Bodegas Nekeas's red wines were very promising, especially given the fact that these wines are priced low and made from young vines. The 1995 Cabernet/Tempranillo must be tasted to be believed. This wine's opaque purple color and spectacular 92-93 point nose (cassis, toasty oak, and chocolate) are followed by a low acid wine with terrific fruit purity and intensity. Aged for 9 months in 40% French Allier oak and 60% American oak casks, it offers copious quantities of cassis fruit in a full-bodied, rich, fleshy style. It is easy to complain about the huge prices now fetched by top French and California wines, so readers should seriously look at wines such as this, which offer amazing quality for the price. The 1995 Cabernet/Tempranillo is one of the greatest wine bargains I have tasted this year. Importer: Jorge Ordonez, Fine Estates From Spain, Dedham, MA; tel. (617) 461-5767

Ripe fruit flavors, well-integrated toasty oak notes and a polished texture provide a sophisticated appeal to this Cabernet blend from Spain. Harmonious, firm and still quite young, it's a great buy. Drink now through 1998. 5,000 cases imported.??–TM??Region: Spain / Navarra Select to Add