Drink of the Week: Ameztoi Stimatum 2019

Have you ever opened a bottle of wine, poured yourself a glass, taken a sip and thought, “Gosh, that’s fun”? If not, I highly recommend trying a bottle of Ameztoi Stimatum, the winery’s limited red Txakolina. Wait, red Txakolina? Correct. While Txakolina is most commonly known as the bright, often effervescent, white wine out of the Basque Country, there are exceptional bottles of red out there for the finding. In the 2000s, many local wineries abandoned their indigenous red Hondarrabi Beltza vines, and thus such bottlings remain less common but are worth the search. Ameztoi’s Stimatum is made from a blend of grapes picked off vines planted as far back as 1918. The wine, fermented with indigenous yeast in stainless steel, is bold, vibrant, and electric with dashing acidity. $22.99, compasswines.com