Venerable old bush vine Garnacha, with some age, is the monocepage at work here. And very impressive work it is too….30 months in 500 litre casks has touched the wine with a gentle veneer but does not interfere with the purity of the Garnacha; ripe, rich and long, this is an outstanding example.
Simon Field MW – Wine Buyer

Bodegas la Horra is Roda’s new-ish project in Ribera del Duero, the vineyard located in the eponymous village in the heart of the DO. No expense has been spared in the winery and the vineyard sites were only identified after nearly five years of research. Intellectually the idea is to demonstrate the differing facets of Tempranillo in these two famous DOs. A fascinating project.

Corimbo I is all Tempranillo (known locally as Tinta del País), sourced from plots in the villages of Horra and Roa. The wine has been aged for 16 months in 80 percent French and 20 percent American oak, the French emphasis reflecting the house philosophy. Heady yet elegant, rich yet finely poised, this wine combines a generous fruit character with refined tannins and firm acidity, the latter as a result of the altitude of the vines.

A complex aroma of spices, flowers and pretty red fruits. Contrastingly rich on the palate with layers and layers of flavour, this is a full bodied, long-term Rioja. Textured, ripe and mouth filling tannins. There is a huge amount of potential in this wine, which has spent 18 months in new French oak, and is 100% Tempranillo.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Following on from the huge success of the 2012 Spanish Gold offer, the team at Berry Bros. & Rudd knew that we would have to find some truly outstanding new wines to better the offer in 2013. Fortunately we have done just that and are very proud to present our latest, major Rioja producer, Bodega Contador. The property was founded as recently as 1995, but the fact that it has become one of Rioja’s most respected wineries in such a relatively short time, is testament to its superb terroir and the brilliant wine making skill of proprietor Benjamin Romeo. Starting off with an awe inspiring cellar hewn into the rock beneath the Castle of San Vicente de la Sonsierra, finding extra space in his parents’ garage, where he crafted the stunning 2004 and 2005 vintages, which both received 100 points from the Wine Advocate. In 2008 Benjamin completed his new, state of the art winery, built into the hills of Rioja surrounded by his vineyards. Benjamin’s wine making is relatively modern, with individual vineyard plots farmed to very small yields and vinified separately, before ageing for a comparatively short 18-20 months in new French oak (as opposed to the traditional American oak). The results are extraordinary.

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.

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

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).

A classic Rioja blend with Tempranillo in the ascendency, and a nose crammed full of red fruit, vanilla pod and clove. The palate reveals finely structured tannins and layered fruit. 
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Bodegas Muga was founded in Haro in 1932 and is still in family ownership, farming an impressive 250 hectares in La Rioja Alta. The winery is located in Haro’s golden triangle of bodegas, its immediate neighbours being La Rioja Alta and López de Heredia. The extended Muga family controls all aspects of the production and advocates the complexity afforded by the entire canon of grapes: Tempranillo, of course, but also Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano for the reds, in addition to Viura and Malvasia for the whites. The key to everything is wood, from the magnificent 18th century wooden bodega to the impressive collection of 14,000 barrels used for the maturation. Organic viticulture is also fundamental here and the resulting wines are pure, linear of structure and memorable.

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 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.

Violets and lavender dominate the nose of this mighty wine. Its palate is tannic and powerful, as is the norm in Toro, but not without silky elegance too, with notes of tobacco, macerated plum and tapenade all vying for attention. Long and harmonious, this will be more than a match for even the most robust of Iberian dishes.
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

Numanthia is a patchwork of ancient vineyards in Toro, touched by extreme climate conditions and also by the boundless benevolence of LVMH’s ownership, which has reinvigorated the estate and confirmed its place very close to the top of Spain’s vinous hierarchy.

This is an unfortified wine from the legendary Quinta Do Vesuvio, itself long known to BBR customers as one of the very finest of single Quinta vintage ports. The quality is evidenced here too. The 2008 is made from 60% Touriga Franca, 30% Touriga Nacional and 10% Arinta Amerasl, all three solid indigenous grape varieties, of which the first two are probably more familiar than the third….

The vinification takes place in state of the art gravity-flow fermenters and the wine is matured for 10 months in 400 litre French barrels. Pombal is rich, with powerful flavours of cassis, mulberry and black plum, all laced with a stony minerality and underpinned by very fine tannins. Stylish and not without local charm, this is a very popular wine, deservedly so.
Simon Field MW - Wine Buyer

More commonly known for their fine single Quinta vintage ports, Quinta do Vesuvio’s still red wine is a sumptuous style produced from three noble varieties. Deep in colour, brooding dark fruit and a touch of red liquorice are characteristics displayed among the velvety tannins on the palate, wrapped up with a fine acidity.
Chris Lamb -  London Shop Staff