Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2023 i Decanter

■ Hardcore Burgundy fans queued outside Norway’s state alcohol retailer Vinmonopolet in Oslo more than two weeks before its February release of top cuvées, including Domaine de la Romanée-Conti wines. Six people were queuing by 26 January, said Arnt Egil Nordlien, Vinmonopolet senior product manager fine wine and auctions. ‘ There are facilities available close by (toilets, showers, food) and they all know who is number one to six in the queue.’ ■ Liquid Icons, a company founded by the late Gerard Basset OBE MW MS and his friend Lewis Chester, has launched the 2023 Taylor’s Port Golden Vines Diversity Scholarships in Wine, which it said are designed to help ‘aspiring black and ethnic minority students (BAME/BIPOC) wishing to undertake the Master of Wine and Master Sommelier programmes’. A scholarship…

All southern appellations suffered the same widespread frost as the north in 2021. AP Vacqueyras president Jacky Bernard (who sadly died in early January 2023) said that at least 80% of the appellation was hit by frost. But he and others witnessed a strange phenomenon throughout the region: some plots were decimated but others alongside were barely touched. Nonetheless, even vines not directly hit by frost seemed stunned by the intense cold. For those vines that eventually recovered, it meant a late start to the growing season, and ripeness was difficult to achieve. Many producers, such as Vincent Avril of Clos des Papes in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, suffered reduced yields – he said temperatures dropped to -4°C here, but ‘what was mad is that it was 19°C that afternoon, and [had been]…

Sinceits first vintage release in 1999, Orin Swift Cellars has left an indelible mark on the US wine industry. Founder Dave Swift Phinney made headlines in 2010 for selling (see below) his most famous creation The Prisoner, which has inspired a host of imitators. Time has proven Phinney’s versatility. In 2016, E&J Gallo bought Orin Swift Cellars’ domestic brands and retained Phinney, who continues to turn out hypnotic labels and modern, stylish wines that consumers can’t seem to get enough of. Simply put, Dave Phinney has drawn wine drinkers in with his artistically avant-garde labels. His most famous creation is The Prisoner red blend, which bears a phantasmagoric label of a shackled prisoner. There are other bewildering facings, such as the formidable female protagonist on Machete, who is wielding, what…

Discover Japanese whisky Top Japanese whisky producer Nikka has launched two new expressions. Part of its innovative Discovery series, the new limited-edition bottlings explore the effect of precise yeast strains on Nikka’s classic Yoichi and Miyagikyo single malts. Inspired by the flavours and aromas of sake, Yoichi Single Malt Aromatic Yeast (Alc 48%) is a more floral, aromatic take on the distinctive peated-yet-fruity Yoichi Single Malt. Garden flowers, citrus, melon and pineapple aromas, with injections of mint and Band Aids. The rich peated, earthy palate opens up into a more herbaceous character, with kiwi and barley sugar; spicy and salty finish, the subtle sweetness of white grapes balancing wafts of smoke. Miyagikyo Single Malt Aromatic Yeast (Alc 47%) is bright and lively. Like the original, it’s characterised by malted barley…

ntilthe late 1990s, Chenin Blanc was the workhorse of South Africa’s wine industry – the principal variety used for brandy distillation, as well as the base wine of most commercial bulk white blends. But over the past three decades the value of Chenin Blanc, in price and perception, has rocketed. Part of the grape’s popularity arose due to its chameleon-like ability to make almost any style of wine: from traditionalmethod Cap Classique sparklings to sweet botrytised dessert styles, and everything in between. Today, Chenin Blanc still constitutes 18.6% of the Cape’s vineyard plantings. In one of Decanter’s biggest-ever panel tastings, we tasted 223 cuvées from across South Africa. It was a fascinating three days of judging in which we were impressed by the quality and consistency of winemaking and breadth…

