K&L Newsletter: Top Selections From Spain & Portugal

I’ve just returned from a buying trip through Spain and Portugal, and I’m more energized than ever about what these regions are delivering. Across the board—red, white, and sparkling—the quality is high, the styles are distinctive, and the pricing still works strongly in the customer’s favor. From Spain’s broad, well‑established appellations to Portugal’s incredible diversity of native varieties, the consistency and craftsmanship I tasted were impressive. The wines highlighted here are some of the bottles and categories I’m genuinely excited to share with you.

In this guide, you’ll find five quick reads that make it easier to navigate the Iberian landscape:

• Modern vs. Classic Rioja, with clear markers to help you understand what’s in the bottle before you pull the cork.


• A deep look at Spanish Garnacha, from high‑altitude, aromatic expressions to fuller styles that remain excellent values.


• Where Spain’s best everyday values are coming from right now, and why the country continues to lead on quality for the price.


• A spotlight on Bairrada and the Pato family, where Baga shows both structure and finesse, alongside some of Portugal’s most vibrant sparkling wines.


• A friendly walkthrough of Cava and Corpinnat, two sparkling categories that are evolving quickly and producing terrific wines at approachable prices.


• Upcoming Events At Your Local K&L, even more opportunities to taste, experience, and learn.

I hope this guide helps you discover a few new favorites. After tasting widely across both countries, I’m confident these regions offer some of the most exciting and accessible wines on the market today—and I’m thrilled to bring these standouts to our shelves.

— Rachael Ryan, K&L Spain & Portugal Buyer

In recent years, Rioja has been experiencing a tidal wave of change, with many young and new winemakers eager to make their mark upon the classic region. And while Rioja might still be most well-known for the long-aged wines of the Crianza, Reserva, and Gran Reserva classification system, smaller wineries are increasingly rejecting this system in favor of the flexibility to craft wines that represent a more modern, terroir-driven perspective. The resulting “modern” Rioja wines bear the generic Rioja label, but they are anything but generic!

“Modern” Riojas are often younger, fresher, and more fruit-forward, emphasizing the terroir of specific vineyard sites over blending fruit from all over the region. Having just returned from Rioja, I can attest that this is a very exciting development! A patchwork of small parcels spread over undulating terrain, Rioja might be the perfect place to explore how single villages and vineyards express themselves, especially without the influence of new oak.

Fortunately, this is not to say that the classic wines of the region are now unfashionable. Quite the opposite is true. The classics have never been more distinctive, showcasing the extended aging that Rioja is so well known for. How many other regions in the world, after all, age their wines for you, holding them back until ready to drink, yet do not charge a premium for doing so? In my opinion, Rioja is one of the most compelling wine regions in Spain–if not the world–to explore right now. Balancing tradition with innovation, there is a wine style for every palate and preference. Below are a few of my picks for “modern” Rioja, as well as “classic” Rioja. Try one or two from each category, and you’ll have a great (and delicious) sense of what’s underway in this historic region. Read More On the Trail.

Garnacha—known elsewhere, of course, as Grenache—is one of the world’s most widely planted varieties, but its ancestral home is in Spain. Most ampelographers now trace Garnacha to northeastern Spain, in the area around Aragón, where it has been planted since the Middle Ages. From Spain it moved to southern France (the Roussillon and Rhône Valley), then to Sardinia (where it’s called Cannonau), and later to the New World.

As a variety, it is naturally drought tolerant and thrives in hot, dry climates, where it can produce generous, fruit-forward wines. After a period of overproduction, however, old-vine Garnacha has gained renewed attention for its innate transparency. Unlike many other varieties, it can reflect terroir to an incredible degree, especially when handled gently in the winery. Producing everything from delicate, almost ethereal wines to intensely concentrated and juicy styles, Garnacha is a true chameleon. This, in my opinion, makes it a fascinating variety to explore. And with the world’s highest concentration of old vines, Spain is the country to turn to in order to understand this historic grape. Read More On the Trail.

