1981 Portugal

A blend of 80% Tempranillo and 20% Cabernet-Sauvignon and aged in oak for 16 months, the nose of this wine is floral yet profound and fruit-driven with notes of damson, blackcurrant and cherry. The palate is far more mineral than the nose indicates, with great structure based on firm but fine-grained tannins and harmonious acidity. The wine is still in its youth and will develop for a few years yet in bottle. 
Nick Stewart Wine Buying  

A blend of 95% Tinto Fino and 5% Merlot, the Valbuena 5° takes its name from the village where it is produced. It is aged for less time than the ‘Unico’ or the Reserva Especial with the 5° designating the years it has been aged before release. The wine is made from younger vines (average vine age of 25 – 20 years), although their aggregate age would compete with most other leading wines.

It has a similar blend to its older brother ‘Unico’ and the Valbuena 5° is best thought of as a younger sibling. The nose shows damsons and plums and is quite floral with violet undertones. The palate is bursting with flavours: forest fruit and red cherries are underpinned by vibrant acidity. The tannins are ripe and sinewy but have a firm grip. Complex and complete. The 2009 is probably the best vintage of Valbuena we have tasted to date. It shows precision and focus but also conveys the richness, concentration and freshness of this great vintage.
Stuart Rae - Private Account Manager

Artadi El Pison, this unassuming 1945 vineyard, with its rather modest pad-locked gate and purely functional hut at its centre, does not immediately announce itself as the most celebrated vineyard in Spain.

One taste, however, confirms this fact. Aromatically complex, civilized and life-affirming, the wine opens up on the palate with great confidence, precision and density. Dark fruit, spice and hints of pepper at this early stage, but very very fine supporting tannins and incredible length.

Juan Carlos Lopez compares it to 2007, but feels that it is a shade riper and may have an even longer life. We also see a resemblance to the superb 2004, which is now approaching a second phase of excellence. Until 31st August 2017 this product is discounted by 21%. Prices shown include discount; no further discount will be applied at checkout.

The maiden 2009 Valdegines is sourced from a seven-hectare plot located on clay-limestone soils, one of three hitherto blended into the Pagos Viejos. It has a very pure, rounded, blackberry, cassis and cedar-scented nose that is reminiscent of a very young, fine Saint Emilion. The palate is medium-bodied with black cherry, licorice and cedar on the entry. There is patently a lot of cedary new oak that needs to be subsumed into the wine, and the finish is severe and tannic at present.

Artadi was one of several imperative visits during my visit to Rioja, where I met respected winemaker Juan Carlos Lopez de Lacalle. His wines need little introduction, having already garnered glowing reviews in this publication and elsewhere. But what I was interested in discovering was whether Rioja can really exploit the minutiae of its multifarious terroirs and offer genuine nuances in a similar fashion to Burgundy or the Mosel (to give but two examples of regions where place is everything). If there is one man who lives by that philosophy, it is Juan Carlos, who oversees a coveted range of modern style Rioja that receive a generous amount of new French oak. Let us commence with the entry-level Vinas de Gain red and white. The Viura is harvested separately from Juan Carlos's intermixed vineyard and is fermented in 500-liter French oak barrels and kept in stainless steel tanks on the lees with three of four lees-stirring.
Neal Martin - Wine Advocate #202 Aug 2012

The combination of Vega Sicilia and Rioja is, of course, alluring. The fact that Vega have been secretly buying up top plots around the village of San Vincente de la Sonsierra for over ten years adds a note of intrigue to the story and the fact that they now own 120 hectares, stretched over the border of Riojas Altas and Alavasa, makes for a most satisfactorily dénouement.

The input of winemaker Xavier Ausas has, as always, been invaluable and the philosophy has drawn on eclectic influences and specifically the partnership between Pablo Alvarez and Benjamin de Rothschild. The influence of the latter is hard to avoid; the wood is all French and the wines are bottled by lot, separating the first (Macan) from the second wine (Macan Clasico) in the Bordelais fashion. Most importantly, however, the wines are 100% Tempranillo and never lose sight of provenance.
 
The senior wine has been matured for 15 months in French oak, 70% new and 30% one year-old. The elegance and linear dexterity of traditional Riojas has been cleverly captured in this subtle nuanced example, its velvety texture and fine tannins recalling, appropriately enough, Bordeaux, but its savoury generous flavour offering a melliferous hymn to the greater glories of the finest Tempranillo.
Simon Field MW – Wine Buyer

The Especial suffix is used sparingly in Spain, so we can rely on its value. Herewith a case in point; made from 78% Tinto Fino and 22% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2009 has been aged in Alier oak for 20 months, and is a delight from start to finish. As with all truly fine wine, it is quite subtle initially, its attack hardly meriting such a noun, its evanescent floral elegance underwritten by hints of aniseed and blackcurrant leaf. Self-assured and dignified, this is an outstanding effort.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Hacienda Monasterio is one of the great names in Ribera del Duero. Located between the villages of Pesquera de Valbuena del Duero on the so-called Golden Mile, the estate covers 170 hectares, its vines all north-south facing, with plots of Cabernet, Merlot and Malbec complementing the Tinto Fino. Peter Sissac, who actually lives on the estate, is consultant winemaker here and it should therefore come as no huge surprise that the quality of the wines is of the highest rank. The wines (only crianza and reserva wines are produced) are matured in one-year old Bordeaux casks and the wines are consistently amongst the region’s finest.

The vineyards in Pintia are steep; around 600m above sea level. The hot continental climate gives powerful black wines with noticeable smoky notes. Pintia is produced with 100% Tinta de Toro (Tempranillo) from ungrafted 40-60 year old vines. Fermentation is done in new French oak barrels and the wine is aged for 12 months in new oak (50% new and 30% American). Strong aromas of scorched earth, melted liquorice, freshly ground espresso beans and ripe red plums and dark blackberries.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Vega Sicilia’s owners, the Álvarez family, bought Pintia in 1996, attracted to the galet strewn terroir, the rich clay subsoils and the familiar altitude. Toro’s main point of difference to Ribera del Duero is the ambient temperature, which can blaze in the height of summer. The challenge here is to match concentration with elegance, a challenge met by Bodegas Pintia with no shortage of aplomb.

Alión was the first 100 percent Tinto Fino wine aged in 100 percent new oak in Ribera del Duero. The winemaking is innovative and independent; ageing takes place in new French oak and the end result is a wine bursting with fruit (red and black) but simultaneously demonstrating a parental level of restraint which will see it age wonderfully in the cellar. This is a connoisseur’s wine which requires patience but will be hugely rewarding for those who can remain steadfast in the face of temptation. 
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

Bodegas Alión was formed in 1986 as a winery to be run independently to its big brother, the great Vega Sicilia. This 85-hectare estate was founded by the Álvarez family to provide a modern expression of Ribero del Duero. 35 hectares of the estate is located around the winery, with a further 50 hectares dedicated to Alión within the historic Vega Sicilia vineyards. Unlike Vega Sicilia, where we find a merging of the traditional and modern winemaking techniques, Alión is made using state-of-the-art equipment. Forward and uncompromising, these are wines of impressive stature and show an alternative side of Tinto Fino (Tempranillo).