Case Paolin, Col Fondo Brut Nature, Asolo Prosecco Superiore, Veneto, Italy NV O £17 WoodWinters A bone-dry, focused, almost steely Col Fondo. Flavours of white grapefruit, lemon zest, crunchy pear and crystallised ginger make for a mouthfilling glass, fleshy and textural. Crunchy acid and florality balance the weight. Yum. IS Alc 12.5% Antech, Mademoiselle Marguerite Brut, Blanquette de Limoux, Languedoc, France NV £12.99 Majestic Delicate steely aromas lead onto a frothy palate that balances ripe yellow apple and nutty tones with a light waxy note. A fairly simple but individual fizz that ticks the midweek sparkler box. Made predominantly from local variety Mauzac. NE Alc 12% Mullineux, Kloof Street Old Vines Chenin Blanc, Swartland, South Africa 2020 £17.50 Quaff There’s a robust elegance here, poised but with a rustic edge.…

This vintage of Le Dôme shone when tasted by Decanter Premium editor and Bordeaux correspondent Georgina Hindle at the Decanter Fine Wine Encounter in London. ‘A riot of black and red fruit aromas on the nose, this smells lively and expressive,’ she wrote, giving the wine 96 points. ‘Generous and playful, yet this retains a seriousness in the precision and detail on show. A baby, but a pretty one with lots of potential.’ In short supply, the wine was £685 for 6x75cl in bond at Fine & Rare. Le Dôme opened a new winery in 2021, designed by Lord Foster’s architecture firm Foster & Partners.…

Inside a professional’s everyday life How did you get here? I grew up partly in France, where wine was a big part of the culture. In order to fund my undergraduate degree in English literature, I worked in editorial and translation, but I knew I wanted to work in retail buying, hoping my career and my passion for wine would eventually go hand in hand. I worked my way up from a sales assistant at Marks & Spencer to a trainee range merchandiser in clothing. I enrolled with WSET ’s London school to gain the relevant wine knowledge and to further train my palate. I remember thinking at the time, if nothing else, wine knowledge is a life skill! Then I transferred to the M&S wine team and gained my…

When the story of modern Rioja is written, Alavesa will have an outsized role to play. The smallest of Rioja’s three production zones has been by far the most influential in shaping Rioja’s new, terroir-focused incarnation, and its small producers are among Rioja’s best and most passionate exponents of wine as an expression of land and place rather than time and oak. That it is also at the centre of an ongoing sub-plot with the potential to bring far more radical change to the region only adds to the sense that little Alavesa is the main character in Rioja’s 21st-century narrative. We should probably deal with that sub-plot first, since, somewhat ironically, it is how many wine-drinkers have come to understand that Rioja is not the culturally homogenous, single zone…

For almost two centuries, the Cañas family had been making wines to sell to négociants, but that all changed in 1970, when the ambitious Luis Cañas went against the prevailing local custom and wisdom, deciding to bottle wines under the family’s own name. The winery that still carries Luis Cañas’ name is now run by his son, Juan Luis Cañas, and it has played an enormous role in shaping Alavesa’s – and Rioja’s – modern incarnation. The company has some 350ha of vineyards spread across the Alavesa zone, and these are divided into a further 870 plots, all sustainably farmed by a large vineyard team. It’s a resource that the bodega uses to make some of Rioja’s most consistently good-value wines, with the winemaking focusing on cleanliness, ripe, healthy fruit,…

How low can red Rioja reserva and gran reserva go? A quick web search reveals that in price terms it’s down to £5.75 and £10 respectively. Just how can Spain’s first DOCa – created in 1991 – sell itself so cheaply? In fact, Rioja sells itself both cheaply and at high prices. So we wanted to know where to find the best intersection of value and quality in red Rioja. Where can you reliably find wines with typicity and individuality? We decided to look at £20-£40 – and this price band offered rich pickings, resulting in seven Outstanding wines. Producers were asked to send their own choice of available vintages. The result was a broad selection from crianza through reserva to venerable gran reservas, as well as ‘generics’. In this…

