Or, that’s a bit more like it…
These Spanish wines formed the weekly Friday evening drop-in tasting at the charming local wine merchant Peter Green in Marchmont, Edinburgh, about a fortnight ago. I can’t quite remember what I went into the shop in search of, but I came out with something quite different. As well as a clutch of truly world-class wines, Spain shines at producing the simple, pleasant, and rustic, and ought to be a reliable supplier of good, economically priced everyday drinkers. These wines were therefore a salutary and very welcome antidote to the alarmingly over-priced Spanish wines I reviewed in my post of 23.11.10.
WHITE
Campo Flores 2009 Vino de la Tierra de Castilla £5.75
Floral, dry, simple but crispy – quite attractive at the price. It is made from a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Verdejo, an aromatic variety native to Spain that has recently been producing more prominent wines. Verdejo has a certain affinity to Sauvignon and it is not unusual to see them blended.
Cautivo 2009 Rioja £6.75
This is an example of “new school” unoaked white Rioja. Although oak aging often deepens the colour of white wines, I was interested to note the colour of this wine is still quite golden; apparently, then, deep colour is an intrinsic quality of the Viura grape. It is rather elusive on the nose, with very little fruit quality at all, just a hint of green apples; the slightly more prominent note is of parmesan cheese. Crisp, but hollow; “the enigma of unoaked white Rioja”. Viura is a grape that seems tailor-made for oak aging; it creates acidic wines that have the potential to age well, but, with little fruit quality of their own, they really want a bit of oak to offer an alternative flavour profile. Oak aging has somewhat gone out of fashion, though, perhaps as a reaction against some of the flabby, over-oaked Australian Chardonnays of yesteryear, and the winemakers of La Rioja appear to be striking out in search of a new, fresher, more “modern” style. The absence of oak aging, however, tends to leave “new wave” white Rioja feeling rather under-realised.
Having said all that, this wine would be a crisp (if simple) accompaniment to a nice roast chicken.
RED
El Primero (vintage foolishly unrecorded, surely young) Vino de la Tierra Tres Riberas £5.95
Notes of blueberries and yoghurt on the nose, with soft fruit and low tannins. It is made from Garnacha (Grenache), but has none of the white pepper notes the variety can so often throw up. Again, a simple but attractive wine, for drinking now, quite pleasant at the price.
De Alto Amo 2009 Rioja £6.75
The soft, brambly fruit on the nose of this wine is fairly classic Rioja. There are also slight mineral notes, but no sign of the oak aging that makes the more mature Rioja crianzas, reservas and gran reservas taste of vanilla. Young, attractive, accessible.
Giné Giné 2007 Priorat £10.75
Priorat is an area of Spain becoming widely known for producing some remarkable new wines, often combining Spanish and international grape varieties. Rather more complex than the preceding wines, this wine has clearly undergone some oak aging, with smooth vanilla notes integrated into a predominantly black fruit nose that also harbours slightly floral, slightly mineral notes. Still a little tannic on the palate, this wine would benefit from a couple of years in the cellar.
http://www.petergreenwines.co.uk/
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