Wine of the week: Vina Cumbrero 2010

The Vina Cumbrero isn’t quite the legendary Osborne Solaz, but it’s a $10 Spanish red wine well worth drinking

Imagine the Wine Curmudgeon’s joy when he looked at the back label of the Vina Cumbrero and saw the name Osborne. Because Osborne produced perhaps the greatest cheap wine in my almost three decades of doing this – the legendary Solaz.

Solaz went away in 2009 for some reason no one was ever able to figure out, and cheap wine was that much less fun. So that the Vina Cumbrero is made by Osborne made me jump – literally – in the store.

The good news? That the Vina Cumbrero ($10, purchased, 13.5%) is a decent enough $10 wine that reminds us we don’t have to put up with insipid, focus group plonk. For one thing, it tastes like tempranillo from the Rioja region in Spain, with tart cherry fruit and a hint of an orange something or other flavor. In other words, real wine.

The bad news? That it’s not quite the Solaz. It’s not as interesting or as well made, and it could use a little less red fruit and a little more earthiness. But in these days of insipid, focus group plonk, who’s complaining?

There are two other things to know about this wine. First, it’s not new to the U.S., but to Dallas. That means those of you in other parts of the country may be able to find it more easily. Second, I have a feeling it showed up here on a closeout, because the vintage is so old. So more current vintages may be more interesting to drink.