Ribera del Duero

Cillar de Silos Torresilo 2005

It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago, so I gave this a quick splash in the decanter and went out for dinner in Carlton.  We stopped in at Gerald's Bar for a few refreshing beverages after dinner, its my kind of place.  Its kind of like a quiet spot for classy booze hounds, that isn't really quiet.  The guys and girls behind the bar know their stuff and their is always something interesting on the by the glass list as they just use the first 6 wines ordered that night to make up the list.

Anyway on to the wine. If you have a look on the Cillar de Silos website they give a little commentary on the vintage conditions for each of their wines,  2005 sounds like a hard year that turned out well.  A very cold spring (a top 7 degrees to a low of -9), an unusally hot April which kick off bud swelling a bit earlier than normal, then no rain which put bud burst back a bit.  And it goes on.  Ribera del Duero can be a buggar of a place to grow grapes, but well worth the end product.

Deep purple moving to ruby at the edge.  A quick wiff of the glass and I know I'm in for a treat: savoury mulberry and cherry, mocha coffee, clay and pepper. In the mouth its bold and subtle at the same time, plenty of dusty tannins with a good acid backbone.  Savory with perfectly ripe fruit and great balance.  On the palate its all about the ripe fruit: mulberry and cherry with a touch of plum.  This is joined by some cola, a shake of chocolate, spice and earthy minerals all wrapped up in some high quality oak that just shows enough to know its there. Great drinking now with a decant, I'd leave it in the cellar for 5 years and drink over the following 10.  95 Pts.

Source: The Spanish Acquisition Cost: $120 Closure: Conventional Cork

Web: www.cillardesilos.es

Other vintages: 2003, 2004