I agonised for a long time about whether or not to feature this seductive, elegant Rioja as one of my wines of the week. Not because there were any doubts in my mind about whether or not it’s a good wine (answer – it’s an absolute stonker) but because it’s pretty expensive (you’re unlikely to see much change out of £60 if you splash out on a bottle).

And then I had a word with myself and decided to let you make up your own mind about the price. In most cases, wine writers labour under constant pressure from editors not to review ‘expensive’ wines. The definition of expensive varies from one magazine to another, but many’s the time I’ve heard a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the phone when I’ve proposed recommending a wine at £20. But I’ve come to the conclusion that in an era when it’s easy to spend fifty quid on an evening out at the theatre, or drop a ton (or more) on tickets for a gig (and don’t even get me started on the price of a designer T-shirt) that it’s ok, once in a while, to spend £20 – or more, dammit – on a great bottle of wine, especially if it’s going to really deliver on quality.

So, what’s so special about this wine? Well, it’s a traditionally made Rioja, with plenty of those coconut aromas you get from prolonged ageing in American oak. I’m not that keen on those, but if you decant the wine, or just let the bottle stand for an hour or two before serving, and the sweetness dissipates to reveal a wine of immense complexity and power, with some smoky, meaty notes to lend gravitas to its primary red berry fruit. The tannins are firm but fine grained, just beginning to integrate themselves into the wine’s velvety texture. There’s plenty of fresh acidity to balance all that richness, and a long, plush finish. I often find, when I’m reading my tasting notes back to myself, that if I’ve given a wine a really high rating, I’ve used the word ‘effortless’, and that’s just what I found in my notes about this Rioja. Twice.

Rating: (if I could afford it), more realistically (What does this mean? See here for a guide to my rating system.)