I know you enjoy Spanish reds... but you haven't bought any of this one... you should!

In the past TEN years, the Wine Advocate has reviewed 10,424 Spanish Reds. Of them, just TEN others have been rated 93 pts and sold for under $17...

Read that again... then check it out...

Juan Gil Monastrell Silver Label 2018

• Buy a case and pay just $14.99 per bottle
• Buy six and pay $15.99
• All Else on Sale $16.99

93 pts Wine Advocate

The 2018 Juan Gil is from a cooler, more continental vintage, versus the more commonly warm, Mediterranean growing season found in the Jumilla region of Spain. The family-owned, certified-organic old vines are not irrigated. For this vintage, the winery introduced an optical sorter to ensure perfect grapes. And I mean perfect…

What’s that? You don’t know what an “optical sorter” is? (It’s ok… I had to look it up…)

An optical sorter is just what it sounds like… it’s a super fancy, expensive machine. At the beginning of harvest, the winemaker takes a set of grapes that he considers “perfect” and puts them in the machine. Using these perfect berries as the standard, the optical sorter then takes pictures of the grapes as the roll through the machine – somewhere between 1,000 and 10,000 grapes per minute! Now, here is the super cool part… when the machine identifies an imperfect grape, it sends a puff of air to knock it off the conveyer belt.

Okay… that is a pretty darn cool use of modern technology. I mean, who doesn’t want a wine made from only the best grapes?

The result is an impeccably pure and focused expression of the Monastrell (aka Mourvedre) grape that explodes from the glass with aromas of mulberries, raspberries and blackberries. Bright acidity – the result of the cooler season - provides the perfect backdrop for the rich, luscious blackberry and blueberry fruit. Hints of anise add to the complexity, along with a hint of oak spices. The finish is long and lush.

Hmmm… yummy… burgers, ribs, steak, pork and chicken on the grill… stew, braised short ribs… hmmm….


Or reply. The wine is available now in Chapel Hill. Next Wednesday, as ordered, in Hillsborough.