Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A solid dose of violety florals, ripe plum and dark berry fruit. Tannins push this wine along while a youthful energy pervades. Structure, concentration and balance. Best from 2020.
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a site the borders Vega Sicilia (I think that’s a good neighbor to have), the 2015 Finca Villacreces is a blockbuster blend of 86% Tempranillo and the balance equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Aged 14 months in new French oak, it boasts a deep, saturated purple color as well as pedal-to-the-metal notes of blackcurrants, white chocolate, raspberries, and lead pencil. With full-bodied richness, a ripe, sexy texture, and building tannin, it has plenty of fruit yet still has a terrific sense of purity and elegance. It’s a beautiful wine that I suspect will keep for a decade or more.
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Wine Spectator
This big red delivers currant and blackberry flavors, with licorice, tar, loamy earth and mineral notes that add depth and balance. Juicy acidity balances the assertive but well-integrated tannins. Drink now through 2035.
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Wine & Spirits
Consider the tannins, with their firm grip, and then the fruit that surrounds those tannic claws, rich in raspberry and sweet strawberry flavors, with a background of chestnut and spice. This youthful wine will develop over five or more years in the bottle. It’s a selection of the lowest-yielding plots of the 160 acres Villacreces has in Quintanilla de Onésimo.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The eponymous red 2015 Finca Villacreces is a dark, ripe and concentrated blend of Tempranillo with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Merlot produced in a slightly international style with plenty of oak flavors and aromas. It's a rich, full-bodied red with plenty of tannins in need of some more time in bottle and powerful food.
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.