Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2011 Dulce Monastrell was bottled at 16% alcohol with 195 grams of residual sugar. Produced with fruit from ungrafted, 50-year-old Monastrell vines that were hand-harvested in late October/early November, the wine starts fermenting with indigenous yeast and fortified to stop fermentation. It's bottled completely unoaked the June after the harvest and aged for two years in bottle before being sold. It has a complex nose of black olives, tomato vine and balsamic herbs. The palate is sweet but keeps fluid and while it could do with a little more freshness it has enough acidity. Quite pleasant.
Full of ripe fruit, and robust, earthy goodness, Mourvèdre is actually of Spanish provenance, where it still goes by the name Monastrell or Mataro. It is better associated however, with the Red Blends of the Rhône, namely Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Mourvèdre shines on its own in Bandol and is popular both as a single varietal wine in blends in the New World regions of Australia, California and Washington. Somm Secret—While Mourvèdre has been in California for many years, it didn’t gain momentum until the 1980s when a group of California winemakers inspired by the wines of the Rhône Valley finally began to renew a focus on it.
Famous for the robust and earthy, black-fruit dominated, Monastrell (known as Mourvedre in France), Jumilla is an arid and hot region in southeastern Spain. Its vine yields tend to be torturously low but this can create wines of exceptional intensity and flavor. Quality combined with accessible price points give the region great recognition on international markets far and wide.
The reds from Jumilla are heady and spicy, packed with fruit and show aromas of dried licorice and herbs. If you like Syrah, Grenache or Pinot noir, a red wine from Jumilla would be a perfect next choice!