Crianza is the essential wine. Balance and integrity. It displays the fine manners of experience and the grace of plethoric vine. Juicy black fruit on the palate inviting you to eat well and feel good.
But there is more. Crianza maintains an invisible pact with the landscape. An imperceptible force that brings us closer to the truth of the place. And instantly turns extreme climate vineyards into the most welcoming place in the world.
Prepared with Tempranillo grapes (100%), this wine has a very bright, intense maraschino cherry colour that fades to a Cardinal red rim.
It has a very marked aroma with a good balance of fruit and wood, where tones of vanilla intermingle with well-ripened fruit, black berries and wild fruits. There are also noticeable hints of leather and liquorice, resulting from the mingling of the French oak and the aromas inherent in this variety of grape.
In the mouth, the wine has a smooth texture but fills the palate with balanced flavours, including fine tannins, which help extend the life of the wine. The finish and aftertaste are both long and elegant.
Vineyard:
Pago de los Capellanes, Pedrosa de Duero.
Variety composition:
100% Tempranillo.
Type of soil:
Clayey and chalky.
Aging:
12 months in barrel and remainder on rack.
Type of oak:
100% French oak, medium toast.
Serving:
Uncork and decant one hour before serving at a temperature of 16-18 ºC.
Selected harvest with yields limited to 5000 kg per hectare. The harvest begins in early October, starting with the most mature parcels. Once the grapes are brought into the winery, the tanks are seeded with indigenous yeast (start culture) and the alcoholic fermentation begins. During the barrelling period, which lasts 30 days, the wine is crushed and pumped over daily, all the while controlling the density, temperature and evolution of the yeast. At the end of this fermentation, the tanks are emptied and the wine taken for malolactic fermentation.
The malolactic fermentation begins without the addition of bacteria. The temperature is held steady at 20ºC for period of 22 days, during which we monitor the levels of malic and lactic acids. When the malic acid content is less than 0.1 grams per litre, the wine is decanted to separate the lees and is transferred directly to the barrels without undergoing any type of filtration, clarification or cold treatment.
The wine is aged for twelve months in new and semi-new French oak barrels (no more than three years old). At the end of this period, it is taken to the tank for homogenisation, where it undergoes light filtration through cartridges (open pore) and is then bottled.
Review:
"A wonderfully polished expression of Ribera del Duero's match-up of power and high-plain freshness, this still has gorgeous intensity of finger-staining blackberry and mullberry succulence, a shading of expensive, fine-grained, toasty oak and satisfyingly savoury tannins all coming together to match the meat coming off the wood-fired grill. - David WILLIAMS"
- Decanter (December 14th 2022), 94 pts
Boussey Pommard is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir.
Pommard has been cultivated in the area for several Centuries. The name Pommard comes from Pomone, goddess of the fruits and gardens.
The wine boasts a nice cherry red color. The nose is complex and powerful with predominant notes of fruit (Morello cherry, citrus, fresh fig), forest and spice. In the palate, it is powerful and robust with flavors of cherry and spice with well-integrated tannins. Great balance.
Perfect with beefsteak, furred or feathered game, stewed poultry and cheeses like Epoisses.
Rombauer Vineyards Proprietor Selection Chardonnay is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Proprietor Selection is a reserve Chardonnay produced only in exceptional vintages by blending the best barrels from the finest lots. The 2022 represents the 16th vintage in 44 years. Like all of our Chardonnays, this wine comes from Carneros where the cool climate and clay soils offer ideal growing conditions for the varietal.
This wine comes from elite vineyards in the Carneros region owned by the Rombauer family and select growers including the Sangiacomo family, long-term grower partners who have farmed this land for three generations
Expressive and concentrated aromas of grapefruit and lime sorbet with hints of clove are present in the glass. It is rich and intense on the palate with sweet peach, clove, and freshly baked pastry flavors. There is a bright refreshing acidity that gives way to more stone fruit flavors that continue to build on the very long and concentrated finish.
Torello Corpinnat Special Edition Brut Reserve is made from 44% Xarel.lo, 37% Macabeo, 11% Chardonnay, 8% Parellada.
The estate soils have been formed from sediments from the Garraf Massis, deposited thousands of years ago. One of the most characteristic features of the estate’s soils is the presence of accumulations of calcium carbonate. The movement of water through the soil dissolves the carbonates and takes them to a certain depth. The continuous repetition of this process has ended up producing the accumulation of these deposits. When these become massive, after thousands of years, they bind together and form a hard stratum called a petrocalcic horizon. This hard stratum limits the availability of water to the vine and the production, but is a factor that gives the grape quality
The wine offers a straw yellow color, clean, transparent, fine, and persistent bubbles with a rosary formation. In the nose fresh pear aromas stand out along with delicious notes of pastry cream, white flowers, and candied fruits. On the palate, good balance and acidity. Powerful and flavorful with white flowers and notes of brioche, almond and great length.
Special Edition is very versatile and matches with many different kinds of dishes; pasta, pork, chicken, fish, seafood, rice, cold cuts, desserts.
“1752” is the name of the Damilano Barolo Cannubi Riserva, in honor of the year in which the historic bottle was first marked “Cannubi”. It still exists today perfectly conserved by the Manzone family in Bra, close to Barolo. The bottle is clearly marked as being of “1752” vintage, indicating that Cannubi historically precedes Barolo.
About the Vineyard:
The Cannubi Cru is in found within one of the 6 core zones which comprise a UNESCO heritage site in Italy. A mixture of Tortonian and Helvetian calcareous marl gives the grapes intense aromas of cherry, plum and tobacco, rose and violet in sequence. Its low potassium and high calcium/magnesium content offer the wine a fine and polished touch. The vineyard is located at about 270 m. a.s.l. and has a south-east sun exposure. Barolo Riserva Cannubi 1752 It is a small plot of about 2 hectares of Nebbiolo vines, currently between 30 and 50 years of age.
