The La Rioja Alta Alberdi Reserva is one of the best sub-$26 bottles of wine on the planet. It's classic Rioja, with savory spices to balance out the fruit and fresh acid that rinses your palate clean and leaves you wanting more.  The 2019, made from a stellar vintage, is drinking great:

"Bright, deep ruby colour with intense dark cherry hues on the rim of the glass. It stands out for its intense ripe red fruit aromas like strawberries, raspberries and red currants complemented by pleasantly sweet spicy notes of vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, clove and nutmeg. The palate is round, with lively freshness at the start and sweet, supple tannins, leading to a long, fruity and balsamic finish, so characteristic of Viña Alberdi."

The grapes were hand harvested with selection of bunches in the vineyard, placed in boxes and taken to the winery in refrigerated transport to preserve their integrity. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation took place naturally. The wine was aged for two years in American oak barrels made by our in-house coopers —new ones in the first year and four-year-old barrels for the second year. La Rioja Alta carried out four rackings.  These are done using traditional barrel to barrel methods and by watching the wine pass through a glass tube illuminated by candlelight to watch for the sediments that form during the ageing process. That's craftsmanship, and it shows.  The wine was bottled in May 2022.