2016 Bodegas Manzanos Voche Rioja Reserva Rioja Spain

2016 Bodegas Manzanos Voche Rioja Reserva Rioja Spain

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtRiojaSpainTempranillo

BODEGAS MANZANOS

VOCHE RIOJA RESERVA
RIOJA SPAIN 2016

2016 Bodegas Manzanos Voche Rioja Reserva Rioja Spain
Five generations of the Manzano family dedicated themselves to making wines at the highest level from their vineyards in the Spanish regions of Rioja and Navarra. 
Brothers Víctor and David Fernández de Manzano raised the Estate to the next level by modernizing it with precise state-of-the-art winemaking equipment, moving it closer to being among the region’s top producers.
 
The family’s Voché Reserva comes from three of their best vineyards: El Barranco, Los Molinos, and José Leon. El Barranco is the oldest Graciano vineyard in Rioja, planted in 1940, and contributes depth and complexity to the wine, while Los Molinos’s younger Graciano vines give freshness. José Leon Vineyard’s 25-year-old Tempranillo vines contribute power and structure, completing the wine, which elevated with two years in French oak and two more years in bottle, seamlessly integrating the classic Rioja flavors.
 
BODEGAS MANZANOS
VOCHE RIOJA RESERVA
RIOJA SPAIN 2016
 
Your Price: $23
 
 
“Violet-red to the eye, this wine has a bouquet of cassis, saddle leather and clove. It feels good in the mouth, offering flavors of blackberry, strawberry, chocolate-covered coffee bean and vanilla. Satin tannins dissolve into a soft rose-petal finish.”
93 Points
 
“Sweet oak, vanilla, cherry and bitter almond flavors converge in this muscular, balanced red. The oak still needs time to integrate, with ample fruit to offset it. The finish is long and compact. Tempranillo and Graciano. Best from 2024 through 2033. 700 cases made, 350 cases imported.”
93 Points
2018 Tinto Arzuaga Crianza Ribera Del Duero

2018 Tinto Arzuaga Crianza Ribera Del Duero

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtSpainTempranillo

TINTO ARZUAGA

2018 CRIANZA
RIBERA DEL DUERO

2018 Tinto Arzuaga Crianza Ribera Del Duero
Located next door to Vega Sicilia, one of Spain’s foremost producers, Arzuaga Winery sits in the heart of the Ribera del Duero DO. The geography is a warm, inland region along the Duero River, more recently gaining recognition for its bold Tempranillo-based wines. The family intimately connects with the land and maintains the vineyard’s biodiversity by farming sustainably and peacefully coexisting amongst flora and fauna. 
 
The care taken in the vineyard is the first and most crucial step before many others for quality wine production because it’s impossible to make outstanding wine without healthy, high-quality grapes. The 2018 Crianza is 95% Tempranillo with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and scored 97 points from the Decanter World Wine Awards, and for less than $40, this wine is an absolute treasure to behold.
 
TINTO ARZUAGA
2018 CRIANZA
RIBERA DEL DUERO
 
Your Price: $39.99
 
 
“The bouquet is full of fragrant black fruits, cinnamon, cumin and Frankincense, the palate beautifully fleshy and textured, carrying cigar box, vanilla, blueberry and silky tannins through to a lingering, richly-fruited, finish. Such refined elegance! Outstanding.”
97 Points
2019 Desoncierto Albarino Cambados Urban Winery Cambados, Spain

2019 Desoncierto Albarino Cambados Urban Winery Cambados, Spain

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtProprietary WhiteSpain

DESCONCIERTO

2019 ALBARIÑO
CAMBADOS URBAN WINERY
CAMBADOS, SPAIN

2019 Desoncierto Albarino Cambados Urban Winery Cambados, Spain
The delightfully refreshing nature of Desconcierto Albariño intersects with profound intensity, resulting in a stimulating, unique white that makes other varietals envious. The wine’s alluring qualities are fueled by great weather, causing it to move faster than any other white wine on our tasting menu. Desconcierto is beautifully opulent, loaded with brightly focused fruit, intriguing spice, and classic saline character that’s simply irresistible. 
 
Albarino grows best in areas with a strong maritime influence, which helps the grapes maintain a lively acidity. Desconcierto’s Vineyard is close to the Arousa Estuary’s shores, and the sea’s impact stands out in this classic Atlantic-influenced wine. 
 
Desconcierto utilizes partial Malolactic fermentation in their winemaking, which a technical method now widely used that gives the wine a rounder mouthfeel. There are less than 350 cases of this wine produced and trust me, you’ll wish you had ordered a lot more once you taste it.
 
DESCONCIERTO
2019 ALBARIÑO
CAMBADOS URBAN WINERY
CAMBADOS, SPAIN
 
Your Price: $29.99
 
 
“Lively and intense aromas of white peach, pear and apples. Light notes of vanilla and yeast, a result of aging and stirring in the vat. Full body, crisp, vibrant and refreshing with mouthwatering citrus notes. Long finish with dry mineral notes.”
2017 Bodegas Pinea 17 Ribera del Duero

2017 Bodegas Pinea 17 Ribera del Duero

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtSpainTempranillo

BODEGAS PINEA 

2017 “17” by PINEA
RIBERA del DUERO 

2017 Bodegas Pinea 17 Ribera del Duero

When one of Spain’s top-producers who’s flagship Ribera del Duero retails for around $150, creates a fresh and new wine inspired by the younger vines from their Estate Vineyards, AND retails it for nearly a quarter of the price, I want to try it… We introduced their 2015 last year, and the wine was an instant hit that incited a flurry of re-orders. The 2017 vintage is stunningly detailed, long, and complex and offers old-world power and antiquity with new-world fruit and lush textures that make it incredibly appealing.
 
