Articles

López de Heredia – Viña Tondonia Reserva 2011

by  |  17-07-2023

Despite the crippling writers and now actors strike in the US, we live in an age where we don’t generally suffer for choice in terms of the media that we consume whether that be in... more »

Remelluri – Lindes de Remelluri – San Vicente 2012

by  |  20-03-2023

It’s just over seven years ago that “The Manifesto” was signed by 150 individuals in the Spanish wine scene at Club Matador in Madrid. The base for this manifesto was quite simple in that it... more »

Pagos de Anguix – Costalara 2020

by  |  08-03-2023

In terms of the Tempranillo Intensity Index (if such a thing exists), I usually rank the dominant Tempranillo regions from lowest to highest in intensity as: Rioja, Ribera del Duero, and Toro. I’ve never been... more »
Photo from Bodegas Montecillo.

A deeper look at Bodegas Montecillo

by  |  14-12-2022

In what now seems like a century ago, I made a lengthy research visit to Rioja in November of last year. My goals were various, but the main one was to taste Garnacha wines in... more »

The tale of two Reservas: Rioja vs. Ribera del Duero

by  |  23-11-2022

Such an article could have easily been titled, “I drank these two supermarket Tempranillos so you didn’t have to” but in all fairness maybe one or the other of these two wines is actually very... more »

Two very, very different Valdemars

by  |  17-10-2022

Indeed, they’re not truly on opposite ends of the world. Oion in the Rioja region of Spain, and Walla Walla in the state of Washington in the United States are but a “mere” 8,500km from... more »

Herdade Barranco do Vale, a tasty bit of the Algarve

by  |  23-09-2022

I’m in something of a bind. I’ve been seeing the points awarded by some lately and wondering where on earth they’re coming from? Obviously, it’s a highly subjective field, but at the same time, there... more »

The Vinha Centenária of Quinta Nova

by  |  29-04-2022

I’ve enjoyed getting to know the Douro Valley more in recent years, especially in following the evolution of Quinta Nova. A producer of both fine dry wines as well as Ports, it was through a... more »

Two very different sides of DO Ribera del Duero

by  |  08-04-2022

This is a short comparison of the wines from Abadía de San Quirce and Bodegas Veganzones. While both are located in DO Ribera del Duero, they illustrate just how much difference there can be in... more »

I tasted these 2€ Spanish wines so you didn’t have to

by  |  04-10-2021

Spain has no problem selling its wines… as long as they’re “a good value”. This has become a double-edged sword given that the common perception, especially in markets like the UK, is that Spanish wines... more »