Spanish Wine

Winemaker Notes

Winemaker Description 

A Tempranillo with a small addition of 5% Viura, i.e. white grapes. This is not only unusual on the Côte-Rotie of the Northern Rhône, but also in the Rioja and the Ribera del Duero. The base wine already shows why the future of this prestigious region lies in the high altitudes of Rioja Alavesa. The cool nights up here create a unique freshness, a purity of fruit and wonderful floral-playful aromas.

Clearly violet to the black cherry, also blueberry, just very delicate hints of plum underneath, overall a lot of bright, fresh fruit, stimulating and clear as a bell. And the mouth is just as brilliantly polished and juicy, dark wild berries and a fine-grained, but by no means softened tannin structure make Artuke's quality and ripeness standards clear even in the basic segment. A beautiful, even slightly salty, precise high-altitude Tempranillo full of fruit and without any influence of wood. Winemaker Description.

Expert Review

93 Points Robert Parker | The 2020 Angelita del Challao comes from a blend of different vineyards in the three valleys from Labastida, looking for a village wine; it was produced with 85% Tempranillo and the rest Garnacha, Mazuelo, Viura, Garnacha Blanca and other rare varieties from their own vineyards and purchased grapes. It fermented in concrete with indigenous yeasts, 40% full clusters that are foot trodden and the rest uncrushed grapes and matured in 225- and 500-liter barrels and 2,000-liter foudres—10 months with each plot separate—and then it was blended and let to settle in concrete for another 10 months. They look for a more approachable wine than Challao, with more floral aromas in a very elegant and harmonious way. The palate is medium-bodied with medium ripeness, 13.5% alcohol and very good freshness and acidity, balanced and harmonious, very tasty and with elegant, refined tannins. Really very good. 17,282 bottles and some larger magnums were filled in May 2022. (2020). 

Winemaker Description

Rioja is without question the most famous wine region in Spain, but the region is anything but homogeneous. The three sub-regions – Rioja Alavesa, Rioja Oriental and Rioja Alta – differ enormously. This wine comes from the small hamlet of Labastida in the northwest of Rioja Alavesa, the smallest and northernmost sub-region located in the Spanish Basque Country and characterized by calcareous clay and sandy soils. 

The mastermind behind the Dominio del Challao winery is Manu Michelini, whose family makes incredibly fine, terroir-driven wines under the name Michelini i Mufatto at both their winery in Bierzo, in northeastern Spain, and the Argentine winery in Mendoza. The Challao is the winery's top wine. Medium ruby ​​red with violet. There is significantly more intensity in the glass than with the Garnacha, but this wine still reminds me more of Burgundy than Bordeaux on the nose. The winery is clearly on the trail of elegance. Juicy, fresh wild berries, black cherries, rose petals and black Assam tea, that's delicately smoky. 

Then come violets and freshly fired clay. In the mouth, cassis, fresh blackberries and lots of black cherry again. The intense, chalky minerality is phenomenal, building up gradually on the tongue. Delicately bitter, fresh herbs and a touch of After Eight. The tannins are fine and chalky, and as soon as you feel the structure, the next wave of black cherry washes over your tongue. 

This is not at all what you imagine Rioja to be in the classic sense. But this wine is a lot of fun because of its freshness and mineral intensity without being boring. On the contrary, I am convinced that it will develop gracefully in the cellar for years because it is made for a long life. Super chic fabric and without question a Rioja in a class of its own! 

Winemaker Description

Slightly acid on the palate, giving it a young character. Pleasant and light.

Fresh and fruity, reminiscent of the varieties from which it is made, along with citric aromas.

Serving with Rice fish, Mixed rice, Crustaceans, Molluscan shell, Pasta with pesto sauce, Pasta with tomato sauce, Pasta with creamy sauces, Pasta with marinara sauce, Whitefish, Fish with sauce, Pizza.

Winemaker Description

Pares Balta Cava Pink is smooth, refreshing and very graceful on the palate, packed with ripe, red berry fruit and balanced by a crisp, fresh acidity. Ideal for helping you to enjoy the summer sunshine. Or a rainy Tuesday evening!

Made using the traditional method developed in Champagne, this terrific Parés Baltà Pink Cava is quite stunning, and it is by far the best rosé Cava we've tasted for the price. This modern blend sees the traditional Xarel.lo component of white Cava replaced by 38% Garnatxa, alongside the 32% Parellada and 30% Macabeu.