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Item Name	Retail	Link
2024 Viña Zorzal Garnacha Navarra	$15.99	View
2019 Señorio de Sarría "Viñedo Uno" Garnacha Crianza Navarra (Elsewhere $30)	$23.99	View
2024 Bodegas Frontonio "Microcosmico" Garnacha Valdejalon	$21.99	View
2021 Bodegas Frontonio "Telescopico" Garnacha Valdejalon	$27.99	View
2023 Comando G "La Bruja de Rozas" Sierra de Gredos	$42.99	View
2019 Terroir al Limit Terroir Históric Negre Priorat	$34.99	View
2021 Mas d'en Gil "Bellmunt" Priorat	$34.99	View
2023 Rafael Cambra "Soplo" Garnacha Valencia	$14.99	View

Spain offers some of the best wine values in the world because it combines ideal growing conditions with deep-rooted tradition and relatively low production costs. Much of the country, especially regions like Rioja, Ribera del Duero, and Aragón, has abundant sunshine, varied elevations, and old vines that produce wines of great concentration and complexity. Land prices and labor costs have historically been lower than in comparable French or Italian regions, allowing producers to offer high-quality wines at more accessible prices. Additionally, many family-owned wineries focus on long-term reputation rather than short-term pricing trends. As global demand for Spanish wine continues to grow, it remains one of the smartest categories for buyers seeking value. Below are my top selections for wines that truly overdeliver for their price. Read More On the Trail.

Bairrada is one of Portugal’s most distinctive wine regions. Located south of the city of Porto, along the Atlantic coast, it is also one of the coolest parts of the country, defying stereotypes about what Portuguese wine can be like. The climate here is cool and maritime, with high humidity, frequent rainfall, and moderating ocean breezes–all conditions that strongly influence its wines. The region’s soils are famously rich in clay and limestone, which are particularly well suited to the indigenous grape Baga. This unique variety thrives here, producing deeply structured, high-acid, firmly tannic red wines capable of remarkable longevity. Often compared to Nebbiolo or Nerello Mascalese, Baga has a faintly saline edge that is purely Portuguese. Read More On the Trail.

For decades, Cava was the dependable workhorse of the wine bar: reliable, ubiquitous, and, if I’m being honest, often uninspiring. Even in Spain, 90% of Cava sells for under 10 euros per bottle. The issue has always been one of geography. Unlike Champagne, which is a place, Cava is a method. You can make it in Catalonia, of course, but also in pockets of Rioja, Valencia, and even Extremadura. This multi-regional approach to an appellation has long frustrated small producers who believed that it obscured the quality and potential of small-scale sparkling winemaking in Penedès, where the style originated.

To its credit, the DO (Denominación de Origen) for Cava has undergone a much-needed architectural overhaul in recent years. The introduction of additional designations such as Cava de Guarda Superior, which requires organic farming and longer aging, and Classic Penedès, which is a defined geographical area within Penedés, is a clear signal that the authorities have finally realized the potential of Spanish sparkling wine. Read More On the Trail.

Save the date! June 14th is our first-ever Spanish Wine Tent Event in San Francisco. All under one tent, we'll celebrate the regions, producers, and styles that make Spain one of the most exciting wine destinations in the world. We’re bringing together an exceptional lineup of bottles that showcase the country’s full spectrum, from high‑altitude Garnacha and mineral‑driven whites to structured Tempranillo, traditional‑method bubbles, and discoveries from rising-star appellations.

This is a rare chance to taste widely across Spain in one place, guided by the buyers and importers who know these wines best. If you’ve been curious about where Spain is heading, or are simply ready to find your next great Spanish favorite, this event is the perfect way to dive in. Mark your calendar and come explore what’s making Spain one of the most dynamic wine landscapes today.

Tuesday, March 17^th – St. Patrick's Day Happy Hour Beer (San Francisco & Redwood City)
Thursday, March 19^th – Tablas Creek Wine Tasting (All Locations)
Friday, March 20^th – Islands of Italy: Sicily & Sardinia (All Locations)
Saturday, March 21^st – Loire Wine Tasting (All Locations)
Tuesday, March 24^th – Leflaive, Moreau, Hugel, and Pol Roger Tasting (San Francisco)
Wednesday, March 25^th – Beer Tasting (San Francisco & Redwood City)
Thursday, March 26^th – Bird Snapper Non-Alcoholic RTDs (San Francisco)
Friday, March 27^th – Highlighting Rioja's Best Vintages (All Locations)
Saturday, March 28^th – Australia & New Zealand Wine Tasting (All Locations)
Thursday, April 2^nd – Wine Club Tasting (All Locations)
Friday, April 3^rd – Tête de Cuvée Champagnes (All Locations)
Saturday, April 4^th – Domestic Tasting (All Locations)
Thursday, April 9^th – Blind Wine Tasting (All Locations)
Friday, April 10^th – Portugal Wine Tasting (All Locations)
Saturday, April 11^th – Riesling Tasting (All Locations)
Saturday, June 14^th – Spanish Tent Event (San Francisco)

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