#10 PRIMA’s ’24 for 24’ Best Wines Of The Year

We love it when a wine comes in that captures the imagination of just about everyone who tastes it.  We first brought in a few cases of this amazing Albarino at the suggestion (insistence?) of Fran who had tried it blind in one of her seminars and thought it the best example of this northwestern Spanish grape she’s ever tasted.  The rest of us were a little skeptical. at $50, it definitely was on the high end for Albarino but, really, who were we to doubt Fran?  And once we opened it at the bar, this amazing white sort of took on a life of its own.  Everyone who tried it, simply loved it!  And, before long, we were ordering it from the importer in 18-bottle increments and selling them out instantly, almost exclusively to our loyal coterie of wine bar regulars.  No, this is not your typical bottle of lean, salty Albarino.  There’s depth, texture and an intensity that turns its briny minerally and citrus-infused finish into a crescendo of lovely lemon-lime, quince and pear fruit flavors.  This reminds me of being in Vigo, Spain, on the Atlantic coast on a freezing February night and gnawing on ice cold leg spider crab legs, just-popped briny Atlantic oysters and salty, pungent crudo.  What a spectacular mélange of flavors and textures!  This wine will bring you right back there, even if you’ve never been before!  This is $50 very well spent on a bottle of immediate gratification white that will also age very well.  Must try!