Rioja
Perez Burton
Spain
Marks & Spencer
Mixed Case
Chris Murphy’s favourites
£45
Natural Cork
13.5%
On opening this bottle the initial aroma was of Spain – Castanets, Bullfights, Sun, Sand, Sea and Tapas.
The label is typically Spanish, with attractive character which immediately draws you to it. This reminds you of swirly dresses worn by flamenco dancers.
A really tasty medium bodied, prune coloured Rioja wine with flavours of delicious bruised red fruits. A very inviting, elegant, fragrant and well balanced wine, with sophisticated tannins. A brilliant youthful glugger, with a veneer of vanilla.
5 words I would use to describe this wine – Lush, Warm, Welcoming, Juicy and Intense.
The tempranillo grape vines only need a short growing season and they can withstand heat but prefer a cooler climate. They also have a low resistence to pests and disease. Tempranillo translates as ‘little early one’.
I had this wine with a platter of cheeses with good strong tastes, Manchego and Stilton to name but two and it stood up very well indeed!
A classy and elegant red wine without tears, easy to quaff. 9/10