Tasting Notes:
Garnet ruby red in color, the bouquet is intense and balanced, with notes of violet, red fruit, cherry and plum, spices, liquorice, cocoa, leather and tobacco. Dry, robust, full-bodied, very persistent, rich and velvety
Food Pairing:
This wine is excellent with typical piedmontes pasta (tajarin, ravioli); perfect with red meat, braised and roast meat, game and absolutely ideal with all types of cheeses.
Review:
Mordoree Cotes du Rhone Rouge La Dame Rousse is made from 40% Grenache, 35 % Syrah, 15% Cinsault, 5% Carignan, 5% Counoise.
100 % destemming, 15 day maceration with a maximum of 30° C temperature
Deep red color. Blackcurrant and violet aromas. Melted and fine tannins, good finish.
Food pairing: cold meats and delicatessen, grilled meats, semi-mature cheeses.
Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rouge is made from 30% each Grenache and Mourvèdre, with 10% each Counoise and Syrah, plus 20% other permitted varieties, including a healthy proportion of white grapes.
The story :
Château de Beaucastel has long been considered one of the great wines of France. It is unanimously renowned for its balance, elegance and ageing potential. Beaucastel has an extraordinary terroir at the Northern end of the appellation with heavy exposure to the Mistral. All 13 varieties of the appellation have been organically grown here since the sixties.
Location :
Châteauneuf du Pape, between Orange and Avignon, Château de Beaucastel red is a 70-hectare vineyard.
Terroir :
Château de Beaucastel is 110 hectares, with one single plot at the north of the appellation. The terroir is archetypal of the best terroirs in Châteauneuf: rolled pebbles on the surface, sand, clay and limestone deeper down. The vines are old and have been organically grown for 50 years, which has allowed the roots to grow exceptionally deep.
Beaucastel grows all thirteen grape varieties authorised by the appellation.
Ageing :
Each variety is harvested manually and separately. Vinification is completed in truncated oak barrels for the reductive grapes (Mourvèdre and Syrah) and in traditional tiled cement tanks for the oxidative grapes (such as Grenache). After the malolactic fermentations, the family blends the different varieties and then the wine ages in oak Foudres for a year before bottling.
Review:
deep, quite herbal expression, with liquorice and crushed blueberries to the cassis fruit. Full-bodied, powerfully fruited, dense and deep. Really mouthcoating, intense fruit. The tannins are ripe, fine and plentiful, all saturated in blackberry juice on a long finish. Certainly one of the more successful Châteauneufs this year. Will age well. A Mourvèdre-led expression of Beaucastel - it contains more than usual, at least 35% and probably more. Grenache and Cinsault fermented in cement, Syrah and Mourvèdre fermented in foudre. (MW) (9/2022)
-Decanter 96 Points
Bernardins Beaumes de Venise Rouge Cru Cotes du Rhone is made from 65% Grenache, 25% Syrah, 5% Mourvedre and 5% Grenache Blanc.
Bright ruby color with cherry tinges. Complex black fruit aromas on the nose enhanced by spicy notes. Rounded palate with good length.
The wine is drinking well right now and can be kept for another 10 years.
Situation
Spreads out over the south-east side of the Dentelles de Montmirail hills, in Beaumes de Venise in the southern part of the Rhone valley.
Terroir
On a poor sandy, hungry and arid soil consisting of tender limestone and gritty zones of sandy mollasse.
In the vineyard
The vineyards and their terroir are the essence of our wines. This is where everything starts and where we focus our efforts throughout the year. You can’t make great wine without great grapes.
The viticulture is essentially done by hand. Five people work full-time in the vineyards. They are supplemented by seasonal employees who work during bunch thinning and the harvest in order to bring out the very best in our vines. Working by hand and the attention each vine gets are fundamental. Pruning, de-budding, trellising, leaf removal and picking are thus carried out by hand with the utmost care.
We prepare the soil by using good old-fashioned ploughing. Organic compost is made from grape marc (the discarded stalks and skins).
As a way of protecting the plants, we only use phytosanitary products when necessary and within strict guidelines by staggering the treatments appropriately, to minimise the amount of chemicals used. We prefer to use as much as possible manual and organic techniques . Leaving natural grass cover, removing buds and leaves from the vines, preserving biodiversity around the vineyard: olive, almond and cypress trees, wild rosemary and capers.
Winemaking
We make two red wines at the estate. Terroir wines shaped by the two classic Côtes du Rhône varieties: Grenache and Syrah. We don’t follow any winemaking recipe but are constantly searching for the perfect expression of terroir and each vintage’s particular characteristics. We don’t go for overripe grapes and over-extraction, as we think the wine has to stay refreshing and balanced.
Leaving the wine for 15 days in concrete vats, we try to gently extract the tannins and anthocyanins essential for the wine’s structure and colour. The wine doesn’t come into any contact with wood during ageing. This way the characteristics of our terroir can fully express
Serve with a meal especially red meat, game and cheese.
Review:
"Smoky bacon, bay leaf and olive brine. This is very fine for a whole-bunch style, with lovely tannic finesse and texture. Powerful, tannic and cleansing, yet compact, with driving acidity, a dry, savoury finish and perfect balance. A good vintage, for what is a reliably good-value southern Rhône pick. Vineyards in conversion to organic; fruit is whole-bunch fermented.- Matt WALLS"
- Decanter (October 1st 2024), 94 pts