Lopez de Heredia, Rioja Crianza 'Cubillo', 2017

There is no bigger name in traditional Rioja than Lopez de Heredia. Founded in 1877 in the historic railway district of Haro, this family estate still makes wine as it did in the 19th century: fermented in old oak vats, aged for years in used American oak from its own on-site cooperage, and released when it's good and ready. Cubillo is the estate's Crianza, which by any normal measure isn't entry-level at all, having spent more than three years in barrel before bottling. Tempranillo anchors a classic blend with Garnacha, Graciano, and Mazuelo, and the style is unmistakably old-school: savory, earthy, and gently mellowed by time. The most affordable way into one of wine's great living legends.