2017 Pujanza Rioja Blanco S. J. Anteportalatina

Community Tasting Notes (1) Avg Score: 89 points

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  7/16/2021 - forceberry wrote: 89 Points

  A single-vineyard Viura from Finca San Juan de Anteportalatina, a vineyard planted in 1989 in Laguardia, La Rioja. The wines are first fermented in stainless steel, then moved into 225-liter French oak barriques and 500-liter demi-muids to finish fermentation. Aged for 12 months in barriques and demi-muids. 13% alcohol. Bottle #1184 of total 1810 bottles. Tasted blind.
  
  Pale lemon-yellow color. Sweet, waxy nose with juicy aromas of varnish, ripe yellow apples, some butterscotch, a little bit of cantaloupe, light creamy oak tones and a hint of savory wood spice. The wine is broad, full-bodied and slightly evolved with juicy, nuanced flavors of cantaloupe and fresh golden apple, some nutty tones, a little bit of smoky, toasty character, light creamy notes of oak, a hint of tangy salinity and a touch of oatmeal. There seems to be a hint of mineral bitterness, getting slightly boosted by the nuances of woody spice. The medium-to-moderately high acidity keeps the wine somewhat balanced, but the overall feel is nevertheless a bit on the soft and sweetish side. The long finish is ripe and slightly spicy with intense flavors of creamy oak tones, some nutty notes, a little bit of spicy red apple, light fruity nuances of cantaloupe, a tangy hint of saline minerality and a touch of toasty oak spice.
  
  A quite big and ripe but also pretty harmonious and tasty single-vineyard Rioja Blanco. Shows a bit evolution, but is nevertheless on the youthful, vibrant side still, so I could imagine the wine could improve for some years more - if the somewhat modest acidity only permits. Although the wine showed quite obvious oak influence, it wasn't particularly oaky at any point - the oakier nuances coming across as creamy and vaguely spicy. However, pinpointing this wine to Rioja was still almost impossible, as it really didn't remind me of any of the styles of Rioja Blanco I know: it wasn't as complex and oxidative as Heredia's whites or Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva; it wasn't a light, mineral and zippy steel-tank aged Viura; and it wasn't a toasty, modern, boldly oaked Rioja white either. Guesses ranged from South African Chenin Blancs to Portuguese whites, but nobody really thought of Rioja. Catalan whites were probably the closest call. All in all, a good wine, but not perhaps the most representative of the region, slightly lacking in acidity and quite pricey for the style at 55€.

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