Wine in Black Spaans Best Buy-pakket met bekroonde wijn

Wine in Black

Van de drie subregio's van Rioja is het de Alavesa die op de grootste eer kan rekenen. Hier zijn ook de bekendste Spaanse wijnmakersgildes te vinden. In het midden van dit alles: Prudencio Zuazo Gastón, die zijn familiewijnmakerij leidt. Hij kan putten uit een heel bijzondere schat. Zijn beste wijngaarden liggen namelijk op 460 meter boven de zeespiegel en worden gekenmerkt door een kalkhoudende kleigrond waar de 45 jaar oude wijnstokken diep in de grond staan. Op de totaal acht hectare komen de drie druivensoorten tempranillo, graciano en viura het best tot hun recht. Overdag staan de wijnstokken in de zon en worden enigszins afgekoeld door de zachte briesjes die vanaf de kust komen aanwaaien. 's Nachts daalt de temperatuur, wat fantastisch is, want zo behouden de bessen hun fruitige frisheid. De beste ingrediënten dus om een echte terroirwijn te maken. En dat is precies wat Prudencio Zuazo Gastón doet. Rioja Alavesa puur en onvervalst in het glas!

James Suckling

Black plums, some sour black cherries and grilled spices on the nose, following through to a full body with some crushed blueberries and a tight, tannic structure. The fruit is a little tart. Tempranillo, graciano and viura.

Mundus Vini

Wine & Spirits

First released from the 1997 vintage, this is the original blend from the Giné family, long-time farmers in Gratallops with 79 acres of vines. It`s garnatxa and carinyena, half from relatively young vines (up to 30 years old), half from old vines. In 2019, the wine is ripe, grounded in rustic earthiness. You can taste the heat of the season in its peppery austerity of fruit melding into chocolate-rich tannins, the two combining in a supple Priorat for a cookout.

James Suckling

A soft, fruity red with berry and cherry character. Full body, round tannins and a flavorful finish. 100% tempranillo. Drink now.

Robert Parker

The slightly more modern red 2018 Licenciado Reserva is dressed with a metal label and shows more smoky and toasty notes, hints of toasted sesame seeds and French oak rather than an American oak profile. They look for more ripeness, more concentration and more oak, but more is not necessarily better. For fans of more oaky Tempranillo. 36,000 bottles.

Decanter

Ripe damson aroma. The palate brings notes of red fruits, mint and chocolate. Texture is smooth and harmonious. Long, refreshing finish.

Decanter

Our Best in Show journey across Northern Spain continues with a 2020 Bierzo, grown just across the provincial border from Galicia into Castilla y Léon. It’s another zone of steep slopes and old vines – the variety in this case being Mencia (known as Jaen in Portugal’s Dão region). This wine is deep black-red in colour and vivacious and urgent in aroma: wild plums mingled with the woodland scents of leaf, copse and forest floor. The palate is fruit-packed and vibrant, vigorous with an energy derived both from ripe acidity and fresh though smooth tannins; look out, too, for a stony, bitter-edged finish perhaps derived from the region’s slate soils. Wonderful drinking now in the flush of youth, but fruit of this quality will hold well for a few years yet.

Decanter World Wine Awards

Wine Enthusiast

This dark-garnet-colored wine offers a bouquet of black currant, anisette and sage. Blackberry, cassis, dark-chocolate, violet and clove flavors are joined by a note of marjoram. Tannins start out feather light, slowly fill the palate, and linger for a while.

James Suckling

Dusty blackberries with some blue fruit, stones and spices. Nicely chewy and tight on the full-bodied palate, loaded with fine-grained tannins and juicy, almost tart fruit.