Bodegas Cepa 21 Ribera del Duero 2011
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A gorgeous cherry red colour with violet along the rim on a deep background. A broad and complex nose with notes of candied black fruits (mulberry, blackberry and blackcurrants). It has an oaky presence, both noble and elegant. The feel in the mouth is rich and opulent, accompanied by a structured and long-lasting aftertaste.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
This aromatic red is graceful on the palate, with cherry, strawberry, licorice and vanilla notes mingling over light tannins, kept lively by bright acidity. This has a tender texture, but shows depth and focus. Drink now through 2021.
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Tasting Panel
(aged for a year in new and used French oak barriques): Opaque ruby. Smoke-accented dark berries and mocha on the deeply perfumed nose, with a peppery nuance adding vivacity. Sweet, seamless and broad in the mouth, offering juicy cherry-vanilla and bitter chocolate flavors and a suggestion of allspice. Closes smoky, smooth and very long, with gentle tannins coming in late to add grip.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I found the 2011 Cepa 21 very oaky. It is Tempranillo from 15-year-old slope vineyards planted higher up on clay and chalk soils, and aged for one year in French oak barrel. The nose is a mixture of sweet spices, sawdust, smoke, dark chocolate, roasted coffee and ripe black berries, with the oak at the forefront and the fruit in the background. The palate also shows abundant, dusty tannins that coat your tongue with a soft astringency, coupled with lowish acidity. Perhaps the riper vintage -- compared with 2010 -- has taken more of the oak, so I'd give it a little bit of time to come into better balance as it did with time in the glass and plenty of aeration, showing more balsamic hints plus notes of anise seed and fennel. Both this wine and the entry level Hito are now closed with Diam. 200,000 bottles produced.
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Wine &
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Bodegas Cepa21 was born in 2002 from the passion, heritage and know-how of the third generation of the Moro family. The vineyards are found in a northern orientation valley with a colder terroir from where the Family started planting vineyards.
Located in Castrillo de Duero, a village of Valladolid in the heart of the Ribera del Duero region, the area is known as the “The Golden Mile” because of Its Terroir combining extreme climate conditions, varied soils and orography of the valley.
The Winery has 50 hectares grafted with the pure clone of Tempranillo (Tinto Fino) from the oldest vineyards that the Family planted.
The Family aims to produce wines that respect the terroir and the variety, that are characterized by the intensity and the structure, but also by the freshness and finesse. There is a more modern focus on winemaking, showing more the fruit characteristics. To do this, each wine comes from different vineyards, where Hito is produced out of vineyards in the foothills of the valley, at 2,400 feet, Cepa 21 from vineyards in the middle of the slope, at 2,700 feet. Malabrigo and Horcajo come from two vineyards in the high plateau at 3,000 feet. The wines are vinified according to the parcels to show the terroir potential.
Notoriously food-friendly, long-lasting and Spain’s most widely planted grape, Tempranillo is the star variety of red wines from Rioja and Ribera del Duero. The Rioja terms Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva indicate both barrel and bottle time before release. Traditionally blended in Rioja with Garnacha, plus a bit of Mazuelo (Carignan) and Graciano, the Tempranillo in Ribera del Duero typically stands alone. Somm Secret—Tempranillo claims many different names depending on location. In Penedès, it is called Ull de Llebre and in Valdepeñas, goes by Cencibel. Known as Tinta Roriz in Portugal, Tempranillo plays an important role in Port wine.
Ribera del Duero, Spanish wine region, is located in northen Spain’s Castilla y León region, just a 2-hour drive from Madrid. While winemaking in this area goes back more than 2000 years, it was in the 1980s that 9 wineries applied for and were granted Denominación de Origen (D.O.) status. Today, more than 300 wineries call Ribera del Duero home, including some of Spain’s most iconic names.
Notable Facts Ribera’s main grape variety, Tempranillo, locally know as Tinto Fino, is perfectly suited to the extreme climate of the region, where it must survive scorching summers and frigid winters. Low yields resulting from conscientious tending to old vines planted in Ribera’s diverse soils types, give Ribera wines a distinctive depth and complexity not found in other Tempranillos. Rich and full-bodied, the spice, dark fruit and smoky flavors in a bold Ribera del Duero will pair well with roasted and grilled meats, Mexican food and tomato-based sauces.