vintage to see if it’s 100% Tempranillo. Some countries don’t always say what kind of wine is in the bottle because they’re labeled by region instead. That can make it really frustrating. Rioja is a wine growing region in Spain and Tempranillo is the main red grape grown here. However, there is a second main red grape that deserves a spotlight here on our list today! But first!
aroma & taste:
- Plums
- Earthiness (dried leaves, dried herbs, dried tobacco)
- Leather
- Coffee
- Cherries
- Chocolate
- Vanilla
- Raspberries
- Licorice
- Figs
- Cedar
- Brown sugar
- Flowers
The High Five Wine Club community found Tempranillo to be consistent in aromas, flavour and overall quality. We thought the flavours were rich, complex (as in not just one dimensional - which I teach you all about in my book High Five Wine Scoring System) and had a little bit of residual sugar that contributed to a beautiful medium-bodied wine. We scored more High Fives as a community during our month scoring Tempranillo than any other single month in High Five Wine Academy history! Suffice to say, Tempranillo is a great wine gift idea!
Garnacha From Spain
Continuing on the theme of similar price-points, let’s talk about practical and super food-friendly wine, Garnacha! For $20 or less you’re going to get yourself a good quality bottle of wine perfect for gifting this Christmas season. The High Five Wine Club community agreed about the gorgeous aromas from the four scorings we did together all featuring Spanish Garnacha. The smells coming out of our glasses were dreamy, intoxicating and overall just very beautiful. If Garnacha was a perfume, we’d have it stockpiled!
aroma & taste:
- Stewed strawberry
- Blood orange
- Raspberries
- Cherries
- Plums
- Blackberries
- Dried herbs
- Anise
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla
- Chocolate
- Leather
- Tobacco
- Fruit Roll Ups
- Figs
- Red licorice
- Gamey meats
- Dried flowers
The High Five Wine Club community thought these wines were well balanced, fruit-forward and really appealing! Once again we were all delighted with a record breaking month of high scores - plenty of four-out-of-five as well as HIGH FIVE scores using our High Five Wine Scoring System wine journal book! That would be a wonderful accompaniment to any wine gift! How about a gorgeous wine journal to keep a record of the wines you try! Stocking stuffer combo! Garnacha really stood out because of its versatility in the food department. You could pair this wine with anything from braised pork to duck with cherry sauce and even a burger with smoked gouda and BBQ sauce! Yum!
Carménère From Chile
We’re sticking to wallet friendly wines with consistent and dependable Carménère from Chile. Is it ok to give wine as a gift? If you’re offering Carménère then my answer is yes, absolutely! A fun fact about this grape is when it was originally planted in Chile in the 1850’s it was believed to be Merlot! It wasn’t until 1994 when it was discovered to actually be Carménère. It does share many similarities and so if you know someone in your life who loves Merlot then this would be such an interesting gift! You just might be introducing your friend or family member to their next new favourite wine to explore! (You’re welcome!)
A good quality Chilean Carménère will cost you between $12-$15, a great one will be $16-$25 and beyond. That’s pretty promising!
aroma & taste:
- Plums
- Black cherries
- Raspberries
- Blackberries
- Chocolate
- Gamey meats
- Black pepper
- Green peppercorns
- Bell pepper
- Mocha
- Herbs
- Smoke
- Earthiness
This is a great stocking stuffer for any red wine lover! It has an inky dark colour that is oh so pretty, a beautifully smokey aroma with plenty of fruity notes and finally it pairs well with leaner cuts of meat, roasted veggies and earth sauces like chimichurri. Remember that smokey note? Any time you see a wine with smoke as a potential aroma or flavour you can bet it will go well with BBQ flavours!
No matter which of these three wines you choose, your gift will be one to remember! It won’t be a typical wine you see often and it will be a welcome to surprise to know that if they really loved their wine they can find it easily and for such a great price! Win-Win!
Final Thoughts and Tips On Holiday Wine Gift Ideas
The gift giver is often plagued with questions about what to give and how much to spend.
Is a $30 bottle of wine a good gift?
Let me ask you another question.
What if you bought your friend a bottle of wine that was very expensive. First, the price of the wine never guarantees whether or not someone will enjoy that specific wine so unless you’re 100% sure your gift receiver is a die-hard Chablis fan (for example) - don’t go out and spend $70 on a Chablis.
The second thought I have is if you do spend $70 or even $30 on a Chablis and they absolutely LOVE it, is this a wine within your gift receivers budget to enjoy again?
The price tag on the bottle matters less than you might think!
