Notes from a blind tasting of Spanish wines.
A friend who was helping me with some food prep work asked me if I’d bet that there would be more or less than a half dozen Riojas presented. I unhesitatingly opted for less and in the end only two Riojas were revealed. Made a nice change from the old days when Spanish, for many, meant Rioja and nothing but.
2019 La Grange Tiphaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Nouveau-Nez – an off theme starter put in by me. This Loire chenin blanc was something that I found interesting. It is a pet nat wine meaning that there is no dosage at bottling as they do in Champagne, they just bottle this before it has completed fermentation and hope to hit it right in terms of spritz. This one has a nice small bubble fiz that dropped off more quickly than a Champagne would, and some very interesting things happening in the nose, rather complicated compared to many Champagnes. Slightly off dry and with good fruit levels this was liked by all.
2020 Bodega Katxina Getariako Txakolina – this white wine made from hondarrabi zuri grapes in the Basque region was another interesting one. The spelling of Basque names had always perplexed me, as the seemingly tossed in an ‘X’ whenever they felt like it and when I visited some years ago, the spelling never did seem to have much relation to the pronunciation of the words. I concluded that it must be a gigantic joke on anyone that isn’t Basque speaking This wine was no joke however. It is clear with a slight pettilance, and has a citrus nose and good acidity levels. Refreshing if not exactly profound.
1994 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera – this was one of my wines (I actually gave it to my wife to present). I had bought it on release in the mid 90s and assessed it then as a long haul wine. RP had raved about it figuring it was the best vintage in Ribera del Duero for three decades and giving it, the Crianza, 95 points. This was a good bottle – the wine now has garnet-orange edges, lots of wood in the nose, though not as much American oak as many/most Riojas, and it still shows very good balance and fruit. No rush.
2001 La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904 – Burgundian colour. And a nose of dill (often found with American oaked wines) and maybe some dried thyme. Lengthy clean dry finish. These traditional Riojas are fun as they are highly polarizing wines. People that can’t tolerate American oak and this sort of dry finish are going to hate it and probably say that it is way over the hill. Those who know these wines will say that this one is still heading for its peak.
2005 Finca Sandoval – my wine. Syrah with 76% Syrah and the rest mourvedre and bobal. FYI, Bobal is not uncommon in Spain (because of its use in bulk wines it has been widely planted) but quality Bobal from higher altitude as a component of serious wines is relatively new. I tasted this early right after delivery and then stuck it away for another 10-15 years of aging. Even today it still shows a lot of purple but the oak is now well integrated and it has some nice cocoa and spice notes. This is not going to knock La Chapelle off the pedestal any time soon, but it has become and an enjoyable syrah.
1998 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera – Damn! Corked.
2010 Cellers de Scala Dei Priorat – I came up in the wine world with old style Priorat – the kind that had so much solid matter in it that you could use it to view a solar eclipse through for at least the first two decades of its life. This is not that style of wine. This one had good bright colour and a nose of berries, but it was also somehow unsatisfying – a bit simple perhaps?
1999 Torres Cabernet Sauvignon Mas La Plana (Black Label) – I had a lot of experience with this wine right from th mid 1970s vintages and always loved it. This one showed an interesting nose that included coffee, chocolate, and cassis, and it was smooth and had medium length. Not in the class of the old classic vintages (when it was called Gran Coronas Reserva and had cab sauv, cab franc and Ull de Lebre - Tempranillo) but it was a well made wine, and quite pleasant.
2005 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña Bosconia – good colour, a nice mellow woody nose with black cherry and slight mint. Good length, and comples. Finish was quite dry that the nose was slightly oxidative, but neither affected how the wine showed which was very well.
1977 Warres Vintage Port – what do you do with a member who has no Spanish wine? Well you can either swap something with him, or let him bring vintage Port (hey – it is at least Iberian...) I love this wine and am in no rush to consume what remains of my small cache. It has now segued into a wine with slight browning at the edges, and it was sweet and long, if a tad simple.
1994 Broadbent Port – what do you do when the Montecristo #5s come out and the guy that opened the Warres says that we may as well open his back up Port as well. (In case you weren’t sure, the answer is “YES!”). I was slowing down my Port purchasing by this vintage although I do have a half dozen different ones (the Fonseca is killer!). This wine was quite dark and had notes of burnt orange peel, caramel and a hint of VA . It was medium weight and smooth on palate with medium length. This was Bart’s first Port under his own name, done with Niepoort’s guidance. I retasted today and found that it has opened up a bit but had also accentuated the terminal acidity, though not to a degree that hurt the overall assessment of the wine. OK, but certainly not in my ‘sweet spot’ for vintage Port.
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