Thus far I have looked at the red wines of Rioja, but the whites are perhaps some of the most interesting and unknown wines of Spain outside of the circles of wine professionals and wine geeks. This could be explainable by the fact that traditional white Rioja is aged for a considerable time before release, with considerable oak treatment and therefore also oxidative effects. The impact of so much oxidation on white wine can be a turn off (or at least particularly unusual) to many wine drinkers, making these wines some of the more challenging whites in the world of white wine.

The best white Riojas, however, have a searing acidity that provides them with a near immortality when it comes to ageability. Most white wines could never handle as much age as the insanely complex and acid driven whites of a producer like Lopez de Heredia. Traditional white Riojas are made predominantly from the grape called Viura (aka Macabeo), which is northern Spain’s most planted white grape. Interestingly, this is apparently also planted in the Roussilon region in southern France, although I have never had a chance to taste the French versions.

Now, according to Jancis Robinson, Viura is actually a low-acid grape, which makes me wonder how Lopez de Heredia has such searing acidity in their whites. However, Viura is also exceptionally good at withstanding oxidation, so perhaps this ability preserves the acid over time. This is an intriguing question that hopefully someone has the answer to.

However, Viura is also almost always accompanied in Riojan whites by Malvasia, often added to blends in quantities of 5-10%. The encroachment of phylloxera into Spain actually ended up in a huge decline of Malvasia plantings, explaining the now dominant use of Viura. This makes today’s wine particularly unusual, since it is not only made in a modern rather than traditional style, but it is made with 100% Malvasia.

Unlike the Lopez de Heredia whites (see my review of the 1989 Tondonia Reserva), Abel Mendoza’s Malvasia is clean and modern, without a hint of oxidation. Mendoza is quite a modern producer from Rioja, having established in 1987, and they tend to make wines of their own style and direction.

However, despite the modern approach, the nose retains some of the unusual qualities I associate with white Rioja, such as nuts, nail polish and some ripe apple and cardamom. That it does so without the oxidation and with plenty of freshness makes this a particularly successful wine for a completely different set of foods. Start your meal with some Serrano and old white Rioja and then move on to a bevy of fresh seafood in some sort of cream sauce with this very modern Malvasia.

The use of American oak was in no doubt with the flavours of vanilla, cream and cardamom on the palate. The fresh apple and citrus notes provided a clean sharp line through the centre of the wine and into its finish. I loved the texture and richness here because it was also coupled with structure and balance: fresh, but big, clean but classic. On oaky and fresh white wine, together at last.

And, as with all the best wines, this has a distinct personality – you won’t get a wine like this from anywhere else. 13% ABV.

Excellent
$35 at Marquis

NB: this wine was also poured at Marquis Wine’s blogger tasting – although I had my bottle at home with a meal.

Whereas last post’s Alejandro Fernandez is by now an old hat in Ribera del Duero, Alonso del Yerro is a baby in the region. It also represents some of the new international influences entering the region, with Bordeaux based consultant Stephane Derenencourt making the wines (the other one being the famous Pingus, started by a Dane). This international influence can be experienced in the wine itself, which is made in a more modern and international style than the Condado, but without sacrificing its Spanish roots.

This influx of development in Ribera del Duero has also led to an influx of vine cuttings brought in from elsewhere: many of the new plantings are not of the native Tempranillo, but of clones from other regions. This, of course, has an impact on quality, and many critics believe that plantings made with these clones are less than ideal. The now impressive reputation of Ribera del Duero has also led to an influx of cult wines and wineries that try to establish their reputation within a vintage. We’ve seen before how big scores from the likes of Robert Parker can make an unknown winery into an international sensation, with massive price increases to boot.

The trick with Ribera del Duero is knowing which producers are gouging, and which are staying more honest in their pricing. For me, the Pesquera wines have always been very fairly priced. This wine, while still of exceptional quality, is definitely creeping up a bit high in price for my liking (although nothing compared to Pingus or Aalto).

The wine pours a pure dark red, and offers a modern-styled nose of dark plum, cassis, cedar and spice box. The palate again is modern with a lot of fruit – blackberry, cassis, really ripe tomato and some spice and wood. Good hefty tannins round out the texture and mouthfeel, which is powerful and clean. This is an excellent example of how a wine can be modern and fruity but also balanced and rounded out with secondary flavours to compliment the fruit, and how a modern wine can retain typicity. For me, typicity and regionality are the only way that modern wines work, and this is a great example.

Excellent
$50 at Everything Wine