This Spanish red blend is an expressive concoction of red berry flavors that sit brightly on the palate. Balanced by lively acidity and notes of savory herb, this wine is perfect for most foods, although it truly shines with beef or lamb.

From the Carthusian monks of Scala Dei in 1163, comes the hippest wine of Spain. Okay, so I skipped a few steps. Planted to vines by the monks, the region was tended by them until 1835 when they were distributed to small landholders in the territory. Devastated by the scourge of phylloxera in the late 1800s the land lay most fallow for almost a hundred years until planting occurred again in the 1850s. But the wines of Priorat were unremarkable until a small group of revolutionary wine makers, let by Alvaro Palacios, saw potential in this scorched earth. They planted new vineyards, not with just garnacha, monastrell, carinena and other traditional grapes of the region, but also cabernet sauvignon, merlot and syrah. In 1993 Palacios produced a wine called Ermita that rocked the worlds view of this region. Bottles of Ermita routinely sell for $300 plus today. It is no doubt a premium wine region.