The cellars of Ribera del Duero
By David Moore.
Each month we will bring you a special wine feature. In many cases these will be
from the many trips we take to the world's leading wine regions and give you a real
feel for the areas and the personalities and we will be covering their leading wines.
I had an opportunity to travel to Castilla y León and taste the wines of a few of
the most exciting small producers from a number of the appellations of North-West
Spain.
Included in the tastings were excellent whites from Ribeiro, Rias Baixas, Valdeorras,
Monterrei, Rueda and Ribeira Sacra. Many of these producers also craft excellent
reds. Other highlights also included wines from Bierzo, Priorat, Montsant, Almansa
and a number of top class bodegas from central and south-east Spain. Look out for
new profiles from all these areas both in the 2009 edition of Wine behind the label
as well as our new online database.
The centre piece of the trip though were two days spent in the heart of Ribera del
Duero. I will be giving brief details of some the best wines from these wineries
at the end of the article. The first thing you tend not to think about at this time
of year in north-west Spain is the cold, its decidedly chilly and gets more so in
the bodegas cellars when the sun goes down. The landscape and topography can be truly
stunning though. Just make sure you pack plenty of warm clothes if you fancy a new
year wine tasting visit, which I would most heartily recommend. If you are a meat
eater there are some excellent restaurants and the local specialities are suckling
pig and lamb.
The Ribera del Duero DO (Denominacion de Origen) is a large appellation stretching
from the west close to the city of Valladolid east for well over 100 km. It is relatively
narrow north-south covering 35 km’s at the centre of the region around Aranda del
Duero. While the Duero river itself meanders through the heart of the appellation
its viticultural significance is minimal. Of much greater import is the altitude
of the vignoble, between 750 and over 900 metres above sea level promoting excellent
acidity in the grapes. The finely drained soils, comprising a variable mix of sand,
limestone, marlstone and clay provide for wines with density, structure, firm tannins
as well as a real sense of place. The area is justly famous for Spain’s most famous
bodega Vega Sicilia. Vega, as well as most of the best producers are located in the
western half of the DO, so its not too onerous to get around.
There has been considerable change in the region over the last decade or so. During
the last century much of the vineyard area had fallen into serious decline. Many
of the best sites though are now being reclaimed and modern viticulture as well as
organic husbandry of the land is becoming widespread. Spanish wine has traditionally
evolved with the concept of established periods of cask and then bottle ageing and
many readers will be familiar with wines classified as Crianza, Reserva, Gran Reserva
and so on. The winemakers, well the more enlightened and forward thinking of them,
are aware of the confusion in international markets of their ageing classifications.
They are also aware that the potential of their sites (or terroirs) may on occasion
only be optimised by taking a more enlightened approach to the vinification and ageing
of their wines.
Modern vinification techniques abound with the use of basket presses and malolactic
being carried out in new oak and wines regularly now being bottled without filtration.
New wineries are being designed all the time and as elsewhere “gravity fed” is the
new watchword. There is no doubt the wines of the region are being transformed. You
do though also feel this is a slight work in progress. As elsewhere in Spain many
operations have only been established in the last five years or so and skills are
being honed and refined. Perhaps none more so than in the case of the type of oak
the wines are now aged in. American oak was the barrel of choice ten or fifteen years
ago but nowadays more French as well as Eastern European wood is used. Some bodegas
opt for a medium-high toast and often too much new wood. What’s often apparent on
tasting are occasionally aggressive wood tannins rather than nicely ripened tannins
from the grape skins. No doubt these new young guns will continue to refine their
style and achieve yet greater balance and refinement in their wines.
Tasting highlights
from Ribera del Duero
Bodegas Arrocal www.arrocal.com +34 947 50 49 96
Sister bodega
to Neo, producing new wave, richly textured reds and a well priced rosado, La Rosa
de Arrocal from a modern gravity fed winery. Selección red spends a little longer
in oak than the regular Arrocal label. A super-premium red seeing 200% new oak from
the 2005 vintage will released in 2010.
Alto Sotillo email: altosotillo@tiscali.es
+34 947 53 25 23
A fine range of modern reds and a rosado are released under the
Rubiejo label. Tinta Roble and Roble bottles are full bright dark berry fruit while
Crianza and Reserva offer more of a nod towards tradition. Evolución is deeper, more
concentrated with malolactic in barrel. A tiny amount, 1,000 bottles, was produced
of a special cuvée Fusión in 2006.
Bodegas Baden Numen www.badennumen.es +34 983
68 31 43
Excellent reds are produced at this small bodega with vineyards planted in
limestone soils near Valbuena del Duero. Solely French oak is used and the wines
are more refined and elegant than many of those from the properties neighbours. Baden
Numen red sees just 6 months in barrique, the Crianza 14 months.
Bodegas Iturria-Moral
email: bodegasiturriamoral@hotmail.com - +34 983 68 05 50
Two sophisticated and elegant
reds are made at this small bodega housed in an old railway building in Quintanilla
de Onésimo, near Valladolid. Antonio Morral is more approachable while the top label
Vallejondo is richer, firmer and more concentrated. A pre-fermentation cold-soak
and well judged oak provide for wines with excellent balance.
Bodegas Neo www.bodegasconde.com
+34 947 51 18 61
Arguably the best of the bodegas visited. The Neo label wines are
also known as Bodegas J.C. Conde. The excellent Neo and Neo Punta Essencia reds are
produced from wholly owned vineyards, while three other impressive reds offer exceptional
value in the Vivir and El Arte de Vivir and impressive depth and concentration in
the Sentido. Look out for some unusual musical notes about this operation on our
blog in the near future.
Hornillos Ballesteros email: hornillosballesteros@telefonica.net
+34 636 28 21 70
Small family owned bodega with cellars in Roa, in the heart of the
region. They have only been making their own wines since 2002 but are fast becoming
rising stars. The fresh, fruit driven MiBal Joven sees no wood, while the MiBal red
and MiBal Selección get respectively 12 and 16 months in French oak with the malolactic
in barrel. Top label Perfil is aged for 24 months in wood, and the quality of the
fruit in the excellent 2005 shows through, more so than the slightly oaky 2004.
Gallego
Zapatero – +34 947 55 40 42
This is the youngest of the bodegas visited, established
only in 2005. The approach is thoroughly modern and there are no Crianza or Reserva
labels here. The Yotuel Rosado is juicy and gluggable, while the young wine Excepción
sees no oak. Both the Yotuel Selección and Viñas Viejas are aged for 14 months in
French oak with malolactic in barrel. The older vine bottling showed better oak integration
in 2006 than 2005, so look for improvements to come.
A special mention and thanks to German wine broker Joachim Buchta who organised the
visits and the Vidal family at Bodegas Vidal Soblechero who hosted the tastings from
all the regions in their Rueda winery. Its worth mentioning that they produce a number
of brilliant single vineyard Verdejo’s. Further information is available from Joachim
on jb@clavidor.com.
