Wine Atlas

It’s ironic, given the recent massive bailout of Wall Street in the guise of making nice to Main Street, that some of the best advice on inexpensive wines should come from The Wall Street Journal. “Tastings,” by Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher, recently examined Italian primitivos (often cited as kin to Zinfandel), and the second-favorite on their Dow Jones Primitivo Index was a Flaio 2006 Salento. It was $10.99. Forget the fickle barometers of bonds and not-so-securities; the Wine Index is a much more reliable bellwether of economic conditions.

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Many readers have requested that I include a mention of alcohol levels in my wine reviews. As much as space limitations allow, I try to do so.

More and more of you, it seems, are looking for wines that offer complex flavors at moderate alcohol levels. I've lost count of the number of winemakers who tell me that they are doing everything in their power to make wines that walk the thin line between unripe, vegetal flavors and jammy, alcoholic fruit-bombs.

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The city of Pensacola is gearing up to commemorate its 450th anniversary. In celebration of this historic time, I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to feature the wine regions of Spain. Many other Spanish wines in the local market are unknown treasures made by small, independent family bodegas (wineries).

Some of the most influential importers of Spanish wines in this area are Jorge Ordonez and Classic Wines of Spain. Wines from these importers range in price from inexpensive to very pricey, but all offer solid quality and value.

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