Viña Jaraba, La Mancha DO (Spain) 2019

 Like most of the wines from this impressive estate, this is mostly comprised of Tempranillo (80%) with 10% each Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.  Red berry fruit aromas and flavors are quite exuberant but not grapey or obvious at all, with no evidence of overt oak but some clear benefit from oxygen interchange gained from 4 months in oak barrels.  In terms of weight and food pairing suitability, this is comparable to relatively inexpensive Pinot from California or Toscana Rosso IGT wines, but much, much better than most of the wines in either of those categories at this asking price of $12.  It is much more savory and interesting than its California Pinot competitors, and seems much less manipulated than the Tuscan competition priced in the low teens.  Test this for yourself against almost anything in either category and you’ll see what I mean.