March/08 wines... 1/2
Re: March/08 wines... 2/2
Ver mensaje de jose2/2
- Gaba do Xil 2006. Compañía de Vinos Telmo Rodriguez. DO Valdeorras. (6.54 EUR)
Again a 100 % mencia and 0 % oak. As uncorked appears a strong geranium scent comes from the glass. It’s really strong, like walking by Córdoba in spring. Some minutes after it disappears and I find red fruits and prunes. It’s a hard sip and closed in nose. This way during the three days this bottle was in my fridge. I should taste again to have a proper opinion about this wine.
- Viña Tondonia Rosado Crianza 1993. Bodegas López de Heredia. DOC Rioja (7,75 EUR)
According to a recent suggestion the wine was previously decanted about 2 hours. Absolutely clean and brillant hue. No trace of its age. The usual acidity and oxidative smells. Hints of white chocolate, dried orange skin, wet leafs, dark forest and those touches of funghi. Fascinating. This wine goes to the immortality in the picture of Dorian Gray.
- Eric Texier Côtes Rhone St. Gervais Le Cadinnier 2000 (9 EUR)
Light and fresh, deploying its personality in many layers. Cassis, spicy, licquorized cherries, mediterranean bushes, hidden smoke, violets... It makes you believe in the existence of the bouquet.
I don’t mean wines that smell as nez-du-vin or like the parfums shelves in a mall. I mean wines with bouquet! I don’t know if this wine will evolve, but at this very moment it’s in a great moment.
- Barzen Auslese 2003. Weinhaus Barzen. Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
It’s my first Auslese. It’s quite different from the usual sweet wines I use to drink. No cloying at all. It’s really nice balance, with a sweetness that doesn’t disturb in any moment. With 8 grades
of alcohol you can drink the whole bottle without realize it.
Regards,
Jose
March/08 wines... 1/2
Ver mensaje de joseMany wines this month, isn’t it?
- Txakolí Itsas Mendi 2006. Bodegas Itsas-Mendi. DO Bizkaiko Txakolina (aprox 7 EUR)
Many times I’ve said that this wine and PF Nieva Verdejo are the most exciting wines and with best QPR under 10 EUR you can find in Spain. Not easy to find bottles of this wine far away from País Vasco, so I’m glad to find them in the town where I’m living and... what happened to this wine? where is the firmness, personality and character? It’s only the shadow of the wine I remember. Flabby, empty. I cork it again and store in the fridge. How disappointing!
Surprise for the second and third day! The wine come back, vivid and focused. Grass, scent of white fruits, appears the acidity and a nice bitterness. The third day it’s growing and growing! and I finish the bottle just when I’m really enjoying the wine. I’ll look for more
bottles in the shop.
P.S. I see in the winery website that the label of this bottle is for the nº7, nonetheless I don’t see any reference in the bottle I have.
- Nuviana Chardonnay 2006. VdT Valle del Cinca. (aprox 2 EUR)
This bottle confirms the first one feelings. Easy quaff, with fruit and citrical hints. Good QPR for the daily drink.
- Canforrales Clásico Tempranillo 2007. Bodegas Campos Reales. DO La Mancha (2.7 EUR)
Yes! No trace of oak (see my opinion about his brother the Selección). Very good young wine. Fresh fruit, touch of strawberry chewing-gum (sure it’ll disappear in some months), enough acidity
and a slight green hint in backnose. Very good QPR.
- Borsao Selección Joven 2006. Bodegas Borsao. DO Campo de Borja (3.19 EUR)
Dark hue. Even it smell dark. Black rippen fruits, but not jammy or overrippen. Thick sip with enough acidity. Nice quaff with good QPR.
