Rioja

Vinedos de Paganos La Nieta 2005

Now this is a wine that will divide the modernists from the traditionalist. It’s expensive, highly expressive and extracted, limited production and very much a high expression Rioja wine. It’s from a single 1.7 Ha vineyard of Tempranillo that was planted in 1975 on trellis (which is unusual for Rioja) in the minerally clay high up in Rioja Alta near Laguardia. A lot of selection work is done for this wine, cluster selection in the vineyard then berry selection by hand in the bodega. It’s fermented then in to new French oak for 18 months. It’s presented in a way that makes me think Grand Cru Burgundy. Personally, I think its a great wine that needs to rest for at least 5 years before looking at it. But if you’re more of a traditionalist, you’ll be cursing Parker and his followers.

Very dark for Rioja, royal purple with black/red core. The wood is quite evident at the moment, mocha, a bit of caramel and some vanilla. Thats followed up by some stunning dark fruit: Dark cherry, blackberry and blueberry with some minerals and herbs layered in for extra complexity. Intensely flavoured in the mouth with plenty of soft fruit tannin but with the acid to back it all up. Its very masculine and youthful right now, but I sense that this is wine that will have have an identity crisis in its early teens and move to a more feminine mould. The palate shows dark cherry, black current, and ripe mulberry with plenty of minerals, sarsaparilla and iron type minerals. The finish is huge. If you’re not a traditionalist and get a kick out of all kinds of wine, you’ll love this. But keep your mitts off for at least 5 years, then drink over the following 15. 95+ Pts.

Source: Toro/Woods Wines Price: Around $300 Closure: Conventional Cork

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