I often say that everyone needs a Tuesday night hamburger/pizza wine and the Bodegas Olivares Monastrell Altos de la Hoya Old Vines has long been one of my favorites. The 2018 is only $9.99 (the suggested retail is $14) and it over-delivers in a big way. And Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate agrees with me, rating it 90 points!
The winery employs an ingenious method of replacing old vines when they start to be less productive. A branch from the old vine is guided down into the adjacent earth where it forms a new plant. When the new plant is viable, the old vine is removed, with the result that these vines are over 100 years old! It is full-bodied, dark, earthy (it's Mourvedre, after all), with powerful aromas of licorice and wild mushrooms. Just a really hedonistic, extremely pleasurable wine which would be absolutely perfect with one of our Italian sausage, mushroom, and Kalamata olive pizzas.