Wine Focus January 2022 - Tempranillo!

[David M. Bueker]

We had this on Monday night with a truffled pasta dish:

2012 La Rioja Alta Rioja Viña Alberdi Reserva Tempranillo
Medium red, medium tannins, medium acidity, medium good among Riojas--medium everything. Nothing stands out but there are no negatives here. It's just a fine everyday Rioja for $20, and I think it will improve from here.

I like that wine. I never like it more after 10 years past vintage, it always seems like it will improve, and it never does.

[Jenise]

Well, that's interesting to know. The only improvement I anticipate(d) is a bit of smoothing out as tannins relax even more.

[David M. Bueker]

Well, that's interesting to know. The only improvement I anticipate(d) is a bit of smoothing out as tannins relax even more.

I find it just dries out.

[Jenise]

Yup, that would be the other option.

Jenise, thanks for the side-by-side tasting notes on the 2004 CVNE Imperial and Real Rioja Gran Reservas. I opened a bottle of 2005 CVNE Rioja Gran Reserva Vina Real recently. Excellent old-school Rioja Gran Reserva. I was surprised at how dark it was over fifteen years on, and at how fresh the flavors were. There's a good bit of oak in the aroma, but I like my Rioja that way. Smooth and stylish. Very like your 2004, I imagine. A definite double Curly.

-Paul W.

R. López de Heredia 2009 Rioja Crianza Viña Cubillo
Drank this and the Gramercy Tempranillo side by side in November to accompany Cuban-style roast pork shoulder and black beans — both made great food matches. The Cubillo was terrific as always. Really nice, bright tart red fruit with spice, cedar, mineral, earth and herb accents. Smooth and balanced with great acidity and the structure’s still apparent. One day later, it’s even better, more harmonious, really singing in a bright note. Compared to the Gramercy, it’s got brighter acidity and the secondary aromas and flavors are more to the fore.

Gramercy Cellars 2012 Walla Walla Valley Tempranillo Inigo Montoya
Delightful. Rich red fruit with nice spice and earth accents, and a beautiful minerally complex finish. Smooth and balanced with great acidity and structure. It’s richer and fuller than the 2009 Cubillo, but also less crisp. The next evening, it’s very similar, velvety smooth, complex and harmonious. Overall, I prefer the Cubillo, but I’ve always liked the Inigo Montoya (and not just for its name). I understand it’s no longer being produced, which is a shame.

No Girls 2012 Walla Walla Valley La Paciencia Vineyard Tempranillo
The first No Girls tempranillo I’ve ever had, opened in October. Wow. Intense funky black olive and smoky notes dominate the aromas and flavors, along with nice black fruit, earth and slight sage nuances. This is fascinating — tastes just like No Girls Syrah minus the black pepper element, suggesting that this is far more about the Rocks terroir than the grape (or that tempranillo reflects where it's grown than most other grapes). It’s smooth and balanced with great intensity, good acidity and structure, and was an outstanding match with grilled chimichurri leg of lamb and roasted onions, shiitakes, peppers and eggplant. The next night it’s just as good.

Bruce, we know that Tempranillo is nearly always blended with Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano in the Rioja region and I believe that in Viña Cubillo the proportion of Tempranillo is as low as 65% in some vintages. Do you know how far and with what grapes those Walla Walla examples are blended?

[Jenise]

Bruce K, so good to see you here. Cool that we both reported on the same new world tempranillos though your '12 No Girls was clearly better than my '13. My Gramercy, same vintage as yours, must have been flawed.

Here's something we drank last night with a tian of beef, mushrooms and onions baked into a homogenous slather to spread on crusty bread:

2007 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia Tempranillo Blend, Tempranillo
Not nearly as open/ready as a bottle last July. Taut with some astringency in the tannins. Drunk over two hours and not much development in that time: HOLD.

[David M. Bueker]

Bruce K, so good to see you here. Cool that we both reported on the same new world tempranillos though your '12 No Girls was clearly better than my '13. My Gramercy, same vintage as yours, must have been flawed.

Here's something we drank last night with a tian of beef, mushrooms and onions baked into a homogenous slather to spread on crusty bread:

2007 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia Tempranillo Blend, Tempranillo
Not nearly as open/ready as a bottle last July. Taut with some stringency in the tannins. Drunk over two hours and not much development in that time: HOLD.

