The wine of the month
Fincas Valdemar, Gran Reserva, Edición Especial, 2015
5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP
September 2023: Fincas Valdemar, Gran Reserva, Edición Especial, 2015 (22 EUR/23 USD in Sweden) red dry blend wine, Rioja, Spain, 5,0 NJP of 5,0 NJP (100 points of 100 points) (2023-09-19 by Nenad Jelisic)
Wow! What a fantastic Rioja-wine. It is absolutely fabulous. One of the best that I have tasted so far. It is spicy and complex in the aroma, while it is austere and nuanced in the flavour. The aroma is characterized by coconut, milk chocolate, tobacco, vanilla, dried prunes, dried dark cherries and dill. The flavour is characterized by dried prunes, tobacco, dill, dark cherries and cocoa-rich dark chocolate. The aftertaste is long, dry, fresh and sweet spicy. The wine's prominent tannins, good acidity, good fruitiness and good concentration paves the way for a really good aging potential. Namely, regardless of the fact that Fincas Valdemar Gran Reserva Edición Especial 2015 is already 8 years old, it can undoubtedly be aged for at least another 7 years, i.e. until at least 2030. But the wine is very good to drink now.
The wine will go perfectly with boiled veal in dill sauce and boiled potatoes or creamy pasta (fresh) with bacon, basil, sun-dried tomatoes and small pieces of chicken thigh fillets or wiener schnitzel (veal) with fried potatoes, anchovy fillets and drained capers or elk mince steaks, roasted root vegetables and red wine sauce or Pizza á la Jelisic (Pizza Vesuvio with beef fillet, black olives, red onion and Parmesan cheese) or roasted lamb steaks with potato gratin and red wine sauce or Beef Wellington with Hasselback Potatoes and funnel chanterelle sauce or Boeuf Bourguignon with mashed potatoes. It should be drunk at 18°C from real Bordeaux glasses, if possible, from Orrefors, Kosta Boda, Spiegelau or Riedel. Another alternative is to serve it at 16°C (when room temperature is above 20°C or outdoor temperature is above 23°C) and then enjoy it as it starts to open/grow in the glass.
Fincas Valdemar Gran Reserva Edición Especial 2015 consists of 87% Tempranillo, 8% Garnacha, 3% Graciano and 2% Maturana. Rioja is divided into three sub-regions: Rioja Alavesa, Rioja Alta and Rioja Oriental. The grapes for this wine come from vineyards that is located in Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental. The soil in Rioja Alavesa consists of yellow calcareous clay, while in Rioja Oriental it consists of ferrous red clay and river sludge. The vines are over 50 years old. The grapes are picked and sorted by hand. The yield is low, 45 hectoliters per hectare. After very careful selections in both the vineyards and the winery, the grapes are destemmed. Then the grapes are crushed and their grape mass, which consists of crushed grapes and grape juice, is macerated for 10 days in stainless steel tanks. Directly after maceration, fermentation begins under a controlled temperature of around 28 degrees. The fermentation lasts about 14 days. Then the grape mass is gently pressed, and the wine is moved to 225 liters three years old American oak barrels, where it undergoes malolactic fermentation and is aged for a period of 29 months. Finally, the wine is bottled and aged for another 31 months before being released on the market. Note here, to be able to print Gran Reserva on the label in Rioja, a red wine needs to have been aged for at least 60 months, of which at least 24 months in barrel.
