Winemaker Notes
Dark red in color. It has a clean and attractive nose, with aromas of red fruits like redcurrant, raspberry and cherry. There are also mild herbal and menthol notes, as well as a subtle creaminess. On the palate it is smooth, refreshing and pleasant, with high quality tannins, both fine and mature: they are perfectly integrated, ensuring a long, aromatic finish."
Blend: 69% Tempranillo, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, 4% Merlot, 2% Graciano, 1% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Seleccion Especial is the producer’s most popular wine made from a majority of their plots and blends 68% Tempranillo, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, and some Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Graciano. The first year that last variety was included, the Graciano adds acidity to balance the other varieties that lose acidity quickly in heat events, like Tempranillo. It spent 13 months in 80% French oak, 20% American oak, one-third new, one-third second use, one-third third use. The acidity is indeed balanced and helpful in lifting the red berry fruit inherent in the medium-bodied wine, which shows subtle herbal, earthiness from the Cabernet Sauvignon. Complex, fine tannins give way to a finishing touch of leather and cigar box.
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James Suckling
Grilled herbs, hedgerow undergrowth and dark cherries on the nose follow through to a medium- to full-bodied palate with lots of dusty tannins. Juicy and flavorful finish. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2020 was a cooler year with more rain, following the path of years like 2016 and 2018. The 2020 Selección Especial, produced with 70% Tempranillo, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, 4% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, is harmonious and moderately ripe at 14% alcohol, with nice balancing freshness. It matured for 12 months in French and American oak (35%) barrels, one-third of them new. They harvested it before it rained, and the wine has more herbal aromas and feels a little more Bordelais, balsamic, even minty. The oak is neatly integrated and folded into the fruit.
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Vinous
The 2020 Selección Especial from Abadía Retuerta is a blend of 69% Tempranillo, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Syrah, 4% Merlot, 2% Graciano and 1% Petit Verdot. It was aged for 12 months in French and American oak of varying ages. Dark garnet in color, it offers aromas of cherry, black cherry and mature red fruit over fine oak, cedar and a hint of vanilla. Subtle forest floor appears on the finish. The palate is intense and creamy, with plush texture, juicy flow and gentle grip. A bold New World-style wine in the Spanish context.
Spanish red wine is known for being bold, heady, rustic and age-worthy, Spain is truly a one-of-a-kind wine-producing nation. A great majority of the country is hot, arid and drought-ridden, and since irrigation has only been recently introduced and (controversially) accepted, viticulture has sustained—and flourished—only through a great understanding of Spain’s particular conditions. Large spacing between vines allows each enough resources to survive and as a result, the country has the most acreage under vine compared to any other country, but is usually third in production.
Of the Spanish red wines, the most planted and respected grape variety is Tempranillo, the star of Spain’s Rioja and Ribera del Duero regions. Priorat specializes in bold red blends, Jumilla has gained global recognition for its single varietal Monastrell and Utiel-Requena has garnered recent attention for its reds made of Bobal.