Tinto y Blanco

A new wine from the Compañia de Vinos Telmo Rodriguez, a premium Verdejo from Rueda.  Personally, I’m not sure there is a huge market  $60 a bottle Verdejo (or $90-100 on a wine list), but I do admire their spirit in attempting to get the best possible wine out of old vine Verdejo from Rueda and lift it to something more than a Sauv Blanc alternative.

So, what do you do when you are trying to make the best wine from Rueda. Old bush vines are essential, no idea on the age of the vines used here but they are older than those used for Basa. Once the grapes are off the vine, leave the wine making kit bag at home and let it the wild yeast do it’s thing. Sure there might be some cooling used to keep everything fresh during fermentation, perhaps just some concrete tanks for example. Then give it some texture. Let it mature on lees for an extended period or stir it up a bit…but basically leave it alone.

Finish it off with a cool label and name and you’re done. The name is a reference to how they keep the wild pigs out of the vineyard, that old favorite of shopping centres and train stations has been used here: place a radio in the vineyard and play boring or bad music at high volume and they’ll keep clear. I’m told wild boar is good eating, so personally I’d take another approach and live high on the hog.

Lively nose of subtle, tropical fruits, rocky/mineral type notes and a bit of the ol’ mountain herb. Lovely, mealy texture, lees notes, with a bit of old hay and earth. Savoury and super long finish, a shake of minerals, lemon, guava and an apple that’s been in your school bag a couple of days longer than it should have (I  like this). Walks a fine line between texture and acid, you could call it chubby if you where so inclined, but just right for me. This won’t be for everyone, but with some good food (thinking corn fed, free range roast chicken) it will really lift. 92 Pts.

Source: The Spanish Acquisition Price: $60 Closure: Conventional Cork

Web: www.telmorodriguez.com

A project by brothers Jacques and Francois Lurton in Rueda. They came to town looking to make outstanding Sauvignon Blanc and decided to stick to Verdejo. They seem a little obsessed with the place actually. They even make a sweet wine from verdejo called ‘de Puta Madre’. Which would be quite rude if you’re from South America. Only a Frenchman could call a wine “fuck that’s good” and get away with it…

Nice and crisp, is the first thing I think of when taking a sniff in the glass. It has the typical lemon and white flowers of verdejo, with a little pear and rocks. Nice oily texture with plenty of acid, it’s refreshing if a little flabby in the middle (like the best of us). Minerally and flinty, with a good finish. Lacks a bit of the herbal edge I like in verdejo, but that might be a good thing depending on your point of view. Still, a tasty drink with plenty to offer. 90 Pts.

Source: Ce Soir Imports Price: $32 Closure: Screwcap

Web: www.francoislurton.com

Félix Solís looks to be something of a powerhouse in Northern Spain, they’ve purchased a couple of new bodegas, this being one of them. The wine is made from verdejo in Rueda, its bright and fresh. Perfect for the week of 40 degree days we have coming in Melboune. I must say I am looking forward to catching the end of the European winter…

Bright and fresh on the nose, plenty of lemon and pineapple with a touch of fennel bulb and burnt sugar/candy. Not overly oily and textured in the mouth, but a good hit of acid the drives with wine on. The palate is classic verdejo: lemon and lime with something a little herbal and minerally.  A very handy , sub $20, summer drink. 88 Pts.

Source: Broadway Liquor Distributors Price: $19 Closure: Synthetic Cork

Web: www.felixsolisavantis.com

Obviously, I’ve been doing too many tastings of late: It looks like I got my notes mixed up on the two verdejos I had last week. The note from the Orden Tercera Verdejo 2007 was actually for this wine. Not good, but it happens.  I have updated the other post with the new note…

Now this wine doesn’t show too much of that herbal/vegetative character I mentioned in the last review. I drink a fair bit of verdejo when I’m in northern Spain, most bars have a good one on stand by when you’ve had an overload of vino tinto over the past week. It’s been a couple of years since I’ve been, I’m dying to get back but I keep buying wine when I should be saving for a plane ticket…

This opens up nice and fresh, with some pear and fennel buld, a bit of apple and lemon with a touch of cut grass. There is a touch of sweetness at first, but it’s mostly savoury with a little texture. It motors along nicely, nothing poking out, with good balance between texture and acid. The plate has generous flavours of pear and apple, lemon towards the finish and a touch of minerally goodness. A good drink, I’d buy a glass if I walked into a bar and saw it on the list. 88 Pts.