Grape Variety: Garnatxa, Parellada, Macabeo/Viura

Redcurrant color with a very good sparkling crown of bubbles. On the nose aroma of red fruit with a light floral notes. In the mouth it is appetizing and fresh with hints of redcurrant and raspberry. Long, sweet and pleasant finish. Serving temperature: 8 – 10°

Spicy nose with hints of black pepper and scrubland. Licorice, plum, tobacco. On the palate, red plum, cherry, friendly, fresh, very long.

Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, Syrah and Petit Verdot

The province of Malaga in Andalusia, known mainly for its sweet wines such as Pedro Ximénez and Moscatel, also grows red varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, although to a lesser extent compared to other wine regions. Winemaker Description.

Winemaker Description

Very aromatic, fruity notes stand out over the wood ones. We perceive black fruits such as blackberries and plums alongside with spiced notes, obtained during its time in oak barrels, that bestow elegance. Roasted notes appear gradually as well.  The wine has a great structure and body. It is well-balance and velvety on the mouth. It has a pleasant and long lasting finish.

18 months in French oak barrels. The wine is then finely-tuned in the bottle for a period of six months. For the purpose of preserving every characteristic of the wine, before being bottled, the wine goes through a clarification and stabilization process, followed by a filtration process. Nevertheless, over time, due to the use of very gentle techniques, some natural sediments might appear. 

Winemaker Description

Chansélus is a unique, minuscule production red (112 cases total!!!) from the prestigious Ribeiro D.O. which is more known for its world-class whites. Bernardo Estevez makes this field blend of Brancellao, Souson, Caino da Terra, Carabuneira, Trincadeira, Ferrol, Tinta Amarela, Caino Bravo, Caino Longo, Mencia, etc... from the 3 hectares of vines that he owns in 5 different sub-regions. 

He manages his vineyards personally following organic and biodynamic practices as laid out by Masanobu Fukuoka and he even brews his own natural treatments in his kitchen.

The wine is herbaceous and balanced with crisp acid, moderate tannins, fresh wild berry flavors and pronounced minerality from the sandy, granitic soils of Ribeiro. Pairs wonderfully with Galician pork sausages, smoked ham or sheep's milk cheese from the Pyrenees to the North.

Winemaker Description

Intense color with purple reflections. The aromas of violets and Mediterranean herbs complement the delicate notes of chocolate and toast from the subtle aging.

Elegant on the palate, with fresh notes that combine with round and sweet tannins. In perfect balance with natural acidity, it is a pleasant and long-lasting finish.

An organic xarel·lo wine with minimum intervention.
 
From the flagship variety of the Penedès, the xarel-lo, comes this organic single-varietal wine. Calcari brings together the purest and most sincere expression of this ancestral variety, native to our territory and strongly rooted in our winemaking tradition.

Its characteristics give it great versatility, making it a variety suitable for the production of long-aged sparkling wines or wines with minimal intervention such as Calcari, a wine that allows us to see its great expressive capacity and its mineral characte. 

Winemaker Description 

2πr 2021 is an organic red wine made in Priorat, Spain by Gratavinum. The name of the wine is a reference to the perimeter of a circle, and the wine itself is described as having "perfect roundness."

The nose is aromatic and complex, with notes of preserved red fruit, toasty oak, and cacao. The mouthfeel is soft and round, with ripe tannins and good acidity. The flavors are of red fruit, mineral, and wood smoke. The finish is long and fresh.

2πr 2021 is an ideal wine for wine lovers to enjoy with traditional Mediterranean cuisine. It is a complex and well-balanced wine with a lot of personality.

Winemaker Description 

Tawny gold colour, this elegant and classic Amontillado is pungent and aromatic, with oaky notes. Nutty on the palate with a hint of sweetness and a lingering dry finish. Winemaker Description. 

Expert Review 

Wine Spectator 93 Points | This has lots of range, with ginger, date, toasted almond, blood orange, singed sandalwood and green tea notes all allied to finely beaded acidity, letting everything drape beautifully on the finish. Alluring on its own, but this really begs for some Cabrales. Drink now.Wine Advocate 91 points The NV Almacenista Jose Luis Gonzalez Obregon Oloroso del Puerto produced from Palomino grapes and aged in Puerto de Santa Maria by the sea, has a chestnut color with a green-amber edge, clean sweet notes of roasted nuts, cake and oranges, a medium- to full-bodied palate with a smoky character and great length.

