Flor de Pingus 2007

I’m in a real Ribera del Duero kind of mood of late, maybe to balance out the 05 Rioja I’ve been hoarding, whatever the reason Ribera and Italians have been getting high rotation on the tasting bench. I’ve had a look at this wine a couple of times now, and to be honest it was underwhelming on first taste, tasting a bit like Bordeaux from a cold, wet vintage (i.e. dilute and green with chunky tannins). Oh dear not good. Right time for a another bottle at home with some ribeye…

Bodegas Félix Callejo Cuatro Meses en Barrica 2006

When I first started buying Spanish wine it was very much like having some kind of collector’s fetish. Hunt around for the wines, hear something about a new import and spend weeks trying to find out where to get it Word of mouth was king. These day’s I’m almost falling over Spanish wines in booze shops, bars and restaurants, you can read about them in local papers and plenty of blogs and I have even heard people talking about Rioja on the train once. Things have definitely moved on. One big change has been in the supermarket chains. You can now find a decent range of wines from all over Spain (and Portugal too) in both Vintage Cellars and Dan Murhpy’s stores. The old token range of big house swill is mostly gone and you can find some quality wines at reasonable prices. And they have gone to some length to get it right: they’ve hired some very smart and experienced chaps to find the wines, either through established importers (as this wine is) or importing them direct. Of course, the supermarkets haven’t been the kindest to many wine brands over the years and there is still a big gap between the good independant retailers and the chain stores in terms of service and range (and price in many cases), but that’s not the point. The point is this: most Spanish and Portuguese wine is sold in restaurants and bars in Australia. What this does do is to bring these wines out of the wine geek’s realm and more into the mainstream wine drinker’s. This can only be a good thing.

Balbas Barrica 2008

Some Spanish wine law is a bit out there. Media crianza, semi joven, or barrica are all names for wines that have seen less than 12 months in oak, making the wine not quite a crianza or a joven wine. Now this isn’t an official term, people just make it up, but Barrica (which just means barrel in Spanish) seems to be winning out in Ribera del Duero and Toro. Confusing or what? Not a particularly great marketing plan, many Spanish people don’t know what it means either. Anyway, this puppy is all tempranillo that has 4 month in oak. It works quite well this wine, rather than adding unneeded wood it adds a nice edge to the wine.

Balbas Reserva 2004

The big daddy from Bilbas. Reservas from Ribera del Duero are one of my favourites wines to drink, old or young. The juicy fruit with plenty of complexity is super satisfying. This is along similar line to thecrianza, this is perhaps a little more traditional in its focus. The vintage shows through here: big flavours, big tannins and lots of potential in the cellar.

Balbas Crianza 2006

This is a new one from Ce Soir, part of a range of wines from Ribera del Duero. One of the older bodegas in the region making very smart wines. Well worth seeking out. There is a dollop of Cabernet in here is well, which is quite typical and traditional for the region…I’m not usually a fan, but there is always an exception to the rule.

Bodegas y Vinedos Alion 2004

Now that the academic year is over (well for me anyway), posts should be a bit more regular. And what better way to kick things back in to gear than a bottle ofAlion . As is usual with this wine, its a hard beast to tame when it’s young. Decanting helps but really this needs at least 5 year in the cellar to really start showing what its made of. This bottle was showing loads of oakinitially , and then closed up with a wall of tannins, which is fairly typical for the vintage. I’ve had a couple of bottles of this in the past year, and they have all been a little different, but all pointing towards a great, long term wine.

Condado de Haza 2006

I’ve been liking these 2006 wines from Ribera del Duero, I think this is the last for the moment. A couple of bucks cheaper that Pesquera, but every bit as enjoyable. Do decant for at least an hour, it needs a bit of time. I hear all this talk of 2006 being a poor vintage, it’s not 2004, but it’s not 2002 either. Every 2006 I’ve had so far has been tasty and the tannin/acid balance that makes these wines great with meat like lamb and pork..

Pesquera Crianza 2006

I thought I’d put this one to the top of the pile, its a popular wine and its one of my favourites year in and year out. The 2004 Reserva should also be around by now too, I’ll have to see if I can get hold of some. I am still a bit iffy on this concept that tempranillo from Ribera del Duero goes through some kind of oxidative phase that looks like brett after, bottling, shipping and about 10 years in bottle, but I can’t see anything like brett here…and the two bottles of the 2004 that I’ve had in the past 6 months have been fine too…weird.

La Perla del Priorat ‘Noster’ 2005

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I’ve got a couple of entry level on the tasting bench at the moment, this is the first. This was a big hit for me last year, a wine from Priorat at this price level and quality was quite rare at the time. But now wines in the $40-$60 price bracket are the must have item for many importers. And who’s complaining, seeing as the top wines from the region are going up again this year? There doesn’t seem to be one style at the price point, some are big rounded, easy drinking things, others are a bit tighter and focused. This falls into the later camp…

Cruz de Alba 2005

Here is a pleasing wine from Ribera del Duero along more traditional lines. A blend of mostly Tempranillo with a dash of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from the 20+ year old vines in Pagos Valderío. Shown through some new French and American oak for the required 12 months, then off to market. From what I can work out, this is a venture of the Riojan house Ramon Bilbao.