Winery - Valdubón
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Oak is front and center on this high-priced affair from Freixenet. And that’s the primary problem with what is otherwise a commendable and solid wine. Vanilla and resin aromas and flavors push the fruit to the side, and what’s left is a slick of butter, sawdust and tannic astringency. Not a bust, but for nearly a hundred bucks we want more than just wood. Imported by Freixenet USA.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Fairly earthy but also smooth and inviting. This wine shows a reserva’s higher oak level but also a higher level of fruit quality than the winery’s 2002 Crianza. The palate is all about red berries, while the feel and finish are crisp and integrated. Nearly mature and pretty much ready to drink now. 250 cases made. Imported by Freixenet USA.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Fairly dark and chocolaty on the nose, with some vanilla oak notes that help it along. The mouthfeel, however, is a bit choppy and tangy as red fruit and acidity come up and take over the game. Short on the finish, with oak filling any gaps left by the fading fruit. Good and ready to go now. Imported by Freixenet USA.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Kicks off with a bouquet akin to chocolate-covered cherries before moving on to cured meat and bacon. Strawberry and cherry flavors are touched up by buttery oak, while the finish is so broad that it seems like pulled dough. Shows much of what’s good about this appellation.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A touch cheesy at first, but with airing this everyday RDD finds its purpose and offers good but regular berry, earth, prune and chocolate flavors. The texture is a little less than refined, but the wine is natural; there’s big tannins, acidity and tightness causing a ruckus, but time and/or food will help tame things down.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This basic RdD delivers a smooth, ripe nose with doses of forest, bacon, road tar and violets, and there’s some plum and blackberry at the foundation. Juicy and raw on the tongue, with racy, slick blackberry fruit. Finishes broad and medicinal, likely a sign of the hot vintage.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A touch creamy, but generally it’s a nice, healthy, well-made wine. Flavors of bold red fruit are touched up by earth notes and overt wood. The finish is lush enough, with sweet, ripe fruit and modest tannins. Even if this wine lacks the pop of the very best, it’s got plenty going for it, and its lines are clean and well fitted.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Meaty and earthy, with hints of cured Serrano ham spicing up the bold black fruit. The flavor profile veers toward red fruit, with raspberry and strawberry showing most prominently. In the mouth, grippy tannins support a big finish that’s wide and open. Some vanilla punctuates the finish.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Early on the wine is dominated by buttery oak, and it’s all over the nose, palate and finish. Airing settles it down, and up from the creamy underworld comes raspberry, stewed plums and chocolate. Not the thinking man’s Ribera del Duero, but it gets the job done. Imported by Freixenet, USA.
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* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
An easy drinker, creamy and medium-bodied in the mouth, this crianza offers red plums and oak on the palate, and sweet caramel candy aromas on the nose. Finishes with prickly tannins and some char and herb flavors. —D.M.
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