Winemaker Description 

Valdespino Moscatel 'Promesa', is a heavy sherry. Light mahogany color with amber tones. A flowery smell with honey and a beetje citrus. The smaak is fris en zacht. It's a perfect balance with a ripple and a fresh fruity surface. 

Winemaker Description

This wine has dark savory fruit with notes of bay, thyme and leather. Firmer structured and chalky on the palate. In typical Bodegas Ponce fashion, La Casilla manages to express the inherent power and structure of Bobal and it's native Manchuela, but goes so with the sort of grace and style that re-calls Cru Beaujolais 

Winemaker Description

An intense red-purple colour. Potent and elegant on the nose with a great complexity of aromas (jams, minerals, menthol, spices, wild herbs, toffee and cacao).

Great harmony in the mouth with very marked sweet tannins, very complex and full of flavours of black fruits, raisins, liquorice, coffee, ink and aromatic herbs. Persistent lingering finish. Excellent wine for aging.

Winemaker Description

The Eguren family strove to produce a world class wine from the miniscule Finca La Nieta, a vineyard with shallower, poorer soils, and a superior microclimate than the neighboring El Puntido vineyard. The product is Viñedos de Páganos’ flagship wine, La Nieta. The Eguren family wanted to use this vineyard to display the subtlety and elegance that Tempranillo can represent, and they have achieved this with La Nieta. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Advocate 97 Points | The perfumed and floral 2019 La Nieta, which comes from one of the four vineyards around the winery in the helmet of Páganos (Laguardia), is structured and powerful, from a warmer (and sunnier) year, with 14.2% alcohol and a pH of 3.6 and 5.9 grams of acidity. It also shows freshness and elegance, and with time in the glass, one could foresee the finesse that should come out as the wine absorbs the 16 months in new oak barrels with time in bottle, as this was bottled one year before I tasted it. It improved with time in the glass, and it should do the same with years in bottle. This is usually my favorite from the Eguren portfolio, but this time Marcos Eguren's Sierra Cantabria 2019 El Bosque stole the show. 5,000 bottles were filled in July 2021.

Jeb Dunnuck 97 Points | Jumping up in price, the single vineyard 2019 La Nieta comes from 100% Tempranillo aged 18 months in new French oak barriques. Both black and blue fruits as well as cedary oak, violets, graphite, and chalky minerality all emerge from this beauty, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a tight, concentrated, promising mouthfeel, nicely integrated tannins, and a great finish. A serious, balanced, incredibly impressive Rioja, it deserves 3-4 years of bottle age and will have two decades or more of overall longevity. Best After 2025James Suckling 93 points Opens up to a fragrant nose of brambleberries, crushed raspberries, lavender, pine cone and star anise. Medium-to full-bodied with fine, powdery tannins. Textured and mineral. Some peppercorn and walnut on the finish. 

Winemaker Description 

This Amontillado Sherry is a blend of several casks from criaderas housed at a highly respected bodega with roots in the late 1800s. 

Winemaker Description 

Has a peachy nose and a mellow palate, round and gentle with hints of orange peel, nuts and varnish. It could be around 20 years of age, so it's not a super old wine. It's approachable, super clean and defined and a textbook example of the category. This has 19% alcohol.

Producer Description 

El Tresillo was a card game that prior generations of the Hidalgo family used to play in the bodega.  Participants in this leisurely rite would sneak a taste or two from the solera before dealing each round, enough so that the solera eventually adopted the name of the game. Today it is one of Hidalgo’s oldest soleras, and its bottlings are considered a family treasure.

Rich mahogany in color, this sherry shows penetrating aromas of almond, brine, caramel and toasted bread. It is equally sensuous and rich on the palate.

Makes a superb pairing with almonds or preserved fruit, curried lentils and roasted pork or poultry. 

97 Points Decanter | A lively style of fino, with vintage orange marmalade, crushed peanut and old cotton cloth characters on the nose. Nutty on the palate, rich and unctuous, with a fantastic tangy salinity and wonderful finesse. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 93 Points | The 2015 Mingortiz is pure Tempranillo from an organically farmed vineyard in Briones that gives the wine its name. It was planted in 1964, a south-facing plot with limestone-rich soils at 515 meters altitude that give the wine length and elegance. The uncrushed grapes fermented in an oak vat after a six-day cold soak. Malolactic was in barrel, same as the élevage, which was in brand new French barriques and lasted 16 months. 

Wine Enthusiast 93 Points | Finca Allende wines are back in the U.S., and 2015 is a fine vintage to debut this single-vineyard Tempranillo. Its ripe aromas suggest berry and prune, with floral highlights. Lemony acidity bolsters its warm, toasty blackberry and plum flavors. Agile in build, it shifts gears like a fine-tuned transmission. 

