Berberana Reserva Rioja 2007: Amazing value

Great value under £7, decent at £13

I picked up a bottle of this at Tesco at less than £7. I believe it's usually about £12-13.

At that price it's a real bargain. Having tasted it, I'd just about pay full price for another, at a pinch.

It's a really light colour for a Rioja. A friend of mine who know his wines struggled to place it as such, which might be why I like it so much. So often I find Rioja wines big in predictable full bodied Tempranillo flavour, one dimensional and gone off the palate in less than ten seconds.

This Berberana Reserva is really quite unusual, a little more complex and subtle, with a reasonable length attached. My wine buff friend who I tasted it with, says it has a "tannic backbone". For something different from Rioja, it's well worth a try, if you can stomach buying wine from Tesco.