Ribera del Duero
Flor de Pingus 2006
Every where I go at the moment I see bottles of Flor de Pingus 2005 for sale or on the wine list. This is a good thing, but I rarely have the couple of hundred dollars required to pick up a bottle in a restaurant. One of the many things I love about Spain is the low markups on wine in restaurants, it is often the same price as retail, sometimes even cheaper. Plus many will let you buy bottles off the list to take home. Very civilised.
Vega Sicilia new releases 2009
This was actually billed as a master class, so a bit more than a new release tasting. And seeing as the next vintages were also available was a big bonus. Three days after returning from Rioja, a tasting of wines from Ribera del Duero and Toro was a most welcome change of atmosphere. It is [...]
10 years of Cillar de Silos Crianza
Late last year, The Spanish Acquisition put on a retrospective tasting of all of the vintages of Cillar de Silos Crianza that they have brought into the country, right back to the 1997….
Marques de Velellia Joven 2007
The joven wines from Ribera del Duero are very handy if you are looking for an early indication of the overall style and quality of the vintage. They are generally made in a fairly simple manner, without oak or winemaking tricks so you can see what the fruit really looks like. I’ve had a couple from the 2007 vintage and I can’t see this every being called a classic vintage, unless it’s as a classic wet vintage. This is where good vineyard management and smart winemaking come into effect, you can really tell how good a producer is by looking at their wines in a poor vintage. Some of these guys and gals came very close to turning a a sow’s ear into a silk purse…this is one such producer.
Marques de Velilla Crianza 2004
So, a new year and a bunch of new wines. I’ve got a stack of notes to get through over the next couple of weeks, then I’m off to Spain (with a quick trip to Poland on the way). Anyway on to the wine. I had a chance to catch up with Manuel Arias-Paz from Marques de Velilla late last year, a great guy, very passionate about Ribera del Duero and a real character (which you can see in this photo). They have embarked on a refresh of the vineyards and winemaking here, mostly along biodynamic lines but without the cow horn rubbish. Interestingly, the wine maker was in the Spanish rugby team and came out here. Who knew there was a Spanish rugby team?
Cillar de Silos Torresilo 2006
These 2006 wines for Cillar de Silos are looking quite smart. I’d rate this on par with the 05, which was very impressive in my book. If you don’t have any of this in your cellar and you’re a fan ofRibera del Duero you could do a lot worse than a couple of bottle of this in the cellar. A trio of Alion, Pesquera and this would be a very interesting look at modern style Ribera del Duero in 10 years…
Cillar de Silos Crianza 2006
Cillar de Silos is an old favourite, and this 2006 is showing very well. It was a challenging vintage, but the guys here seem to have to made all the right decicions and have producded something well worth drinking and cellaring over the short term.
Pesquera Crianza 2005
Pesqurea has to be one of the most well know producers in Ribera del Duero and introduced many people to the style of wine from the regions. For sure, the juicy, juby fruit that characterises Tempranillo from Ribera del Duero is a long way from daggy oak treatment and the 100 rackings that old school Rioja has as its trademark. I wouldn’t really call this a modern wine these days, but even so even there the fruit shines through and the oak treatment is reasonable.
Bodegas Finca Vaqueros I’Corus Condado 2003
This wine is a bit older and gets a couple of extra months in American oak than its younger brother, Quinta, and its all the better for it. Again, its a fairly savoury and rustic with some amazing acid and balance.
Protos Roble 2005
Wines labeled as Roble are usually a young wine that spends less than 6 months in oak. It can be a bit hit and miss as if they use all new oak, the wine soaks up all the oak flavour but doesn't get the small amount of oxygen contact that oak barrels allow. This one [...]
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