Vina Real, Crianza, 2012

Price: $10-20

AOC: Crianza, Rioja, Spain

Variety: 90% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha, Mazuela y Graciano

Color: Ruby and orange hue

Aroma: medium intensity but has a penetrating red fruit aroma, good!

Palate: medium- body, clear ripe red fruit and juicy acidity, tannin is little, there is some perception of alcohol so sometimes taste very little bitterness, the best part of this wine is the sweet vanilla oak which combines very well with the light body and acidity and makes the wine balanced. A good quality crianza. 

Lopez de Haro, Reserva, 2005

AOC: Reserva, Rioja, Spain
Variety: 90% Tempranillo, 5% Graciano, 5% Garnacha

Aroma: not particularly impressive right after opening, after proper decanting, clear vanilla from american oak, sour cherry from tempranillo show up, red fruit aroma.

Palate: the first impression makes me think of a new world syrah, very little black pepper, clear vanilla, not much sour cherry palate which you would usually get from Tempranillo. After decanting, some sour cherry shows up, medium + body and thickness, savory, clear acidity, clear vanilla, tannin is more than expected, not a classic Tempranillo.

         

Tinto Pesquera, Crianza, 2012

AOC: Crianza, Ribera del Duero, Spain

Variety: 100% Tempranillo

Aroma: 一打開就有明顯 Rioja那種 sour cherry 的香氣, 單純而容易明暸

Palate: Tempranillo 總是給我一種熱情奔放的感覺, 不像法國酒那樣嚴肅, 又不像新世界那樣過於容易理解, 第一次接觸 Rioja 後, 就一直在想究竟該用什麼詞來形容 Tempranillo 那獨特的果實味, 後來覺得 wine folly 上用 "sour cherry" 來形容還蠻貼近我的感覺的, sour cherry 果實味常常讓我有這酒在 oak 裡面放了非常久時間的錯覺, 也是這個特徵讓 Rioja 清楚地和新世界區分開來, 這支好喝的地方就在於酒的thickness 適中, 但做出 concentrated 的果實味, 雖然味道的 complexity 不算高, 但算高的 body 讓這支酒多了一些醇厚的感覺. 突然有進攻 Tempranillo 的衝動了