Tag Archives: Naia

Wine of the week: Naia Verdejo 2020

Naia Verdejo bottle
Naia Verdejo 2020/$10-$25

This Spanish white reminds us that cheap wine doesn’t have to be stupid

Verdejo has long been a workhorse grape, used to make lots and lots of Spanish white wine of indifferent quality. But in the last 10 or 15 years, a funny thing happened: Cheap and well-made wines showed up on store shelves with verdejo.

The Naia has long been one of the best-made of these wines – professional, consistent, and enjoyable. I have not seen it at retail for a white, so was more than happy to pick up the 2020 ($13, purchased, 13.5%). And, for the most part, I was glad I did.

This vintage is not as bright as I remember it being, and it’s not quite as savory – a quality that the less tart wines sometimes had. Plus, the finish is a little heavier.

But who I am to complain when I tasted a bottle of a sweet cabernet sauvignon the other day that almost made me gag – and that cost $16? The Naia is still a fine wine, a fine example of the varietal, and a fine value. Look for not quite tart lemon fruit as well as some stone fruit and and interesting minerality on the finish.

A turkey wine? Of course, as well as something for all of those leftovers. Also, pricing is all over place — try not to pay more than $15.

Imported by Aviva Vino

 

Wine of the week: Naia Verdejo 2017

The Naia verdejo is $10 Spanish white wine that speaks to the great quality and value of Spanish white wine

A couple of years ago, not even wine geeks paid much attention to verdejo, a Spanish white grape. Today, though, verdejo is showing up more often; hence, prices are often way out of line with quality, while cute labels are all over the place to make up for the lack of quality. Through all of this, the Naia verdejo has been a beacon of consistency and value.

The Naia vedejo ($10, purchased, 13.5%) reminds us of the tremendous value in Spanish wine. It tastes of tart lemon, as it should, but there is also an undercurrent of tropical fruit (pineapple?) that you don’t usually get in a $10 verdejo. It’s not so much that it’s very well done, but that the producer understands the role of $10 wine – that it’s not supposed to cost $15 just because.

Highly recommended, and a candidate for the 2020 $10 Hall of Fame. And yes, dad will enjoy this over the weekend, whether it’s porch sitting while his family celebrates Father’s Day or as something to sip while grilling chicken or shrimp.

Imported by Aviva Vino

 

Wine of the week: Naia 2015

naia 2015The Naia 2015: Another wine of the week, another Spanish value

The surprise is not that we’re in Spain again for the wine of the week, but that the Spanish never seem to run out of quality cheap wine like the Naia. Even I’m beginning to be surprised, and I’m the one who wrote that Spanish wine offers the best value in the world.

The Naia ($10, purchased, 13.5%) is made with verdejo, a Spanish grape that produces passable, tart white wine that has been on the blog many times. The Naia, though, has another goal in mind: A wine that is more than passable but not costing much more than the usual verdejo.

In this, it succeeds. The Naia 2015 is a softer, more round version of verdejo, with white fruit (peach?) to go with the usual lemon, and the lemon is not nearly as pronounced as usual. There’s also an herbal something or other going on that rarely shows up in verdejo. Hence, the wine isn’t as straightforward and obvious, but less tart and more balanced.

Highly recommended, and a candidate for the 2017 Hall of Fame in a year when the candidates that actually cost $10 are few and far between. Drink this chilled on its own, and keep a couple of bottles around the house as the holidays approach. And verdejo and fish are long-time pals, something to keep in mind when you’re making seafood.