Well I will put my bottle back. I was going to open it tomorrow!

Bruce, we know that Tempranillo is nearly always blended with Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano in the Rioja region and I believe that in Viña Cubillo the proportion of Tempranillo is as low as 65% in some vintages. Do you know how far and with what grapes those Walla Walla examples are blended?

Good point, one that had escaped me. The Gramercy is 85 percent Tempranillo, 15 percent Syrah. I believe the No Girls is 100 percent Tempranillo, but not 100 percent positive.

Also interesting for comparison purposes is that the grapes for the Gramercy come largely, I believe, from Les Collines Vineyard, which is on silt loam soil at a around 1200 feet elevation and tends to produce more elegant wines, while the No Girls comes from the Rocks district at a lower elevation on an abandoned creek bed filled with (surprise) rocks, and produces more funky wines.

Bruce K, so good to see you here. Cool that we both reported on the same new world tempranillos though your '12 No Girls was clearly better than my '13. My Gramercy, same vintage as yours, must have been flawed.

Either that or I have a less discerning palate.

I do have three of the No Girls 2013s in my cellar, so it will be interesting to see how they compare.

[Jenise]

Well I will put my bottle back. I was going to open it tomorrow!

When I went to put this bottle in the recycle bin yesterday (24 hours later) there was a half inch still in the bottle, so I tasted that. Pretty nice! Try a long decant, or Andouze it.

Last night the Grumpy Old Men met for dinner at Moor Mill Beefeater. This is an old water-mill, and next to the bar the mill wheel still turns powered by the mill stream running below.

It is also a chain restaurant, and Camp Viejo Rioja is on the drinks menu, as it seems to be in all chain restaurants no matter which company owns them. It's also in all supermarkets, and according to Campo Viejo's website, they are the largest selling Rioja brand. Its bottled at the winery, and thus I tend to buy it in such restaurants rather then their fancifully and exclusive own labelled bulk-shipped wines.

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2019 Campo Viejo Tempranillo Rioja (Spain, La Rioja, Rioja)

This is 100% Tempranillo, and although it's seen some oak, it hasn't been in barrel for the minimum year Crianzas require, so it has a DOC Green seal. There's bright red cherries on the palate, a twist of strawberry acidity underpinned by tannin. Just ideal with steak!

This is the last of the bottles of Rioja which I laid down in the 90s and early 00s with the hopeful view of maturing them to the level of beauty which I had met in 20-30 year examples of Imperial, Viña Real, Murrieta...from the 60s and 70s.

Those wines were made in the traditional style of prolonged ageing in mainly once+ used American barrels but avoided the drying out of the fruit from which lesser brands suffered and achieved beautiful harmony. This single vineyard Contino is more "modern" in approach with a higher proportion of new barrels, of which 50% are French. After 20 years, I think this one has achieved a similar harmony to those great "traditional" bottles from the 60s and 70s.

About 85% of the Contino blend is usually Tempranillo, 10% Graciano, which probably contributes the structure, and the rest Mazuelo and Garnacha. I cannot with any confidence identify Tempranillo typicity but the regional Rioja typicity stands out a mile.

2001 Bodegas y Viñedos del Contino Rioja Contino Reserva - Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alavesa, Rioja (11/01/2022)
This was the best, but alas the last, of my three bottles. The flavours from oak ageing are by now fully integrated resulting in perfect harmony of its full/medium body, round cherry tinged fruit, light spice, barely perceptible vanilla hints, velvety texture, fresh acidity and ripe but firm tannic structure on a lingering finish. Excellent.
Posted from CellarTracker

2005 Rioja Gran Reserva Prado Enea, Muga

This wine spends three years in oak casks and then another three years in bottle before it is released. Compared to the two contemporary CVNE Gran Reservas I've opened recently, the Prado Enea has a deeper, younger color and less obvious oak. Still classic, old school Rioja. A joy to drink now, but I'd give it another 5-10 years before it really struts its stuff.

-Paul W.