Winemaker Description

This wine comes from plots of bush-trained vines on poor, sandytextured soils in the Rioja Alta area. The vines are an average of morethan 35 years old and low yields. They are harvested with great care and transported to the winery in small containers. Alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainlesssteel tanks at a controlled temperature of 28ºC, with prior bleeding-off and a long maceration of three weeks in contact with theskins. Ageing in French and American oak barrels (90%-10%) over 28 months, followed by subsequent bottle conditioning for at least 4 years until it is leaves the winery.

AWARDS
93 Silver Medal · International Wine Challenge (v. 2011).

90 Puntos · James Suckling (a. 2010).

90 puntos · Guía Repsol (a. 2010).

90 puntos · Wine Spectator (a. 2009).

91 puntos · Wine Enthusiast (a. 2009).

91 puntos · Wine Wine Advocate (a. 2008).

SENSORY EVALUATION

Look: Ruby red with a noticeable rim. Excellent brightness and clarity.

Aroma & palate: On its first contact with oxygen, it appears clean but reticent. Then, sweet notes of oak appear, cinnamon, clove and candied fruits. Infinite nuances that change with the passage of time.

On the palate, it is subtle and pleasant, with great finesse uponentry and through the mid-palate.

The tannins are extremely well polished and it has a serene acidity that maintains a long finish.

SERVING & FOOD PAIRING

White meat, oven-baked fish. Cured meat and dark chocolate desserts. 

93 Silver Medal · International Wine Challenge (v. 2011).

Winemaker Description 

Amontillado of the most pristine kind. Traditional notes of almonds and walnut skin but with a citrus blast and floral lantana-like elegance that perfumes the salty toasted notes of dark cocoa and coffee beans. Incredibly dry, this elegant wine has endless layers and should be consumed over the course of weeks.

Expert Review 

95 Points Robert Parker | The 2022 bottling of the NV Amontillado La Casilla doesn't have a clear bottling date, but it has a lot number on the back label. It has a golden-brown color and a complex nose. It comes from the Manzanilla Pasada Blanquito and has a profile of an old wine, with notes of rusty nail and low tide, and also a Sanlúcar profile, sharp and saline with rustic finesse. It's pungent, long and salty. This is rare to keep the old age of the wine. Best After 2029

Wine Advocate 93 Points | They look for a more classical expression in the 2019 De la Finca, a selection of vineyards by Pepe Raventós's grandfather, produced in a slightly more oxidative style and aged for 30+ months with lees. 2019 was a very good and "normal" vintage, with good rain, normal yields and a paused harvest. This has more smokiness from the contact with the yeasts and lees with very fine bubbles, subtle, defined by how they prepare the second fermentation in bottle and then the aging in the bottle. 

Situated on the highest terraces of the River Anoia, the Vinya dels Fòssils vineyard has marine soils with a high fossil content. This characterises the structure and the soil composition of this vineyard. The carbonates are the component that provides the main source of typicity to this sparkling wine with a high saline expression. It is a sparkling wine with a unique identity and personality. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description

Enticing aromas of blackberry and fresh thyme mingle with hints of rose petal, cardamom, and sumac. Juicy forest fruits and black cherry on the palate are complemented by spice and floral notes, with a slate-like minerality, fresh acidity, and well balanced tannins.

Expert Review

Wine Spectator 92 Points | This flashy red shows appeal with a glossy texture that encases the blackberry reduction, steeped black cherry, mocha and licorice flavors, with accents of black olive, dried rose petal and smoke. A distinctive style. Drink now through 2027. 250 cases imported. 

Winemaker Description

Intense aroma of fresh red fruits, with nuances of blackberry and slight hints of minerals and spices.

Taste: Notable taste of fruits, in good balance with the body of wine. Large concen- tration of soft tannins that give it a pleasant palate.

Winemaker Description

The flagship of the winery, the Reserva is made mostly from Tempranillo (85%) with splashes of Graciano, Viura and Malvasia. The vines are on average about 60 years of age, and the wine is aged for over two years in new French oak.

With six vineyards situated in the foothills of the Cantabrian mountain range, Remírez de Ganuza blends some of the best terroirs from Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Alta. The combination of high elevation, clay/limestone soils, increased oceanic influence, and 50 year old average vines produces low-yielding vines with exceptional quality.

