Cheap Wines in Spain

[katy]

Benidorm, there are some good canadian wines!. Some I have bought here in spain. Try Chateux des charmes, its good and not expensive. They have a website.
Manzanilla is a nice light dry sherry, not keen on sherry though.

[Don]

Sevillanas would draw a distinction between Sherry and Manzanilla Katy but is certainly tastes like a fine dry sherry. Very popular in Feria de Abril but it has to be very cold. Well worth a try Benidorm.

[bob]

I enjoy & recommend the seemingly unlimited offerings of Lustau.

http://www.lustau.es/
http://www.emilio-lustau.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherry
http://www.sherry.org/english/index.htm
http://www.madaboutsherry.com/ [Currently off-line]

[Grouser]

Would agree about Manzanilla. Dry, comes from the coast and you can taste the sea air in it. Fino is also very drinkable as is the sherry type Malaga wine, but go for the seco. All these dry wines are completely different from the cream stuff. Much lighter on the taste-buds, but deliciously flavoursome.

[JAWG]

Benidorm - We have a thriving wine industry in Canada. In some ways it is too thriving in that they do have the ear of the various Provincial Governments and exert undue pressure on the Gov't to limit the importation of good wines. We get a fair supply of Spanish wines, but not the really good ones. And they cost a lot more than you would pay in Spain.
All imported wines must be imported through the Gov't liquor agency, even if you go to Spain and order several cases direct from the producer. The Gov't Agency then tacks on their profit and taxes before you can have the wine delivered.

The local wine lobby is so strong that it even limits the amount and quality of wines from other Canadian Provinces.

I belong to a very large wine club that imports wine from around the world. Mainly wines that are not imported by the Gov't Agencies. Don't get any kind of a price break, but do get some better quality wines.
Our latest offering features some Spanish wines as well as some from France. The Spanish wines this time are all from Andalucia and all are sherries of one kind or another. (Bodegas Tomas Abad)

[Retro P]

I believe the Finnish authorities operate the same policy, there is no such thing as private importation or even offlicences, everything alcoholic is controlled by the state, I think also all gambling operations are controlled by the state, an excellent way to control revenue, in my opinion of course!

[BENIDORM]

Thank you all for the advice on sherry etc.,
I've read all of the websites, and I am now more 'clued up' on the finer points about sherry..,
We will be visiting Jerez again soon, so I will now take more interest....
I know quite a few of the 'old boys' , in my local bar, drink the Manzanilla, but I've not seen much sherry flowing...Anyway I will give it a go....
As far as Canadian wines, I've tried a few, but not seen much on offer in the stores near me, but it is probably more than 3 euros, so perhaps I've not noticed it...

[Wicksey]

I was never that keen on sherry (memories of an ancient bottle of Harveys Bristol Cream being brought out each Christmas at home) but after a trip to Jerez and Sanlucar de Barrameda, I have been 'converted'. We went to the Sandeman bodega in Jerez and had the most wonderful fino and a couple of other samples. It was interesting to see how it was all made and learn about the different types of sherry. When in Sanlucar we drank manzanilla watching the sun set over the river estuary near Doñana, and you could really taste the sea's influence in the drink. It's well worth a 'sherry tour'

[katy]

Noticed that Faustino V11 was on a restaurant list in the UK at 22.50 GBP. I think its only about 4 or 5 euros here in the supermarket!

[BENIDORM]

Katy,
I very rarely drink wine in any UK restaurant, nearly all rip-off prices...
Faustino V11 is, in my opinion, a great wine and the cheapest that I've seen it in UK, is at Tesco....£34.00 for a case of 6...still pricey compared with Spain , though..

[JAWG]

Benidorm - I can pretty well guarantee that any Canadian wine would be (much) more than 3 Euros. Even here in Canada, without the trans atlantic transportation costs, most if not all Canadian wines sell for more than $10. If you go to a fine Ice Wine even a 375ml bottle usually costs about $50.

In many cases the Canadian wine is more expensive than imported wine; e.g. A canadian Pinot Noir is listed in my latest catalogue at $25.70 a bottle. There is a French Pinot Noir (from Bourgogne) listed at $18.50.
I am not familiar with either one so I really can't compare them. other than the price.

Another good reason to visit Spain.

[Karipentti]

Retro - things have changed a lot since you last checked out the Finnish system. There is a lot of private importation and you can bring in practically any amount of alcohol without paying duties - as long as the drink is imported from the EU and you bring it in yourself. A van full of the stuff doesn't raise any eyebrows.

[Bandy]

Sorry Benidorm.missed your question. The answer to shopping at the warehouse in the Poligino in Ronda is YES
Just pop into the office on the left as you go in and have a chat. They will show you the list of the wines and other beverages that they stock.
It is really impressive and the prices are excellent.
Happy shopping and Feliz Navidad!!

[katy]

Do the prices include IVA or is it added on? We once saw an ad' in Fuengirola and by the time IVA was added it was a bit more expensive than the supermarket.

[laclotte]

Retro - things have changed a lot since you last checked out the Finnish system. ...............A van full of the stuff doesn't raise any eyebrows.

Of course it raises no eyebrows....taxes have been paid into one of the other EU state 'coffers'. Now try and do the same into Switzerland...... . However on the bright side, Swiss jails are very comfortable

[BENIDORM]

Bandy...
Thanks for the info., I'll check it out.......

[BENIDORM]

Well it seems a long time since I visited this online bodega

Whilst on my travels over the past few months I've bought selections of wines from wherever we where stopping..However it can be a bit embarrassing though when my vehicle clinks it's way over the 'slow you down bumps' , just before going through the custom sheds..With this in mind I thought that I would try a few more cartons of wine, instead of masses of bottles, I've tried many , some are only fit to put on your fish and chips.
Well I've just sampled one of my purchases, which I got from Dia supermarket, in Loja, the other week.
It's a 3 litre 'Vino de la tierra de Extremadura Tinto...vina Tabora, now I wasn't expecting much from this , but was very pleasantly surprised, it's slightly dry, but with a really quite 'rough' taste, certainly different from many of the smooth expensive wines that I also bought..But a very good pleasant 'vino experience', in my opinion ..of course..

And the price..Euro 2.65..that works out at about 11 cents for a 12,5cl glass...
Now if that's not a good reason to move to Spain...What is?

There aren't as many of these larger cartons available in Spain, unlike France, where the selection is huge, but has anyone tried any other Spanish carton wine that they can recommend..
Think I'll go and have another glass...Cheers..

[anyroads]

Laclotte said...

"believe there is also a lot of Grenache in Spain....maybe known under another name"

In Spain it is known as Garnacha.

anyroads

[anyroads]

Retro P said..

"I\ve never heard of any sherry being produced in the UK, are you sure about this ?"
_________________
Never heard of Emva Cream ?

anyroads

[anyroads]

Colinm wrote...

"I'm not too keen on Syrah (isn't that what new world calls Shiraz?) it's a bit too peppery for my taste buds"

Right on on both accounts !.

The "classic" flavours of Syrah / Shiraz are Tobaco, pepper, blackberry

anyroads