Our 2009 Spanish wines of the year

For the past 16 years, my newspaper, El Mundo, and its wine web site, elmundovino, have been giving 'wine of the year' awards to three Spanish wines released during the past 12 months (one red, one white, one 'other', i.e. either fortified or bubbly or sweet), plus 12 honorable mentions. Since it's put out by a highly unreliable one-person jury and it doesn't try to point out necessarily the 'best' wines but those which stand out for their personality or QPR or research of terroir expressions, it turns out to be very idiosyncratic. Then again, it's no better or worse than many other such lists, so I'll publicize it anyhow…

Our three wines of the year 2009 are Marqués de Riscal 150 Aniversario Gran Reserva 2001 Herederos del Marqués de Riscal (DOC Rioja), Selección de Añada 2004 Pazo de Señorans (DO Rías Baixas) and La Bota de Palo Cortado nº 17 Bota Punta Equipo Navazos (DO Jerez y Manzanilla de Sanlúcar).

Our 12 honorable mentions go to Alión 2005 Bodegas Alión (DO Ribera del Duero), El Fin del Mundo 2007 Jiménez-Landi (DO Méntrida), Finca La Colina Verdejo Cien x Cien 2008 Vinos Sanz (DO Rueda), Goliardo Espadeiro 2007 Forjas del Salnés (DO Rías Baixas), La Creu Alta 2006 Mas Alta (DOC Priorat), Les Tosses 2006 Terroir al Limit (DOC Priorat), Oloroso 1905 Solera Fundacional Pérez Barquero (DO Montilla-Moriles), Pazo Piñeiro de Lusco 2006 Pazos de Lusco (DO Rías Baixas), P. de Maria 2007 Macià Batle (DO Binissalem), Sameirás 2008 Antonio Cajide Gulín (DO Ribeiro), Viña al Lado de la Casa 2007 Castaño (DO Yecla) and Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 1991 R. López de Heredia-Viña Tondonia (DOC Rioja).

In Spanish, details of these choices and a history of the awards here:

http://elmundovino.elmundo.es/elmundovi ... 1262350000

[David M. Bueker]

Thanks Victor. Given the current state of Spanish wine criticism for the USA this is a very useful list to review.

It's as debatable as any list, of course, but we try to keep it open-minded, not restricted to a narrow style of wine. This year some of the main features are:

- Equipo Navazos keeps finding mindblowing gems in forgotten old sherry casks.

- for the second time in three years, the Señorans Selección is the white of the year (a wine that's aged for three years on its lees in stainless steel, then released at age five: unusual in Galicia!)

- two reds from cool Galician areas much better known for whites (Rías Baixas and Ribeiro). A new age is dawning for Atlantic reds in Spain.

- A Jiménez-Landi wine for the second year in succession. From the obscure central Spanish regions of Méntrida, Madrid and Cebreros, an unexpected awakening of old grenache vines is occurring thanks to some devoted crazies like Dani Jiménez-Landi.

- Not to mention that it was a pleasure to highlight the best red Gran Reservas produced by, respectively, Marqués de Riscal and López de Heredia in a long, long time!

[David M. Bueker]

The Riscal was especially interesting given that they have not received much positive notice anywhere lately.

Like the list, at least the wines I have heard of! I ignore most of the negative comments on other forums, I really believe Spain has much to offer, especially some of the whites.
Rioja is getting some attention on Wine Focus this month here, so join in everyone!

The Riscal was especially interesting given that they have not received much positive notice anywhere lately.

Marqués de Riscal is a two-faced operation these days (and since the 1970s): on the one hand, they make the largest single cuvée in the Reserva category in Spain, a whopping 400,000+ cases every year, and obviously at that size one can't expect much terroir or individuality (but it's always a decent mid-level wine, with good QPR), and on the other hand they also make two much, much smaller cuvées, the Gran Reserva and the Barón de Chirel. Since 2000, both have shown clear signs of returning to the quality levels of the 1960s and 1970s. Amazingly, wine-searcher.com indicates that the 2001 Gran Reserva is unavailable in the US!

Thanks for the list, I was going to ask if the Tondonia was the red, but your second post makes it clear it is.
I confess that for me (I'm not very well versed in Spanish wines) Albarino has generally been a nice picnic wine, I don't think I've ever spent more than $20, but your choice of the Señorans Selección makes me want to try it. Not available in states from what I can see.

From wine-searcher.com's data I see that neither Pazo Piñeiro nor Selección de Añada are available in the US. This recession is taking a huge toll on what's available on the US market... (Not that Spain was ever that well represented on American shelves.) And no, these are definitely not picnic wines.

I really need to try and figure out which white wine varietals are grown in which region? I am confused most of the time! I try to hand sell whites from Spain and Portugal when downtown helping out but bs a little!

That's rather easy, Bob:

Galicia: mostly albariño in Rías Baixas (Señorans and Lusco are varietals), sometimes with a little something else in the blend; mostly treixadura-dominated blends in Ribeiro; exclusively godello in Valdeorras.

Castilla y León: in Rueda, mostly verdejo varietals, some sauvignon blanc varietals, some blends with either or both of these plus some viura (macabeo).

Rioja: mostly viura (macabeo) varietals, some blends with malvasía riojana (alarije), the odd blend with the newly accepted varieties (tempranillo blanco, maturana blanca) or with garnacha blanca, and Remélluri which goes its own way with a mix of theoretically illegal French grapes from courbu to petit manseng to viognier.

Navarra: mostly viura (macabeo) or chardonnay or blends of both.

Catalonia: mostly blends or varietals with the four main indigenous cultivars (macabeo, parellada, xarel-lo, garnacha blanca), and also chardonnay and sauvignon blanc varietals in some appellations, particularly Penedès.

I will raise a glass of Oloroso to the Equipo Navazos tonight in celebration, with a piece of Montgomery Cheddar to go with it - for which I (finally!) found a source back home.

Best wishes to good new year Victor, to you and the rest of the Madrid gang,

Peter

Montgomery Cheddar and La Bota No. 17 Oloroso! A match made in heaven indeed!

Happy new year, Peter!