Winemaker Notes
With sensuous notes of orange peel, red currants, nectarines and black cherries on the nose and palate, winemaker Alvaro Palacios describes this wine as being fleshy and fluid with a soft aftertaste that invokes a hill covered with chamomile and rosemary flowers as its origin. Containing well-integrated tannins and a long finish, this wine is meant to drink now or age up to ten years.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
This 100% Garnacha has aromas of roses and liquorice on the nose then a classic, linear palate whose tannins show steadily increasing grip alongside redcurrants and pink grapefruit.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2011 Propiedad, from the third consecutive dry vintage, is now pure destemmed Garnacha fermented in oak vats and aged in oak barrels for 14 months. It is surprisingly darker than its siblings, with ripe aromas of red and black fruits, fine-grained tannins and good acidity that would require a little bit of time in bottle to get better integrated. 40,000 bottles were produced. Drink 2015-2019.
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Wine Enthusiast
Closed and in need of air at first, this takes on a ripe, medicinal, almost candied red-fruit nose. Next up is a full, wide-bodied palate with chunky plum and raspberry flavors. This old-vines Garnacha is ripe, tasty and all about the fruit.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
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.