Spain & Portugal: World-Class Wine at Every Price Point

Rachael Ryan has traveled to both Spain and Portugal in 2026 — and she's come back convinced the Iberian Peninsula is producing better wine than ever. This month's selections span López de Heredia Viña Tondonia releases stretching back to 1961, the introduction of Dominio de Atauta as K&L's newest direct import partner, and a deep run through Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Albariño, Cava, and the Douro Valley. World-class quality, many at prices that would be unthinkable from Bordeaux or Burgundy.

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The Douro Valley Beyond Port

Rachael Ryan just returned from Portugal, and her verdict is unambiguous: Douro red wines have never been better. A region once defined almost entirely by Port has transformed over the past decade into one of Europe's most exciting sources of unfortified red wine — fresh, structured, and priced at a fraction of comparable bottles from France or Spain. Six bottles from $16.99 to $79.99.

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Spain for Summer: Albariño, Cava, Txakolina and Chillable Reds

Most people know Spain for structured, age-worthy reds. Rachael Ryan makes the case for its other side — the vibrant Albariños of Galicia, the crisp sparkling wines of Penedès, the lively Txakolina of the Basque Country, and a new generation of chillable reds that beg to be served cold. Twenty bottles from $12.99 to $44.99, all built for summer.

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The Case for Collecting Spanish Wine: World-Class Quality at a Fraction of the Price

While Bordeaux and Burgundy push collectors further out of reach every vintage, Spain quietly offers some of the world's most age-worthy wines at prices that shouldn't be possible. Rachael Ryan makes the case — and backs it up with bottles from López de Heredia, Vega Sicilia, Muga, CVNE, Clos Mogador, La Rioja Alta, and Telmo Rodríguez, ranging from $59.99 to a once-in-a-lifetime 1961 Gran Reserva.

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Bodegas Miguel Merino: “Updated Classic” Rioja from Briones

Few Rioja producers walk the line between tradition and modernity as gracefully as Bodegas Miguel Merino. Founded in the mid-1990s by Miguel Sr. and now guided by his son Miguel Jr. and daughter-in-law Erika, the winery is making some of the most elegant, terroir-driven wines in Briones—including single-vineyard bottlings of Garnacha, Mazuelo, and a white Rioja that will make you rethink the region entirely. Seven bottles from $21.99 to $64.99, all direct import.

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Introducing Dominio de Atauta: Our Newest Spanish Direct Import

Rachael Ryan has been hunting for the right Spanish direct import partner for years. She found it in Dominio de Atauta — a Ribera del Duero producer working with pre-Phylloxera vines averaging 85 years old, some exceeding 120, at elevations that give the wines a freshness and elegance the region isn't always known for. Four bottles, from $19.99 to $44.99, all worth your attention.

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The K&L Champagne Report: June 2026

K&L Champagne Report — June 2026

Gary Westby just returned from Champagne. Olivier Krug visited our Culver City store. Billecart-Salmon made a bottle exclusively for America. And we found growers worth knowing from $39.99. Everything in one place.

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Fallet-Dart: A Grower Making Champagne Since 1610

Growers Since 1610. Three New Bottles Worth Finding.

The Fallet family has been farming Charly-sur-Marne since 1610. Scott Beckerley reviews their three newest releases — including a Pur Meunier that makes the case for why this grape deserves your attention.

[Read the full review →]

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A Spirits Guy's Guide to Champagne: 3 Bottles Worth Knowing Now

4 Champagnes That Surprised Our Culver City Spirits Guy

Jonathan Parnell spends most of his time in whisky. But after learning from K&L's Champagne buyers, he has opinions—and three bottles to back them up. From a our $44.99 house Champagne to a Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs that held its own against Cristal.

[Read his picks →]

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Billecart-Salmon's 2018 250th Anniversary Cuvée: Two Centuries of Champagne, One Bottle

A Champagne Made for America — and Only Available Here

The Billecart-Salmon 2018 250th Anniversary Cuvée celebrates 200 years of the house and 250 years of American independence. It's U.S.-exclusive, built from Grand Cru and Premier Cru fruit, and one of the most precisely balanced wines we've tasted from the record-hot 2018 vintage. Power and acidity in equal measure.

[Read the full review →]

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Olivier Krug Visits K&L: What We Learned from Six Generations of Champagne's Greatest House

Olivier Krug—sixth generation, Director of Maison Krug—visited our Culver City store for a masterclass on the world's most meticulous Champagne. We tasted the 173rd Edition Grande Cuvée and the 28th Edition Rosé. Notes were taken. Opinions were formed.

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