Wine of the week: Protocolo Tinto 2020

Spend $7, get quality wine for dinner — what a revolutionary concept

An Italian wine that I paid $10 for in September cost $14 when I bought it a couple of weeks ago – same wine, same vintage, same retailer, and likely sitting in the same warehouse since the middle of last year.

So raise its price 40 percent!

Which is a roundabout way to sing – once again – the praises of the Spanish Protocolo wines, which come in red, white, and pink, as well as organic. Consistent, fair price, fair value, and enjoyable – without any mysterious 40 percent price increases.

The Protocolo Tinto 2020 ($7, purchased, 14%) is one more example of how this works. It tastes much like the 2019, though a bit more rustic. That means it’s far from smoooth and certainly not sweet; rather, it tastes like tempranillo from Spain — maybe some dark berry fruit, and enough acidity but not so much in the way of tannins so that it doesn’t taste like a focus group wine.

Yes, simple, but what’s wrong with simple for dinner on Monday night with the leftover pot roast from the weekend? Or one of those Jacques Pepin tortilla pizzas? And, believe it or not, two of the wine magazines like this wine, too, naming it a best value.

In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy is the only person who doesn’t know what a great deal the Protocolo is.

Imported by Fine Wines of Spain