Garnacha

Aged Manchego's firm texture, nutty profile, and sheepy undertones demand beverages with sufficient structure and complexity. Spanish wines like Tempranillo and Sherry have evolved alongside this classic cheese, while the suggested beers offer complementary malt sweetness or palate-cleansing qualities that enhance the cheese's rich, crystalline character.

Chorizo and bean stew features smoky, paprika-forward pork sausage with earthy beans in a rich, savory broth. This hearty Spanish-influenced dish requires beverages that can complement its bold flavors while cutting through the richness with either tannins or carbonation.

Empanadas are versatile Latin American pastries that can be filled with various proteins, vegetables, or cheeses, offering a balance of savory pastry exterior with flavorful fillings. The recommended beverages complement the baked, savory qualities while providing enough acidity or carbonation to cut through the richness of the pastry.

Manchego's nutty, slightly sharp flavor with subtle grassy notes pairs beautifully with Spanish wines that complement its origins. The salty, savory character of this sheep's milk cheese creates a wonderful contrast with fruity red wines and finds harmony with crisp whites or oxidative sherries.

Paella's complex savory profile with saffron, seafood, and/or meats benefits from wines that offer bright acidity to cut through the rich flavors while complementing the dish's Mediterranean character. The recommended beers provide refreshing carbonation and complementary yeast or malt notes that enhance paella's distinctive blend of land and sea flavors without overwhelming them.

Roast suckling pig features tender, juicy meat with crispy skin and rich fatty elements that demand beverages with both structure and acidity to cut through the richness. Spanish wines like Tempranillo offer tannin structure and dark fruit notes that complement the savory meat, while crisp whites like Albariño provide refreshing contrast to the fatty components. The malty sweetness in Belgian Dubbel and Bock beers echo the caramelized elements of the roasted skin.

Spanish tapas encompass a diverse range of small dishes with varying flavors and textures, from grilled meats to seafood to vegetable preparations. The recommended wine and beer pairings offer versatility to complement this diversity, with options that can handle both rich dishes like chorizo and lighter items like patatas bravas or gambas al ajillo.

Tapas encompasses a wide variety of small Spanish dishes that can include various proteins, vegetables, and flavor profiles, creating a diverse dining experience. The recommended wine and beer pairings offer versatility to complement the range of flavors commonly found in tapas, with options that provide refreshing acidity, light to medium body, and complementary savory or fruity notes.

Spain continues to be one of the world's great sources for wine values, and this organic red blend from Bodegas Venta la Vega showcases exactly why. From the lesser-known Almansa region in southeastern Spain, this bottle offers remarkable quality and character at a price that makes it perfect for everyday enjoyment. The 'Adaras Aldea' (meaning 'village') blend combines Garnacha (Grenache) and Monastrell (Mourvèdre) – two Mediterranean varieties perfectly suited to the hot, dry conditions of the region. These organically farmed vineyards sit at high elevation (over 2,400 feet), where cool nights help the grapes maintain freshness despite the intense daytime heat. The result is a wine with generous fruit and spice but enough structure and acidity to keep everything in balance. It's the kind of honest, unpretentious red that reminds us why we fell in love with wine in the first place – it delivers pure pleasure without unnecessary complication or inflated prices.

The third installment in the Kiki & Juan trilogy (still waiting for the Netflix adaptation), this Spanish red blend brings together the country's star grape Tempranillo with its supporting actor Garnacha. The result is a wine with the structure and depth of a good Ribera del Duero but without the hefty price tag that often comes with the region's bigger names. Unlike some of Spain's more oak-dominated styles, this Tinto keeps things fresh and fruit-forward while still maintaining enough complexity to keep it interesting. It's made with minimal intervention and a focus on expressing the character of the vineyards rather than the winemaker's barrel collection. The kind of honest, unpretentious red that makes you wonder why you'd ever need to spend more – until you inevitably do, because wine enthusiasm is a slippery slope that ends with a second refrigerator dedicated to wine storage.

Priorat is one of Spain's most prestigious wine regions, known for producing powerful, mineral-driven reds from impossibly steep vineyards worked by winemakers with thighs of steel. La Cartuja (named after a Carthusian monastery in the region) offers a glimpse into this special terroir without the usual Priorat price tag – which typically requires a moment of silent reflection before purchasing. Made primarily from Garnacha (Grenache) and Cariñena (Carignan) grown in the region's distinctive llicorella slate soils, this wine captures the essence of Priorat: concentrated fruit, remarkable minerality, and a structure that means business. It's like getting the Priorat experience on a 'best of' highlight reel – maybe not as profound as the region's top cuvées but delivering far more character and complexity than its price suggests. Perfect for when you want a serious wine that punches well above its weight class.