Maison Leroy – Côte-de-Beaune Villages – 1996

From the négociant arm of the great Domaine Leroy. Cherried, a little dusty, a little farmyardy, a bit of pot pourri, and a fair bit of oak spice left – clearly saw a lot of oak in its youth. With time, it acquires weight, and is the antithesis of the thin and acidic wine that you can find when you catch many a bottle of Burgundy at the wrong moment. Perhaps there is more structure to the wine than power in the discreetly expressed flavours. It is not “stunning” as the sommelier promised (although dinner in his Rotterdam restaurant, Parkheuvel, was pretty damn good), but it is a classic, straight-down-the-middle mature village Burgundy, doing everything it should. “Go for the bottom wine of a great producer, not the top wine of a weak one” is not an infallible proposition, but it worked here.

90/100

Fernando de Castilla – Fino

A little maritime, a little green olive, some almond, but not too much acid, attack or mouthfeel – attractive sherry flavours, but a bit flat, and definitely not as good as some of the other excellent sherries from this bodega.

82/100

Marqués de Riscal – Crianza – 1982

Marqués de Riscal was the original Bordeaux-style bodega; prior to the 1860s, winemaking in La Rioja was a far more rustic, homespun, home-drinking affair. But with the tables of Europe then deprived of the best French wines after the ravages of phylloxera, the way was open for Spanish wine to step into the breach, and with Spain still being a very feudal society, it was the nobility who led the way; in 1860, the Marquis of Riscal opened what to this day is one of the benchmark bodegas of the region.

As an aside, although it is sometimes said that in what are now old-school Rioja bodegas one can find echoes of pre-phylloxera French winemaking, this is not quite true; the méthode bordelaise never depended on such long aging of wines in American oak, which quickly became the Rioja norm, the método riojano.

For most of its history, Riscal has been one of the “reference Riojas”, but during a period between the mid 1970s and the early 1980s the wines went through a very bad patch, largely due to some of their casks having become tainted. In 1985, they scrapped 80 per cent of their barrels and, as it were, re-booted the bodega.

This wine dates from the bad patch; it had a high shoulder and came from an impeccable cellar, but was essentially knackered. Other crianzas from the same period can still seem as fresh as a daisy, but this feels old and decayed; there is the ghost of fruit and muted mushroomy flavours, but not enough to balance the  acidic finish. I can’t say it is entirely without pleasure, but it is certainly not a good Rioja on top form.  

Muga – 1978

A ‘mere’ crianza wine from both innovative and traditional bodega Muga.

A mature cherry bouquet, with a touch of sandalwood and spice, and dusty oak; although oak does eventually eat itself up with age, and crianzas may spend considerably less time in oak than reservas and gran reservas, I was nevertheless surprised to see how solidly oaky this remains (though not in the coconut – vanilla style of younger, American-oaked Rioja). It is perhaps less surprising considering that Muga reds are both (oak) vat fermented and then barrel aged. The second surprise this wine brought me was how different the palate is, much more vivid than the gentle, mature, woody bouquet; fresh acid brings a mouth-riot of mature mandarin or almost rotting orange, a note more squeamish palates would find bretty (I say characterful). There are a few still live tannins and the oak spice does come back through on the finish.

93/100

Château Meyre - 1998

Cru Bourgeois (AOC Haut-Médoc) from vineyards around Moulis.

Subtle, light, secondary, with most of the primary fruit smoothed away and a soft, slightly spiced finish. It is not so much that the finish is short, but that it is missing depth; I yearned for some gravel or smoke to add an extra layer.

85/100

Domaine Thymiopolous – Xinomavro Young Vines – 2012

Xinomavro is the signature red variety of northern Greece, often compared to Pinot Noir in terms of weight (but not perhaps in terms of quality).

Dry, hot climate red fruit in a surprisingly light-bodied, thin wine, with a touch of pepper; Gamay with the pepper of Grenache. Not a marriage made in heaven; more of a one-night stand that has led to an unwanted pregnancy. The sort of red that could be drunk chilled in summertime.

78/100  

Paternina – Banda Dorada – 2012

Entry-level unoaked white Rioja from the sometimes great bodega Paternina. Varietal Viura.

Generously appley (attractive given that the besetting sin of Viura is a typical lack of much distinct fruit flavour, usually offset by a good lick of oak) but no depth, acidic but clunky.

79/100