Source: The Spanish Acquisition Cost: $23 Closure: Conventional Cork

I had a couple of cheaper verdejos earlier in the week, and I was impressed at the quality level. I find that some of the cheaper offerings made from verdejo can be a bit oxidised, and frankly too herbal and vegetative. This one has a fair of the wild herbs that I’m not that fond of, however others do like this character. After testing it out on a few unsuspecting friends, I think you’re going to love it or hate it.

The nose opens up with a stong note of wild herbs, fennel bulb and green apple and pear. Slightly textured with a bite of acid and subtle fruit characters. That herby note is a bit more subduded here, some nice crunchy acid and it seems well balanced. The plate is a bit subdued in terms of flavour, a bit of pear and lemon but the acid drives it along nicely. Out of the two this drinks a notch below the Mocen, but still worth a look if you see it buy the glass somewhere. 87 Pts.

Source: The Spanish Acquisition Cost: $23 Closure: Screwcap

I’ve heard many stories of woe when discussing the 2007 vintage from Spain, but from what I’ve seen of the verdejos and albarinos they seem to be good drinking at the moment, however the crop level was quite low. It is always dangerous to make generalisations about vintages across a whole country, but its fair to say many regions didn’t have the best conditions for red wine. However, over in the Douro in Portugal, they had a cracker. There is talk of it being the best red wine vintage yet.

Anyway, we got stuck in to this verdejo from Bodegas Angel Rodriguez over the weekend. This to me looks to be a classic Martinsancho: fresh and lively but a definitely a grown up’s wine. Taught and linar with a nose of pear and fennel bulb with some grassy passion fruit and a green rosemary note. Textured, long and tangy in the mouth, pear and apple with a bit of kiwi and lemon peel. A very classy Verdejo that is good with food and on it’s own. Good value too. 90 Pts.

Source: Bibendum Wine Co. Price: $30 Closure: Conventional Cork

Other vintages: 2004, 2006

This wine has been dubbed the giraffe wine at home. I like giraffes, but I’m not sure I’d like to get too close to one in the flesh. This wine however is very friendly. And it is long and textured too.

A classy nose of citrus, lemon and grapefruit, with fennel bulb and herb notes. The real show here is the texture, length, and complexity on the palate. Very classy. Apples, lemons and pears with a touch of mineraly goodness.  A bit higher in cost than most Verdejos, but it is the most interesting I’ve had. 91 Pts.

Source: The Spanish Acquisition Price: $40 Closure: Conventional Cork

This is another of the Vintage Cellars imports and personally, I’m very impressed. I get to taste a load of stuff with some of the importers, a lot of it is in search of a cheap white like this. Unfortunately not many reach this standard, and at this price. For sure, it’s not the best wine on earth, but it really over delivers and offers a real alternative to the cheaper NZ Sauv Blanc that seems to be the big seller in bottle shops.

Up front and fresh on the nose, pears and a little peach with some white flowers. A bit more air shows the classic fennel bulb. The palate show some guava, pear and passionfruit plus some musk stick. Its not that textured, which is something I look for in good verdejo, it’s lean with acid drive. Excellent for the price, I’ve tasted quite a few ‘inexpensive’ wines from Rueda and this has to be one of the best cheapies around. 87 Pts.

Source: Vintage Cellars Price: $12 Closure: Screwcap

I’ve been meaning to write this wine up for a while, but the image has been a bit pesky. So, A small promo shot will have to do for now. I gave the Martel Blanco Sauv Blanc a bit of a wrap, but really the star from these guys in the Verdejo. This is a textbook example and comes in at a very reasonable price.

Bright golden hay in colour, with a classic verdejo nose of apples and pears with some fennel bulb and a touch of fresh green peas. Nicely textured with a very subtle bit of sweetness on the mid palate that works with the driving acid. The palate shows apple and lemon, a touch a tropical fruit and finishes off with a long clean finish that shows some bitter sage. I could drink this wine all day on a warm day. 88 Pts.