2005 Spain

A seamless vintage until 12th October or thereabouts, when two weeks of heavy rain jeopardised the Tempranillo not already picked and extended the harvest schedule. An early summer similar to 2003,with elements of drought, but the relatively damper winter mitigated against hydric stress and presaged an excellent year. The dilution of the late rains has somewhat dampened expectation, but overall phenolic ripeness achieved, and the vintage is looking far better than the often-baked 2003 and the mediocre 2002.

It will be a rather less powerful version of the excellent 2001, with a differing profile to 2004, which has less emphatic fruit and higher levels of acidity.The Viura and Malvasia were brought in before the rains ( harvest began in the third week of September) and have thus fared well. Overall a good to very good vintage.
(Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer-Spain)