Celler Piñol Red Blend Terra Alta Ludovicus 2006

The 2008 Ludovicus is a blend of 35% Garnacha, 30% Tempranillo, 25% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon aged for three months in French and American oak. It has a glass-coating deep crimson hue with an expressive nose of cherry, blueberry, and blackberry. Mouth-filling, succulent, and flavorful, this tasty effort is a sensational value for drinking over the next 1andndash;2 years.

Yum! The Ludovicus is a super-lush red blend made by third generation family winemakers in Terra Alta, Spain. Mostly Garnacha, Tempranillo and Syrah, with a splash of Cabernet Sauvignon thrown in for good measure, and aged for a few months in oak to add spice and cedar notes. Strong notes of black cherry and dark berry fruits are highlighted by star anise, red peppercorn and a bit of smoke. Iandrsquo;d love to pair this with a succulent rack of lamb, but a pork roast would work just as well!

The 2005 Ludovicus, a blend of 35% Garnacha, 30% Tempranillo, 25% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon was aged for 3 months in French and American oak before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Dark ruby-colored, it offers a complex bouquet (rare in a $10 wine) of cedar, spice box, pepper, black cherry and blackberry. Supple-textured, with medium-body, the wine has layers of sweet red fruit flavors, good depth, and excellent length. It is a superb value for drinking over the next several years.

Bright cherry red/purple in color, this plump, juicy red blend of Grenache, Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah is made with organically-grown grapes from Terra Alta. The grapes play very well together, and while the wine is full and complex, there are no hard edges that would make it difficult to pair with just about any type of food.

Talk about a packed house! This outstanding value from Spain is made from Grenache, Tempranillo, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon! Slightly oak-aged, Ludovicus is a rich red in color, and has a wonderfully balanced nose of licorice and subtle pepper. The taste is long on fruit and spice, with a velvety body any wine drinker can appreciate. So who cares if itrsquo;s ninety degrees outside, and the sweat is pouring from you like Niagara Falls. Grab a bottle of this wine, find a cooler place, and enjoy just a small part of what Spain has to offer.

Like the 2004, this is a tremendous value and remains rich and pure without any hard edges. The wine has abundant black and red cherry fruit and spices.

A fine value is the 3,000-case cuvee of 2004 Ludovicus, a tank fermented and oak-aged (for three months) wine made from 35% Grenache, 30% Tempranillo, 25% Syrah, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, it exhibits a deep ruby/purple color along with a gorgeously sexy nose of kirsch liqueur, licorice, and pepper. Richly fruity, spicy, opulent, and pure, it is an unbelievable value. Consume it over the next several years.