Browse Tag

spain

Muga-chaka, Muga, Muga

[bottle]Muga 2007 Rioja Rosado (Center-North) – What intrigues me about this wine is how it tastes like an aged rosé – not something most people drink – without being tired or yielding to oxidation, even though there is a touch of the latter. Strawberry, persimmon, perhaps a bit of cranberry…but all in well-aged form, rather than their bright, squirty, fresh-from-the-vine expression (as found in most rosés). Perhaps the effect could best be described as a slight intellectualization of pink. (10/08)

Ferran

Adria “The Pilgrimage” 2007 Bierzo Godello (Northwest Spain) – There’s a layer of thickness here through which one must press, initially, and the effort leads to…well, not very much. Some wan stone fruit in an otherwise watery soup, in which the alcohol is left to fill in the gaps. Not very good. (10/08)

Codax moment

Codax 2005 Rias Baixas Albariño (Northwest Spain) – Daisy-fresh, riding a line between stone fruit, apple, and salty lemon. Very pleasant. (9/08)

Pazo tea

Pazo Pondal 2004 Rias Baixas Albariño (Northwest Spain) – Sweet lemon juice, rind, and curd, with grapefruit along for the lemony ride. Summery and sunny, though a touch hot. There’s a bit of a carbonic sizzle to the finish, which is refreshing. (10/06)

Arturo

Finca Sandoval 2004 Manchuela (Central Spain) – I’ve liked the lighter “Salia” on more than one occasion, but this…. Berry concentrate slurried into a concrete sludge with a barnyardy funk plus well-ridden horse. Oh, yum. There’s dense, peppery tannin, but otherwise this wine is formless and, despite the tongue-encasing texture, void of life; a solidified memory of fruit and animal preserved in amber. Obviously and by intent, it requires a whole lot of age but this is the absolute opposite of fun. (8/07)

Rafa

Nadal “Avinyó” Cava Brut “Reserva” (Cataluña) – Almond, certainly, with an appealingly dry scrape to the bubbles; it’s not delicate or fine, but it is highly quaffable, with a little lagniappe of light-skinned complexity. If you’re interested. (6/08)

The fine line

[vineyard]López de Heredia “Viña Tondonia” 1997 Rioja Rosado (Center-North) – Old library plus fruitwood-smoked skins and rinds, with the memory and contextualization rather than the actual existence of fruit as it is commonly understood. Breathtakingly opinionated and highly controversial. I both love and hate it, and see no contradiction in those responses. (6/08)

For MR and MR

Telmo Rodríguez “MR” 2002 Málaga Moscatel (Málaga) – Classic muscat with more intensity and brilliance than usual, though it’s in no way a light wine; sun shines from the core, almost blindingly so, lending warmth and presence. There’s more spice than normal, and a dense, rounded texture. Delish. (6/08)

Exalted

[bottle]Dominio de Tares 2003 Bierzo “Exaltos Cepas Viejas” (Northwest Spain) – Overwhelmed with coconut and vanilla, which completely obscure any other characteristics in the wine. Just no good. (6/08)

Yó, Adrian

Avinyó Cava Rosat “Reserva” (Cataluña) – The crisp pink fruit is there, but the almond-like nuttiness remains. It tastes dirty…not in an unclean way, but in that you can actually taste a soil-like bass note. Thus, it portends heaviness, but turns more agile with food. (5/08)