My bottle for a blind Spanish tasting. Very rich, bone dry and yet gracefully creamy with notes of fresh saline, fresh coconut, Eureka lemon, mild herbs and sungold cherry tomatoes on a med-full frame. As I'd hoped, even blind it's apparent to all that it's a major step up from the other whites that preceded it. Exceptional.
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Dinner at 312 Fish Market (Chicago, IL): Served double blind. Clearly not something I normally drink. This had an oily, rich palate, with a slightly phenolic/herbal element. Relatively low acid, and higher alcohol had me thinking Mediterranean. This was a nice foil for the various pieces of belly nigiri, but I would find it hard to drink more than a glass of it ordinarily.
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Youthful gold appearance. Focused but lifted lemons, key lime, maybe some cantaloupe. Subtle but perceptible oak that is well integrated. There’s a fascinating scent that reminds me of graham cracker pie crust that I really like. Medium to full bodied on the palate, high acidity, fills the mouth with cooked lemon flavors. I recently tried candied orange and lemon peels for the first time, and there is definitely an element of those types of flavors without the overt sweetness. Others reviewers have commented on the wine’s creaminess, and that is definitely a notable feature of the mouthfeel. It rides the line between being lively/energetic and rich even a bit viscous. Long complex finish that is very enjoyable. This wine is still primary, feels like will improve for years to come.
I’m not very experienced in high quality white Rioja; there isn’t a lot out there, after all. My standard has been the Lopez de Heredia Reserva Tondonia Blanco (GR is a bit too rich for my blood) and that is an entirely different beast than this. The LdH is wild, oxidative, wholly unique. This is much more restrained, not oxidative in the least, and to me, tastes very much like a top quality Cote de Beaune white Burgundy. The wine looks the part too, with its Burgundy bottle shape and the separate small vintage label on the neck.
This wine and the LdH Blanco are the bookends of the quality white Rioja spectrum. I wish there were more examples of this category out there. Wonderful.
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Beautifuly balanced, round and creamy, yet subtle and complex. This reminds my of the white wines from Burgundy although the varietals are very different. There is a minerality and terror present in this wine that leads me to think we have a long way to go. Drinking great at the moment, however feel it will improve for 3-5 more years and live on the plateau for at least decade.
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I had this for Christmas dinner, opened it around noon. Aerated it for 15 mins and poured it back into the bottle. Drank it app 7 hours later. When I first opened it, it smelled smoky and complex, but closed. In the evening, the smokiness and complexity vanished in favor of tropical fruit. Both was good, but I wonder whether I wouldn’t have liked it even better with less air! It tasted younger and less complex in the evening than it smelled straight after opening it. My best guess would be that this should be drunk either immediately after opening (to get that smoky flavor that makes it interesting) or after many more years (5-10) in the cellar.
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DWO – Najlepsze wina wg Fermentu – klasyki (On-line): Pale white color with a yellow haze. Initially sweet nose full of melon, lemon curd. High acidity but also some sweet fruit flavours. Full body and enjoyable
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4/17/2024 - Neecies Likes this wine:
My bottle for a blind Spanish tasting. Very rich, bone dry and yet gracefully creamy with notes of fresh saline, fresh coconut, Eureka lemon, mild herbs and sungold cherry tomatoes on a med-full frame. As I'd hoped, even blind it's apparent to all that it's a major step up from the other whites that preceded it. Exceptional.
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10/3/2023 - acyso wrote: 90 Points
Dinner at 312 Fish Market (Chicago, IL): Served double blind. Clearly not something I normally drink. This had an oily, rich palate, with a slightly phenolic/herbal element. Relatively low acid, and higher alcohol had me thinking Mediterranean. This was a nice foil for the various pieces of belly nigiri, but I would find it hard to drink more than a glass of it ordinarily.
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3/21/2023 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Every taster is just blown away. To me just a touch tired, and there it is.
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12/29/2022 - NoahCap wrote:
Youthful gold appearance. Focused but lifted lemons, key lime, maybe some cantaloupe. Subtle but perceptible oak that is well integrated. There’s a fascinating scent that reminds me of graham cracker pie crust that I really like. Medium to full bodied on the palate, high acidity, fills the mouth with cooked lemon flavors. I recently tried candied orange and lemon peels for the first time, and there is definitely an element of those types of flavors without the overt sweetness. Others reviewers have commented on the wine’s creaminess, and that is definitely a notable feature of the mouthfeel. It rides the line between being lively/energetic and rich even a bit viscous. Long complex finish that is very enjoyable. This wine is still primary, feels like will improve for years to come.
I’m not very experienced in high quality white Rioja; there isn’t a lot out there, after all. My standard has been the Lopez de Heredia Reserva Tondonia Blanco (GR is a bit too rich for my blood) and that is an entirely different beast than this. The LdH is wild, oxidative, wholly unique. This is much more restrained, not oxidative in the least, and to me, tastes very much like a top quality Cote de Beaune white Burgundy. The wine looks the part too, with its Burgundy bottle shape and the separate small vintage label on the neck.
This wine and the LdH Blanco are the bookends of the quality white Rioja spectrum. I wish there were more examples of this category out there. Wonderful.
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6/23/2022 - Luxembourg_Vin Likes this wine: 98 Points
One of my favorite wines of all time. The best of great white Rhône and Burgundy, infitely complex, creamy with nice acid and fruit. Bravo, Telmo!
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5/21/2022 - G.O. wrote: 91 Points
Yes, quite complex, and no, there is no creaminess spotted. For the price I expected more.
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1/26/2022 - Nate Dauphin Likes this wine: 95 Points
Beautifuly balanced, round and creamy, yet subtle and complex. This reminds my of the white wines from Burgundy although the varietals are very different. There is a minerality and terror present in this wine that leads me to think we have a long way to go. Drinking great at the moment, however feel it will improve for 3-5 more years and live on the plateau for at least decade.
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12/24/2021 - matrix_yz Likes this wine: 93 Points
I had this for Christmas dinner, opened it around noon. Aerated it for 15 mins and poured it back into the bottle. Drank it app 7 hours later. When I first opened it, it smelled smoky and complex, but closed. In the evening, the smokiness and complexity vanished in favor of tropical fruit. Both was good, but I wonder whether I wouldn’t have liked it even better with less air! It tasted younger and less complex in the evening than it smelled straight after opening it. My best guess would be that this should be drunk either immediately after opening (to get that smoky flavor that makes it interesting) or after many more years (5-10) in the cellar.
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12/20/2021 - Buckbuckbam wrote:
N/A
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12/5/2020 - _Mike_Wine_ wrote: 90 Points
DWO – Najlepsze wina wg Fermentu – klasyki (On-line): Pale white color with a yellow haze. Initially sweet nose full of melon, lemon curd. High acidity but also some sweet fruit flavours. Full body and enjoyable
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