Amazing wine for Alko at this price. (d.) de blanes (I've only ever seen it written in lower case) is a "natural wine" producer with a lovely range of wines, of which one red and one white are available here. Unlike some "natural" products, like those of Cornelissen or Terpin, blanes's aren't flirting with lovely freakishness. They are simply lovely wines, out of the mainstream only for being so un-cloying and so wonderfully refreshing and lively despite coming from the south.
The scent is immediately recognizable as Syrah from its black olive and generally darkly fruited and meaty aromas. Ripe, certainly, but not in any way overdone. But the scent does promise a bit of weight and fat, which gladly are missing on the palate. This is wonderfully layered (yes, layered, despite its cheap price), vivacious and moreish. Very refreshing finish, though not an acid-driven wine.
My comfort wines generally come from the cooler climates, but occasionally I drink something like this or Musar that makes me realize that hot climate wines can be (though rarely are) truly lovely, too. At this price, I've been drinking very much of this (and the 2008 - equally lovely) over the past year.