10 Jan 2024
As we start the new year, many people set out their new year’s resolutions. Mine is quite simple, and that’s to learn even more about the world of wine.
From February, I’ll be committing a year to studying with the aim of obtaining the Wine Scholar’s Guilds Champagne Masters qualification. So, lots more Champagne recommendations coming up soon.
January is often a month where some drinkers abstain with ‘Dry January’, but I prefer ‘Try January’, where I typically drinks less but devote time to exploring new wines I haven’t tried before and often spending a bit more on those special bottles.
With this in mind, I turn my attention to wines I recently tasted with some of the most amazing Spanish winemakers during a ‘A Grand Tasting Journey of Spain’.
Mar De Frades Finca Valinas 2018 (£32 or £28.80 Multi-buy, The Great Wine Co.)
Produced by the very creative wine maker, Paula Fandino, who has been here since 2007 and is recognised as one of the top makers of white wines in Spain.
This is a single vineyard wine, where the vines are over 45 years old. Made from 100% Albarino grapes which are all harvested by hand and then aged for three years to gain volume and expression.
This is full of dried fruit, apricots and peach with a salinity and minerality on the nose and on the palette. This can be enjoyed now or laid down for up to five years.
Lalomba Valhonta 2017 (£110 or £99 Multi-buy, The Great Wine Co.)
Focused on single-vineyard winemaking, Lalomba was founded in Haro (Rioja) in 2016. Produced by the talented, Rosana Lisa, with 100% Tempranillo, from the ‘Grand Cru’ Finca Valhonta, a sort of wild garden surrounded by the wonderful landscape of the Obarenes mountains in the westernmost corner of Rioja. This is wine oozes elegance, crisp acidity with a long length. It’s full, lively, rich and packed with cherries, plums and silky tannins. It’s not cheap but its worth every penny if you’re out to treat yourself.
Ramon Bilboa Limite Sur 2019 (2017 Vintage £17.50 or £15.75 Multi-buy, The Great Wine Co.)
This 100% Garnacha wine is produced from grapes grown in vineyards found on the hillside of Yerga mountain range, in the South-east end of Rioja. Its only the third vintage of this wine, fermented in concrete and aged in a range of different materials, amphora, concreate and large oak barrels. Its ready for drinking now but will evolve over time. This wine is fresh, clean and bursting with dark cherries and red fruits.
The legacy of Ramón Bilbao is kept today by a talented team of winemakers headed by Rodofo Bastida, and in 2014, Ramón Bilbao was crowned the Best Spanish Producer by the IWSC. Further, in 2019, the winery was named by Drinks International as one of the most Admired Wine Brands in the World.
Lalomba Finca Ladero 2018 (2016 vintage £110, or £99 Multi-buy, The Great Wine Co.)
This new vintage of Ladero launches this year and ventures deeper into the mountain personality of this small plot on the sloped of Sierra de Yerga, in eastern Rioja. It’s a special place that harbours the influence of altitude and forests. Made with a blend of 80% tempranillo and 20% Garnacha, this wine spends 30 months ageing to develop a very fresh, juicy, fruity finish with ripe, velvety tannins and flavours of plums, liquorice, spice rosemary and black pepper. The 2016 vintage is available now from The Great Wine Co. but keep your eyes open for this forthcoming release of the 2018 vintage.
If you’re looking for even more wine recommendations, then please follow me on Instagram @dmc_uncorked. And if you are a wine retailer or a drinks PR company who would like me to feature your range of wines, then please contact me via mccabetwe@gmail.com
