Tonight I was in the mood to start pulling corks on “problem bottles” until I found something I was willing to drink.
Before anyone jumps on me, I love a lot of Spanish wines and have “problem bottles” from every other area I buy from as well. Tonight Tempranillo was the mood so that’s what I opened.
First up was the Alonso del Yerro, which I’ve had before. It was no better than my prior experience. Ditto the Campo Eliseo. I’ve had other Artadi wines and enjoyed them for what they were but I was worried about this one, reading notes about it being undrinkably tannic and bitter. It is certainly very very tannic in an oak tannin sort of way, but far from bitter / undrinkable.
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2001 Artadi Rioja Pagos Viejos - Spain, La Rioja, Rioja (10/4/2009)
Dense and dark. Sweet dark fruit, sweet herbs, cocoa, spice and roasted earth on the nose. Vanilla too but not out of balance. On the palate a touch of vanilla sweetness and a good shake of drying oak tannin obscure what is otherwise a quite nice if dark / modern styled Rioja. I think this has the stuffing to continue integrating its oak and continue improving. Can’t say for how long and I’m not sure it will ever reach any sublime level of balance but I’m confident waiting 5 years or so on my other bottle to see, as the other components are well balanced and this is a good, sleek wine that has good acidity and lacks surmaturite or overextractive bitterness / grittiness. I think Roda makes a much better take on a modernist Rioja, and I don’t think this is a good value, but I think it’s a pretty good wine that just got overoaked. -
2002 J. & F. Lurton Toro Campo Eliseo - Spain, Castilla y León, Toro (10/4/2009)
Candied fruit, vanilla, neat alcohol, char and a bit of a shoe varnish character. Plump, plummy, jammy, sweet and structureless in the mouth other than a bit of drying oak tannin. Better than the 04 Alonso del Yerro but I can’t come close to finishing a glass of this. -
2004 Alonso del Yerro Ribera del Duero - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero (10/4/2009)
This is just lousy wine. A terribly chemical / artificial character meets overripe fruit, lots of oak, and zero appeal or character. Volatile on the nose, sweet and simple and syrupy on the palate. Thankfully the finish is clipped.
Posted from CellarTracker