2006 Mancuso Vino de la Tierra Valdejalon

Hooray, it's the first Saturday of August, and we know that means it's Cellar Saturday, that lovely day when I open a bottle of wine that's at least a decade removed from its vintage.  Tonight I am opening a rather recent addition to the cellar, one which was last month's office wine club selection, the 2006 Mancuso Vino de la Tierra Valdejalon, a wonderful old vine Garnacha from Spain!  I've decanted this wine for about 90 minutes, so it should be ready to enjoy!

The wine is a bright garnet color in the glass, classic for the varietal.  The nose is wonderfully herbal, with notes of fresh cut grass and a hint of mint over blackberry and currant aromas.  The taste is fruit forward, with flavors of black cherry, plum and cassis that transitions nicely to some mineral notes of dusty limestone and basalt midpalate.  The tannins are mature and nicely structured, providing a nice backbone for the long, smooth and very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, it's a great example of a fine Spanish Garnacha and it was a terrific bargain as I bought this from Wines Till Sold Out for $20!  This wine practically screams to be paired with paella, but alas I'm stuck with a rare grilled Angus bone-in ribeye along with some haricots verts almondine and a baked potato with sour cream and chives.  The lovely fruit and acidity of this wine cut perfectly through the fat of the ribeye, cheers!