And finally, if you’re really stumped and feel a bit overwhelmed by the thought of buying wine as a gift, maybe the right thing to do is to buy a wine gift card! You can’t go wrong there.
Happy Holidays!
xo
Tonia
As we explore new wines and growing regions from all over the world I am almost speechless about the five weeks I spent leading High Five Wine Academy, an online wine club in Canada, in October of 2024.
As a wine coach I value education that includes wines we are familiar with while also helping you step out of your comfort zone. Inch by inch! It can be easier to broaden horizons when you’re in the company of fellow wine students (aren’t we all wine students? Fun Fact: YES YES YES! Wine for beginners. Wine for normal people!) plus you have the guidance of your very own Wine Coach to help you do it! Let me share what it looks like to learn about wine online with me in High Five Wine Club!
With five Wednesdays in October my Wine Besties and I set off to Spain to score Tempranillo!
Now, one important thing we talked about was familiarity. Tempranillo isn’t exactly a household wine in Canada so we’re not necessarily reaching for it as our go-to wine.
Think back to when you moved out of your parents house for the first time and found yourself in the store looking for cleaning supplies. You gravitate to familiar brands without even realizing it.
Oh thank god, I KNOW windex, ok I’ll grab that. Whew, I made a good decision.
Wine is the same! Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc… we see them in our home, on restaurant menus and we feel comfortable with that.
I’ll have a glass of one of those, please.
It’s comforting, even if we don’t necessarily like it, because it’s familiar! This is how many-a-wine-lover stays drinking the same label over and over again. The theory is just human nature! Even toddlers prefer goldfish crackers over strawberries because the crackers taste the same every single time. We rely on consistency!
I have a few really important reasons for my next argument so stay with me…
Tempranillo isn’t usually available by the glass in restaurants but it should be!
Tempranillo isn’t talked about as a wine for beginners but it should be!
Why?
After a month of focusing on this Spanish revelation I have come to an interesting conclusion. Tempranillo is the perfect introductory red wine for new wine drinkers. My theory is in part due to its consistency and also because of its extremely accessible price point.
What it boils down to is this.
Red wine can be expensive, especially when it comes to wine for beginners. When you’re unsure of what to buy, even a $20 bottle of red wine can seem like too much. Then if you do find a red wine you like you might try a new one of the same grape (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc) and it tastes completely different!
What gives!
Tempranillo wines from Spain are all pretty similar. They smell alike. They have the same tasting profile. After scoring five in a row in High Five Wine Academy (only the best wine club in Canada!) we all were surprised by how dependable this wine grape was! Each week we really enjoyed them, enough that we have all purchased more Tempranillo (even though we have moved on to a new wine together as an online wine club).
Why isn’t Tempranillo as a household name?
If we walked through the Spanish section not all of the labels will tell you what type of wine is in the bottle. A red wine from Rioja (the biggest wine region in Spain) could be Tempranillo, Garnacha or even a blend of a few different grapes. A new wine drinker’s brain would explode! It would make you turn on your heel and return to safety among the California Cabernets or the New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. I wouldn’t blame you!
This is a really common and completely understandable problem when it comes to understanding wine.
One thing even I still do in the wine store that absolutely nobody will ever judge you for is researching in real time. If you don’t know what’s inside the bottle after reading the label, whip out your phone and do some digging. See if you can identify the name of the wine and type it into google, asking what the wine is made of.
The reason High Five Wine Club exists is to take away the guesswork while creating a safe, fun and interactive environment to explore new wines. The best place to start is with a copy of High Five Wine Scoring System so you can journal and keep track of the wines you score, whether with us in High Five Wine Academy on Wednesday evenings or on your own. The second step is to purchase your monthly membership to High Five Wine Club so you have access to all of the calls, recipes, community, education, tips and friendship!
So what does Tempranillo taste like?
Well, for starters it is earthy (think dried herbs, dried leaves, dried tobacco) with plums and red licorice followed by a chalky, smooth texture. Sweetness, acidity and alcohol are well-balanced so not one single element is overwhelming to your palate. They are typically medium bodied, referring to the weight of the wine with great complexity.
PLUS! You can find excellent bottles of Tempranillo for $15-$22!
Tempranillo pairs with really well with very common meals like pizza, nachos, burritos, lasagna (or any tomato based dish), mushroom risotto, BBQ and more.
This is a superb red wine for beginners!
And if you want to learn more about wine and you’ve ever asked yourself, why is wine tasting so difficult, then the High Five Wine Club is for you! Get your first month’s membership for only $5 here! Join High Five Wine Club!
xo
Tonia
