September 2025 Crianza Wine Club

Jimbro 2022 Origen Tinto Regular Price: $26.99 Club Price: $22.94 Buy Now

One of the great joys of curating a wine shop is sharing the hidden gems we stumble across. As responsible business managers, a good chunk of our selection is composed of familiar crowd favorites, often from familiar regions. However, delicious wine is made all over the Iberian Peninsula, and we’re always happy to showcase an underrepresented region. The Jimbro project is a great example and advocate for what  the Arribes del Duero region has to offer. 

We should also mention that we share a personal connection to this wine. Juan is a longtime friend of The Spanish Table and our go-to cortador (Jamón carver) for events. I personally got to meet Juan at a wine and charcuterie event in Sonoma during my first month at the Spanish Table. After talking for a bit we realized we had both previously worked at another Bay Area wine institution, the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant, albeit at different times. To this day he is still close friends with many of my mentors at the FPWM. Returning to the wine in question, he also is the sole distributor in California for the Jimbro World Project. 

Jimbro began as a collaborative effort between friends to showcase natural products from the Arribes de Duero Natural Park, in the southwest corner of Castilla y León. In addition to beautiful wines, they also produce honey, and the bees they work with are the inspiration behind their branding. The project began in 2010 when the team purchased a swath of micro parcels in the towns of Fermoselle and Pinilla de Fermoselle. Today, the winery manages 32 plots which collectively cover only around 24 hectares. In recent years, Jimbro has upped their focus on producing and preserving local, endangered grape varieties, such as Bruñal, Puesta en Cruz, and Rufete, alongside slightly more common varieties such as Juan García, and Malvasía. 

The Origen Tinto, while being one of their most affordable red, is also a total stunner. In the words of Juan, “this is your sommelier's secret favorite wine”. A blend of Bruñal, Juan García, Rufete and Malvasía, this wine is fresh, vibrant, and textured. The wine undergoes carbonic maceration, which minimizes bitter polyphenols from entering the wine, and results in a juicy fruit profile. Violets, rose, blueberries and a swat of wildberries make up the core of this wine. Subtle earthy tones and hint green stemminess make the wine reminiscent of Cru Beaujolais. We know it may sounds a bit cliché, but this really is a wine for everyone. It’s got the amicability for people new to wine and the subtle nuance that connoisseurs crave. Duck and roasted fall vegetables would be awesome with this wine.

Quinta Do Mouro 2017 Vinha da Mouro Tinto Regular Price: $19.99 Club Price: $16.99 Buy Now

What happens when a self-proclaimed iconoclast dentist starts making wine? No, it’s not the beginning of a bad joke, though, given that we featured this wine three years ago, you might think we’re recycling punchlines like wine bottles. But like the best kind of reruns (think "Friends") give you comfort and joy to return to, Quinta do Mouro’s Vinha do Mouro Tinto is back, and for good reason. Winemaker Miguel Louro has been making waves in Portugal’s Alentejo for decades, and this bottle reminds us exactly why this value wine of his is worth a repeat appearance.

Alentejo itself is often thought of as Portugal’s “breadbasket,” with rolling golden plains, olive groves, and cork forests. But it’s also a red wine powerhouse. Summers here are brutally hot and dry, yet the schist and granite soils, coupled with Louro’s dry-farming practices, bring surprising depth and freshness to the wines. Louro chose to replant his modest 15 acres with native grapes that have thrived in this climate for centuries, creating a small oasis of traditional viticulture in a region sometimes known for larger, more commercial styles. His minimal pruning and old-school vineyard care give the vines a wild, vigorous presence, which translates directly into the energy of the wines.

The blend itself is a delightfully Iberian-meets-international mash-up: Trincadeira brings herbal spice and freshness; Aragonez (known as Tempranillo across the border) adds structure and red fruit; Alicante Bouschet, that uniquely Portuguese teinturier grape, delivers inky color and plush texture; and Cabernet Sauvignon rounds things out with backbone and a touch of cassis. The grapes are hand-harvested, stomped by foot, and the wine is raised without oak flashiness: just one year in tank followed by three years in bottle before release.

The result is a wine with a nose of blueberry and cassis, touched with fig and wild herbs, leading into a balanced, layered palate. Dark cherry, prune, and raisined fruit compote mingle into something like a rustic berry cobbler, all wrapped in a structure that makes the wine both generous and refreshing. It was a hit with us the first time we featured it, and we’re thrilled to bring it back deliberately. Because sometimes, the best episodes just need to be enjoyed once again.  In a glass.  With a friend.