Benjamin Romeo Predicador Blanco 2013
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine &
Spirits
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James Suckling
A ripe white with so much cooked apple and vanilla character. Full body and pie crust flavors. Opulent and exciting.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2013 Predicador Blanco, a blend of Garnacha Blanca, Malvasía and Viura, was barrel fermented with indigenous yeasts and matured in oak barrels for eight months. The nose is a nice combination of aromas of hay, straw, apple, fennel and hints of spices and smoke, while the palate is fresh but reveals a serious white, with good acidity and a core of white and yellow fruit with tasty flavors and good overall balance.
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Wine & Spirits
This is a blend of garnacha blanca, viura and malvasía from dry-farmed bush vines in San Vicente de Sonsierra and Briones. Fermented in French oak barrels, the wood adds a dusty bitter-almond note to the pineapple-scented fruit, along with tannins providing structure. Balanced by lemony acidity, the texture is broad and luscious, substantial enough for roast veal.
Other Vintages
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Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
With hundreds of white grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended white wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used in white wine blends, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a variety that creates a soft and full-bodied white wine blend, like Chardonnay, would do well combined with one that is more fragrant and naturally high in acidity. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
Highly regarded for distinctive and age-worthy red wines, Rioja is Spain’s most celebrated wine region. Made up of three different sub-regions of varying elevation: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental. Wines are typically a blend of fruit from all three, although specific sub-region (zonas), village (municipios) and vineyard (viñedo singular) wines can now be labeled. Rioja Alta, at the highest elevation, is considered to be the source of the brightest, most elegant fruit, while grapes from the warmer and drier Rioja Oriental produce wines with deep color and higher alcohol, which can add great body and richness to a blend.
Fresh and fruity Rioja wines labeled, Joven, (meaning young) see minimal aging before release, but more serious Rioja wines undergo multiple years in oak. Crianza and Reserva styles are aged for one year in oak, and Gran Reserva at least two, but in practice this maturation period is often quite a bit longer—up to about fifteen years.
Tempranillo provides the backbone of Rioja red wines, adding complex notes of red and black fruit, leather, toast and tobacco, while Garnacha supplies body. In smaller percentages, Graciano and Mazuelo (Carignan) often serve as “seasoning” with additional flavors and aromas. These same varieties are responsible for flavorful dry rosés.
White wines, typically balancing freshness with complexity, are made mostly from crisp, fresh Viura. Some whites are blends of Viura with aromatic Malvasia, and then barrel fermented and aged to make a more ample, richer style of white.