91 |
Wine Review Online |
A blend of 85% Tempranillo and 15% Graciano, this is made from the estate’s grapes grown at an elevation of 550 meters (about 1804 feet). Deeply, darkly colored, this Spanish wine evokes cherries and other red fruits, plus subtle hints of floral, spice and vanilla. The blend throbs with ripe fruit which might have been excessive but instead is reined in just in time to be a balanced and tasty red to enjoy with sausages, beef, lamb, and red-sauced pasta dishes.
Marguerite Thomas – December 8, 2020 |
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90 |
Vinous Media |
Dark violet. Spice-accented cherry and dark berry aromas are complemented by suggestions of cola and vanilla. Pliant and energetic in the mouth, offering sweet red and blue fruit and spicecake flavors that show good depth and no rough edges. Finishes smooth, broad and long, with gentle tannic grip and lingering smokiness. 2022 – 2027
Josh Raynolds - April 2021 |
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89 |
Washington Wine Blog |
A blend of 85% Tempranillo with the reminder Garnacha, this delivers forward red and dark berry flavors with a light dusting of salinity and minerals. Drink 2020-2025.
Dr. Owen J. Bargreen, CS - July 2020 |
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87+ |
View from the Cellar |
The 2018 Rioja “Acentor” from Isaac Fernandez is composed of a blend of eighty-five percent Tempranillo and fifteen percent Graciano and was raised in used French oak barrels for eight months prior to bottling. The wine comes in at fourteen percent and offers up a ripe and deep bouquet of black cherries, dark berries, cigar ash, a bit of tariness, spicy oak and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full and youthful, with a good core, firm, chewy tannins and a long, woody finish. The oak tannins on the backend here need time to integrate, as right now they are uncovered and rather drying. But, the wine seems to have enough stuffing to absorb them in due course and the wine should turn out to be good once the oak has been integrated, and it would have been good to let this wine settle in for six months longer in the cellar before shipping, as it is not yet ready for drinking. 2021-20240.
October 2019 |
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87 |
Wine Spectator |
This medium-bodied red offers good density, featuring blackberry, cola and spice notes, backed by moderate tannins. Hints of floral and wild herb echo on the finish. Tempranillo and Graciano. Drink now through 2024. 550 cases made, 500 cases imported. — GS
September 2020 |
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** |
The Washington Post |
Score: 2.5 Stars (Excellent/Exceptional)
This savory red seems ideal for the weeks on either side of the autumnal equinox. It greets the nose with jammy late-summer aromas of blackberry pie, as well as a sense of a cool afternoon turning to dusk in a forest where the leaves have reached peak color and are almost, but not quite, ready to fall. This wine begs to be paired with meat cooked over fire. It’s young and should age well over the next five years if you’re willing to stock up. ABV: 14 percent. September 18, 2020 |
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