A decadent nose, bristling with fresh cherry and vanilla, belies a palate of equally pristine fruit. Balance between the acidic and tannic structures is harmonious, playing gently yet firmly off one another for a refined experience. 

Expert Review

Wine Enthusiast 93 Points | Smooth aromas of mature berry fruits and plum amount to a silky whole touched up by café mocha. A saturated palate is packed with pulpy black fruit, while this tastes of blackberry, tobacco, coffee and oak. A smooth finish with a meaty texture and chocolaty notes concludes this dense holdover from a cold year. 

The treasures of El Maestro Sierra are many. From the back of their building they have a clear view of the Atlantic Ocean.

In 1832 the master carpenter José Antonio Sierra founded El Maestro Sierra. As one of the top coopers in the area, José Antonio was the person who made the barrels for all of the big Sherry houses. After years of making barrels for everyone else, he came to the conclusion that he could produce Sherries that were better than what the big Sherry houses were cranking out, so he went about opening up his own little winery.

This little up-start Sherry producer was not welcomed in the world of nobility-owned Sherry houses and so the local gentry did everything they could to stop him. Fortunately the quality of his sherry prevailed over their efforts and José Antonio Sierra became one of the top Almacenistas (stockholders) of high-quality Sherries. Poking fun at his struggle, the label depicts an allegorical fox hunt with the nobles hunting El Maestro Sierra’s fox.

This Amontillado is aged for a total of 12 years under flor and oxidatively in American oak casks. Very explosive aromas of salts and almonds. The palate offers similar flavors in a very elegant framework.

González Byass Solera 1847 is a sweet Cream with aromas of figs and raisins and touches of wood and vanilla. The palate is velvety, with notes of caramel and well-integrated wood. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description 

The Hidalgo La Gitana Manzanilla En Rama — a style of Manzanilla or Fino that is drawn straight from the solera and bottled with little to no fining, filtration or stabilization — is a special bottling that has been produced only since 2011. Twice a year — once in the spring and once in the fall, when the flor is at its thickest — Hidalgo takes wine straight from the solera and bottles a small release with minimal treatments, resulting in a Manzanilla that is more concentrated, complex and intense.

Brilliant mid-lemon color with intoxicating aromas of chamomile, dried herbs, sea spray, flor and dried nuts. The palate shows a striking depth of flavor with remarkable length and purity; soft and round with flavors of apple skin, dried pear, hazelnut, salt and a healthy dose of flor. Stunning for its complexity, richness and depth. 

Winemaker Description 

The Antique Amontillado comes from a very old Fino (8 yrs old) which is refortified from 15.5% to 18.0% ABV and introduced into a solera of Amontillado where it spends a further 12 years.

Light ambar color. Exceptionally aromatic, completely dry and long aftertaste. 

Expert Reviews

92 Points Robert Parker | The NV Antique Amontillado is amber-colored and has a subtle nose of tobacco, some iodine, pollen, beeswax and hazelnuts. The medium- to full-bodied palate shows lots of concentration and acidity, with a very intense finish. 4,000 bottles are produced yearly.

91 Points Wine Spectator | A dry, nervy style, offering balsam wood, clove, dried orange peel and Brazil nut notes that weave together through the lacy finish. Shows range, but stays delicate in feel overall.

Expert Reviews 

95 Points Wine & Spirits | Inocente is Valdespino’s flagship, a wine from the Macharnudo Alto vineyard, where the soil is pure white albariza. It ferments in 600-liter wooden casks without added yeasts, a practice that has become increasingly rare in Jerez. The intensity of the wine’s salinity is remarkable—iodine and salt—coming together with ripe white fruit, scents of nuts and exotic spices. The structure is dry and austere, like drinking the juice of stones. This will last for a decade in the cellar, but it’s impossible to hold onto a bottle if there’s raw seafood nearby.

94+ Points Robert Parker | As with many other wines from the José Estévez group, there is a special bottling of Valdespino's flagship NV Fino Inocente in magnum, but in this case they have kept the bottles for six months as the wine is from the saca otoño 2016, the autumn bottling from 2016. So the wine is offered with some extra bottle age. It has all that you expect from Inocente, a long aging wine fermented in bota from grapes grown exclusively in the Macharnudo Alto vineyard and bottled with an average age of ten years. All the textbook aromas and flavors are there, coupled with the elegance and mineral intensity the Macharnudo white chalky soils provide. Customers who purchase one of this scarce magnums probably know Inocente already. This will have a longer development in bottle.