Pinea is located in the heart of Ribera del Duero, and their high-elevation and dry-farmed vineyards are grown in chalky sand and limestone with deep, healthy root systems. The vines there produce powerfully concentrated fruit with a remarkable sense of place. The blend is 100% Tempranillo, which is Spain’s most iconic grape and revered for producing full-bodied red wines. 
 
Isaac Fernandez, whom the Wine Spectator dubbed One of Spain’s brightest young winemakers, and who trained under his uncle Mariano Garcia, who was the former head winemaker at Vega Sicilia, brought this wine to life. If you love big, rich red wines that offer unimaginable bang-for-your-buck, this is definitely for you…
 
BODEGAS PINEA 
2017 “17” by PINEA
RIBERA del DUERO
 
Your Price: $39.99
Click to Order
 
“It is clean, of medium-high intensity on the nose…. aromas of red fruits like strawberries and black fruits, particularly blackberry, ripe black plum and blueberry. These are joined by the subtle and elegant aromas of new oak, with hints of spices, vanilla, chocolate and toast. On the palate, the wine comes together in a daring and powerful profile, with noticeable, silky tannins. It is very intense with a palate-filling body that shows the same perfect balance between fruit and toast as on the nose. The finish is long and persistent.”
 
02016 Muga Rioja Reserva

2016 Muga Rioja Reserva

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtProprietary RedRiojaSpain

MUGA 

2016 RIOJA RESERVA
RIOJA, SPAIN 

02016 Muga Rioja Reserva
Leading the pack as one of Rioja’s top producers, Bodegas Muga’s flagship 2016 Rioja Reserva is one of the most stunning values from the old world. At $30, the 2016 earned a monster 95 Point score from James Suckling, who dubs it, “One of the top best-value, high-quality reds in Spain.” I recommend making some extra room in the cellar…
 
Bodegas Muga is a paragon producer in Spain’s iconic Rioja region, and it’s their philosophy of never losing touch with the authenticity of the wines that they’re making, and their constant use of traditional winemaking processes that’s kept them in the number one spot. 
 
Their wine team built the 2016 Rioja Reserva around a solid core of 70% Tempranillo and 20% Garnacha, then enhanced with other indigenous varietals. They aged this wine for 24 months in oak cask, and on the palate, it’s richly layered and powerfully intense. At $30, the value is nearly inconceivable.
 
MUGA 
2016 RIOJA RESERVA
RIOJA, SPAIN 
 
Your Price: $29.99
 
 
“This is really tight and powerful with gorgeous tannins and solid fruit. Full body. Tight and composed. Wet earth, smoked meat and hints of black truffles. Very long and powerful. Wonderful length. Real Rioja. One of the top best-value, high-quality reds in Spain. Drink or hold.” 95 Points
 
 
“…This has the Muga style and the imprint of the cool and fresh 2016 vintage, one of the best vintages of recent years… It has a mixture of red and black fruit with sweet spices that are very integrated and in harmony. The palate is silky and clean, and the tannins are round and gentle…” 93 Points
2012 Muga Seleccion Especial Reserva Rioja

2012 Muga Selección Especial Rioja Reserva

with No Comment $30-$40HaroKevin VogtProprietary RedSpain

MUGA

2012 Muga Seleccion Especial Reserva Rioja

2012 RIOJA RESERVA
SELECCIÓN ESPECIAL

 
When I tasted Muga’s 2012 Selección Especial, the first three adjectives that came to mind were appealing, engaging and irresistible.  It’s been quite a while since I’ve tasted a Rioja that I love this much.  It immediately dazzles your palate with seductive black fruits, intriguing complexity, and focused, penetrating flavors that simply make you want to keep sipping.  Muga is one of Rioja’s most idolized producers and they have the scores to back it up.  At under forty per bottle the 2012 Selección Especial has already earned a monster 95 point score, and I wouldn’t hesitate to secure yours.  
 
Muga’s Selección Especial comes from a high elevation vineyard located in the Rioja Alta region of Haro.  The blend is dominated by 70% Tempranillo, enhanced with other indigenous varietals.  The wine spends 26 months in oak and now with a few years in the bottle the 2012 is firing on all cylinders… Don’t miss it…
 
MUGA
2012 RIOJA RESERVA
SELECCIÓN ESPECIAL
Retails at:  $50.00/btl
 
Your Price: $39.99/btl
YOU SAVE 20%
 
From James Suckling: “A linear and super-fine wine with black cherry and berry character and hints of flowers. Full body yet very tight and closed. Beautiful texture.” 95 Points
 
 
Customers who enjoy Muga Selección Especial Reserva Rioja  may also enjoy these two fantastic wines…
2012 Vik Milla Calla Proprietary Red 2015 Quinta Do Vallado Reserva Douro
VIK
2012 MILLA CALA
PROPRIETARY RED
MILLAHUE VALLEY, CHILE
 
Your Price: $39.99/btl 

Click to Order

 
From The Wine Spectator: “Rich and refined, delivering unctuous dark fruit and spice flavors that offer a creamy svelteness. Slate and mineral accents linger on the complex finish, with dark chocolate and olive notes. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Cabernet Franc, Syrah and Merlot. Drink now through 2022…”  94 Points
QUINTA DO VALLADO
2015 RESERVA 
DOURO, PORTUGAL
Retails at: $65.00/btl
 
Your Price: $54.99/btl 

Click to Order

 
From Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate: “The 2015 Reserva is a field blend of very old vines (100+ years old)… Reasonably concentrated for the producer’s subregion and the vintage, this actually has fleshed out since I last saw it. Yet it retains that graceful, textured feel, the freshness and the fine fruit. I suspect the wine will show even more elegance as it continues to age… This is going to be a hard-to-resist wine when it hits the table at dinner.”  93 Points