Winery - Bodegas Fuentespina
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Jammy and sweet up front, and almost like a fruit roll-up as far as aromatics go. The palate is chewy and sweet, with boysenberry and plum flavors. Pretty nice in terms of mouthfeel, and for the most part it’s right there. This is ultimately a basic Tempranillo, just the right wine for everyday drinking.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Drier and lighter than this winery’s Crianzas and reservas, Granate shows rubber and red-fruit aromas and then lean cherry flavors. It’s rather chalky and grabby late, and by then some of the thrill is gone.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Unlike many crianzas, this one’s oak is understated on the nose—instead, you get lots of delicate cherry aromas. That all changes in the mouth, with a healthy whack of vanilla. Spicy, creamy-oak finish.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Wispy tendrils of smoky, toasty, vanilla oak are wrapped firmly around delicate cherries and strawberries and never let go, becoming slightly tougher on the finish. Drink now.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Rich and attractive to the nose, with hints of smoked meat, tobacco and black fruit. The palate is both developed and enveloping; it blends meat, berries, earth and spice into a whole that’s beyond the ordinary. The finish drives on for minutes with mocha, coffee and charred meat. This has all the right components in all the right places.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Cool and collected, with a deeply fruity nose. The palate pours forth with red fruit, particularly cherry and raspberry, with some vanilla shadings to prop it all up. Fairly lush and chocolaty, with a fine transition from palate to finish.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Pretty and lush, with a succulent nose. The palate is young, bright and fruity, with lots of raspberry flavor. The tail end is solid, balanced and expansive. With some lavender and crushed rose-petal notes, it has just enough ancillary accents to rise above the masses.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A big wine with a big price, F de Fuentespina is toasty and dark like blacktop. The nose features scents of savory sauce and marinade, while the feel is thick, rich and creamy. Dark fruit is front and center, but it’s undeniably saucy and roasted, which may be due to partial aging in Eastern European oak. It also weighs in at a hefty 15% alcohol.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Don’t underestimate this wine—though it seems approachable at first, it seems to bulk up the longer that it sits in the glass. Add woodsy tannins to a dark profile of black soil, black plum and charred oak, and you’ve got a wine that could use at least another year (but more like two or three) in the bottle. —D.M.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Solid if a bit soupy and tomato-driven on the nose. In the mouth, there’s a nice offset between herbal, red fruit characteristics, tobacco and black fruit. Overall, it’s a gritty, tight, honest Ribera wine with a long, powerful finish. Just ripe enough, with indviduality and identity. Drink now through 2012.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
