Browse Tag

spain

On the Mendi

Itsas Mendi 2009 Bizkaiko Txakolina Txakoli “Aihen” (Northwest Spain) – Heavy. I know, it seems absurd to say that about a txakoli, and of course I mean it contextually, but it is heavy. A little heavier than I’d like, frankly. Whitewashed fruit (citrus? lime and grapefruit, maybe, but so blanched it’s hard to tell) and white-walled beachfront housing – yes, I’m aware that isn’t such an easy description to understand, but it’s what this wine makes me think of – blasted by sandstone and empty wind. But it’s just too gravitic for its own good. In a lineup of, say, chardonnays, it would be biting and crisp. But in its own context, I’d prefer a little more zip. Zing. Life. Fun. Any of the above. (9/10)

High colonic

Anima Negra 2005 “An” (Mallorca) – Internationalized sophistry well-executed and warm, lush with anonymous fruit and coconut-ized into splendid tropicality. Give it a bowtie, a snazzy briefcase, and a cocktail umbrella, and we’re good to go. Not a bad wine, but – not having sampled any of the island’s other wines – I suspect it says fuck-all about Mallorcan terroir. (9/10)

Laxas, praxis

Laxas 2009 Rias Baixas Albariño (Northwest Spain) – Pure juice. Lime, grapefruit, a bit of gooseberry, bitter orange, pear. Spirited acidity. But those who believe that “a wine should taste like fruit” will love this. (2/11)

Hermanso’s hermits

Hermanso Peciña “Señorío de P. Peciña” 2001 Rioja Reserva (Center-North Spain) – Sunburned red fruit, a little desiccated, with an astringent oak character. There’s good succulence, fair enough acidity, and yet…I don’t know. I think my tastes have moved away from Rioja, and the perpetual exception I make for LdH doesn’t really disabuse me of this notion. I’ve long known that I didn’t much like the ultra-fruited modern style, but this is a perfectly acceptable expression of an alternative style and my reaction is still pretty much indifference. Yes, reading this note was probably a waste of your time. (1/11)

Ley me down

Sin-Ley “Traza” 2007 Rioja (Center-North Spain) – 100% graciano. There are so many styles of and takes on Rioja that it’s hard to say if this “tastes like” Rioja or not. So, on its merits as a red wine of indeterminate origin: it dances, alive and full of energy. There’s spice, light tan minerality, enveloping presence without weight, and a lot of fun red fruit drenched with sunlight. An extraordinary amount of fun, this wine is. (1/11)

Fondillon money

Primitivo Quiles “Fondillon” Alicante “Gran Reserva” (Levant) – “The best sherry I’ve had all year,” I joke. I’m not even sure if the joke’s true, but it’s a pretty extraordinary wine in that style, volatile, pointing and gesturing at oxidation, and mold-influenced (in a stylistically authentic way). It’s really big, though, and there’s not much subtlety to it at the moment. Maybe that will emerge and maybe it won’t, but it’s hard to ignore, and eventually the din is very slightly wearisome. Another wine for small-quantity consumption. (11/10)

Bermejonaise

Los Bermejos 2008 Lanzarote Tinto (Canary Islands) – I’ve never tasted this much spice in a red wine, not even a lavishly-oaked one. If Penzeys released a wine, it might taste like this. The dominant spices include nutmeg and mace, coriander, white pepper, and turmeric. So, so, so exotic. And – pardon the expletive, but it’s needed here – fucking delicious. This is the first quarter-glass that, by the end of the night, turns into a fully-drained bottle. (11/10)

Xil out

Telmo Rodriguez “Gaba do Xil” 2007 Valdeorras Godello (Northwest Spain) – Quite vibrant, pacing somewhere between a bronzed firmness and an abandoned, yet two-dimensional, still life of beach living. Quite flavorful, but never tripping over itself into a stumbling, clumsy drunkenness. Fun, but a slightly more sophisticated version thereof. (10/10)

Ameztoi soldiers

Amesguren “Ameztoi” 2009 Getariako Txakolina Rubentis (Northwest Spain) – Fizzy, chalky, fizzy, short, fizzy, drawing down to its finale, and fizzy. Did I mention the fizz? Bites more than purrs, nipping and snapping at every approach. (8/10)