Last Monday I had the basic 'Joven' Campo Viejo Tempranillo Rioja. Last night I had

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2016 Campo Viejo Rioja Reserva (Spain, Rioja)

This is two levels above the basic, being a Reserva and thus spending a minimum 3 years aging of which at least 12 months must be in oak barrels and 6 months in bottle. According to their website this has aged for a total of 4 years and is a blend of Tempranillo, Graciano and Mazuelo.

Their basic has less than 1 year in barrel yet this costs just £2.75 more. It’s a real sophisticated and seamless pleaser.

Thanks, David! I'm really enjoying this reminder to have Tempranillo. I picked this up same time I got the Reserva. It was the same price as Campo Viejo's basic Yellow Label Joven Rioja, but it's not Rioja...

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2020 Campo Viejo Winemakers' Blend (Spain)

It's a blend created by the three winemakers whose signatures are on the label, Elena Adell, Irene Pérez and Elena Suárez, but neither the label nor the website are forthcoming about what they blended. However the supermarket says it's a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha and Bobal, and I guess it's the Bobal that prevents this being a Rioja..

This had a strong appealing fruity nose which followed through on the taste. A really enjoyable non-serious fruity red with a lick of blueberryish acidity.

Good to see Peters Campo Viejo notes. I have just pulled the 2013 Reserva from the cellar, hope it is still alive!
Always take a CV on my May birding trips.

Well one glass was not bad but lost its life somewhere!! Dumped.

[David M. Bueker]

• 2005 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia - Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja (1/25/2022)
  A year and a half ago I thought this would need a lot more time. Now it seems more ready to go than any other recent Tondonia. Still showing plenty of that dusty cherry fruit as well as the leathery, herbal accents, but it has gotten notably softer on the back end, and drinks quite well. Not so long ago it had more of a bite. I doubt it is going anywhere soon, but if someone wants to open a recent LdH Reserva this would be a good choice.

2010 Rioja Reserva Seleccion Especial, Muga

As one might expect, this wine has less oak than the two gran reservas I opened this month. Classic Rioja flavors, very approachable but with structure in the background. Drinkable now but still coasting upwards towards its plateau of maturity. It should provide pleasure over the next decade or two. Double Larry Curly.

-Paul W.

Nice note from Paul above.

2015 Baron de Ley Rioja Reserva.

Purchased for this WF. Good natural cork, $23 Cda, 14% alc, bottled unfiltered but no sediment. I served initially chilled.

Dark red ruby color. Refreshing berries on the nose plus black fruits and strawberries from across the table. Took a while to open up though. Initial entry thought is soft tannins, medium bodied good length.
Cherry, raspberry, cranberry too . There is a hint of oak on the finish, very good structure here. Not an outstanding wine but would buy more vintages when available.
Food was braised pork tenderloin in a mushroom sauce.

Not a winner here...

• 2012 Marqués de Cáceres Rioja Excellens Cuvee Especial - Spain, La Rioja, Rioja (2022-01-29)
  This wasn't my style at all. Tons of oak (French oak for a change in Rioja), extremely amorphous (could have been from anywhere and any varietal), quite in the modern style, plush, and rich. No 'somewhereness' or typicity here. (C-)

[Jenise]

• 2005 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Tondonia - Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja (1/25/2022)
  A year and a half ago I thought this would need a lot more time. Now it seems more ready to go than any other recent Tondonia. Still showing plenty of that dusty cherry fruit as well as the leathery, herbal accents, but it has gotten notably softer on the back end, and drinks quite well. Not so long ago it had more of a bite. I doubt it is going anywhere soon, but if someone wants to open a recent LdH Reserva this would be a good choice.

Such a lousy vintage for me. I had 8 bottles total from two different sources, and one set was oxidized. I unfortunately didn't mark which was which when I put them in the cellar such that I could anticipate which were which. I ended up going through them early just to get them out of my way--I hate dogs taking up space.

[David M. Bueker]

• 2019 Orixe Sotelo Tempranillo Tinta Alta - USA, California (1/31/2022)
  Two hours in the decanter, and it was at about the three hour mark when it started to come together, and reveal itself. Earlier it was showing more oak (FYI - 30% new French) and spice notes. Time brought more fruit, and some background leathery/dusty tones. It’s very primary, and with so much stuffing that I would recommend at least a couple of years of cellaring for it to settle down and integrate. For now it’s just a baby that is only showing glimpses of potential.