- El Castro de Valtuille Mencía Joven 2006. Bodegas y Viñedos Castro Ventosa. DO Bierzo (5.58 EUR)
Mencía with no oak, no make-up, neither tricks no affectation. Plum , black olives and smoke, but not that smoked touches that comes, usually from the wood. I mean that smoke you feel while walking by a little village in a winter morning, and somebody fires up the fireplace, that first starting smoke is the one I mean. It’s smoke. I feel a light astringency when sipping. Next day it’s as tight as a stone from a river. It’s my best approach to any explanation of minerality, due to my lack of mineral references (ok, I know… shame on me!). It shows silkier than the preceding day and with a final touch of thym. It’s been nicely paired with a beans stew with quails. Quite interesting wine (I say it in good sense, despite I hate to use this adjective with a wine) and with very good QPR for less than 6 EUR. I’ll try to drink more of this stuff.
- Artazuri 2006. Bodegas y Viñedos Artazu. DO Navarra. (3.45 EUR)
Months after the preceding bottle I confirm this wine is still on top. I’m never tired neither of drinking nor of suggesting. Great QPR for about 3.45 EUR. In addition to this it’s really good paired with food. And no better destiny for any wine that being paired with food!
- A Posteriori. Bodega Josep Colet Orga. DO Penedés. (aprox 8 EUR).
Raspberries. Hue, smell, taste... Get a handful of raspberries and eat them, then they’re injected with bubbles et voilá, you got this wine! It’s an easy quaff but really nice and with a vivid acidity.
It’s been nicely paired with traditional bolognese pappardelle and with chard canelloni. Good QPR.
- Milflores 2007. Bodegas Palacio. DOC Rioja (4.5 EUR)
I drink this wine since 2001 vintage. I find it darker than preceding years. More ripeness, more ";black"; fruits and less ";reds";. As of this month the carbonic use to be right there, nonetheless it’s softer than ever. It looks nearer of a young wine. Nice and with a good QPR but it confused me. It’s been paired with sautée chard, tomatoe, serrano ham and pinenuts.
1/2
Some thirst !
Ver mensaje de joseJosé, many thanks for all the notes.
The Borsao and Valtuille joven are becoming regulars !
I know its very expensive but have you hav the Valtuolle old vines mencia ?
I have tried it twice (without having to buy it ;-)
and it is a lovely elegant restrained wine.
I love your description of the TR wine ";walking inCordoba in Spring"; very evocative.
thanks
Ray
If it’s very expensive...
Ver mensaje de RayQYou can be sure I’ve never tasted/bought ;^)
I didn’t knew anything neither about Valtuille nor R.Pérez ’til I found this bottle and suddenly appeared J.Miller points and many reports here and there about these wines 8-o
At this very moment of my winelife I’ve confirmed to myself that as less oak has mencia as better it is.
Regards,
Jose
Re: March/08 wines... 1/2
Ver mensaje de joseJose, I can believe you so nicely continue to give us this nice listing of your monthly wines! ... I so much agree with you with the Itsasmendi, the Nieva PF and the LdH rosee ... I also agree with others, but these three ones are outstanding for the prize. I also see that you are venturing into the auslese ... since I am so resistant to anything (anything!) sweet, I rarely have these wines, but I must admit that I enjoy many of them in spite of my hate to sweetness ... I even venture into the spatlese now and them, but they have to be SUPER acid and SUPER mineral ... lately, I’ve been devoring basic german riesling from good producers, and I’m really really getting addictive to them ... geeeezzzzzz ... they are SO wonderful!
MaJesus
I use to think the same than you...
Ver mensaje de MaJesusRegarding sweet wines. Well, I like sweet wines, but many of the wines I’ve ever tasted use to be sooooo cloying that are almost a dessert themselves. I do use to miss a touch of acidity that avoids that cloying feeling. From my point of view this Auslese is a very nice wine. I don’t know the price, it’s drank in a get-together in my home with Olaf & Sara :) but I’d drink again.
For instance a sweet wine that aren’t too sweet and have a vivid acidity is the Moscatel of E.Mendoza. That’s what I mean with sweetness-acidity balance.
Cheers,
Jose