Spanish Wine Over $100

In 1985 in Laguardia, a small town in the Alevesa region of Rioja, a group of local vineyard owners founded Artadi as a co-operative with the view of focussing on their vineyards. This project was taken over in 1992 by the Localle... Read More

I retasted the 2021 Clos Erasmus to compare it with the 2022 and 2023. The three vintages are very different. This 2021 has an ethereal character and comes through as a cool-climate wine; it doesn't have the same weight as... Read More

The 2022 El Reventón from the El Reventón vineyard in Cebrerosas is the last vintage of this wine from Comando G. Starting in 2023 it is produced by the new El Reventón project from the Catena team. It's intense a condition... Read More

The nose and palate of the 2022 El Tamboril Tinto are really tight; it's a wine that needs more time (they reckon the 2016 is the one drinking well in 2024). It has a lot of energy and still has some creaminess and spiciness... Read More

A new lieu-dit or paraje red wine the 2022 Peña la Mora 1er was produced from old-vine Garnacha from 1.17 hectares at 1200 meters in altitude and a northern exposure on granite soils in the village of Navatalgordo. This is where... Read More

I also tasted the 2017 Canta la Perdiz from the low-yielding and warm year marked by spring frost. The Tempranillo field blend clusters fermented in concrete vats with natural yeasts after being foot trodden. The wine went through... Read More

The 2011 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial was produced with a blend of 84% Tempranillo and 16% Mazuelo (Cariñena) from a plot called La Plana that was planted in 1950 at 485 meters in altitude the highest in the Ygay property.... Read More

I tasted again the 2012 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial as the wine was not produced in 2013 2014 or 2015 and the 2016 will not be released until 2027. The next vintages will be 2017 2019 and 2021. The 2012 was produced with... Read More

The grapes for the 2020 Cantos del Diablo were picked a little earlier to avoid the rains and the wine has a paler color than the 2021 I tasted next to it. It feels a little more reductive and despite having very similar analytics... Read More