Matthew O’Connell, CEO of the LiveTrade platform at Bordeaux Index, reiterated his view that even top Rioja is of more interest to collectors than investors. ‘ There’s no doubt that they’re world-class wines, but you don’t really see parcels of this stuff traded in the market,’ he said. Despite evidence of prices rising as wines age, Rioja remains a relatively small player on the secondary market. Talking to Decanter back in December 2022, when he was managing editor at Liv-ex, a global marketplace for the trade, Rupert Millar said reasons may include wineries’ varying release schedules, or lack of market ‘hype’, as well as collectors primarily buying wines on release to cellar and drink. Yet ‘there’s every potential for Spain as a whole – and Rioja in particular – to…

AMANDA BARNES is a writer and presenter specialising in South American wine and travel. A DWWA judge, she is author of the award-winning The South America Wine Guide (£35 southamerica wineguide.com) ELAINE CHUKAN BROWN is a widely published and internationally awarded wine writer, speaker and educator. Originally from Alaska, they now live in Sonoma, and specialise in climate action and social justice in wine JONATHAN CRISTALDI is a widely published writer on wine, spirits and beer. Based in California, he is editor-at-large for both The Somm Journal and The Tasting Panel magazine, contributing to various other titles including Food & Wine GEORGINA HINDLE is Decanter’s Bordeaux correspondent, tasting and writing about the wines of the region where she lives, as well as editor of Decanter Premium, overseeing global fine wine…

1 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan 100 £115 (ib)-£170 The best 2020s seem to be confident without shouting too loudly and this Carmes does just that. Focused and precise, this is complex, vibrant with texture, making an impact straight away. Fresh black fruits, floral notes and sensational minerality – it has weight, density and structure, direction and persistence, building quickly then elongating with such clarity and purity. Cool, classic, sharp and decisive with a flawless texture. Whereas 2019 was more generous, this is more classic and easy to understand. Drink 2028-2048 Alc 13.5% Château Mouton Rothschild, Pauillac 1CC 100 £498 (ib)-£916.67 Dark fruits on the nose, blackcurrants and cherries with savoury nuances of dark chocolate and tobacco. Fresh and forward, this hits you square on, very lean and direct, almost…

1 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Château de Vaudieu, Les Vieilles Roussanne 99 £95.99 Liberty Wines Richly aromatic, with deep pear and a touch of yellow melon. Lightly honeyed on the nose, more noticeably so on the palate, sweet oak spice melding with sappy acidity. Powerful in flavour but with great focus, clarity and freshness; this has huge length, without any excessive body. Good now, will be better in time. Grown on limestone soils, aged in barriques, 50% of which are new. Just 2,700 bottles produced. Drink 2023-2040 Alcohol 14.9% 2 SOUTHERN RHONE WHITE WINE OF THE VINTAGE Domaine de Beaurenard, Boisrenard Blanc 99 £76 Tannico †Nectarine fruit inlaid with a touch of fresh coconut. Full-bodied, generous and rounded, without any excessive oak – it’s matured mostly in foudre and some old barriques. Perfectly…

1 Orin Swift, Burnt Sacrifice, California, USA 2020 95 POA The Great Wine Co Following the 2017 fires in California, Dave Phinney worked with Gallo to create Burnt Sacrifice in partnership with the Napa Valley Community Foundation. Ripe brandied cherry, grapefruit, clove, smoke and cedar. Round and soft with bright, juicy red-toned fruits, a deep mineral mid-palate, good acidity, and a long finish marked by Provence herbs. 100% Pinot Noir aged 12 months in 25% new French oak. Drink 2023-2036 Alcohol 15% Orin Swift, 8 Years in the Desert, California, USA 2021 94 £44 Banstead Vintners, Carruthers & Kent, Corking Wines, Harris & Co, Pacific Wines, The Great Wine Co, The Secret Bottle Shop, Vineyard Cellars Overflowing with ripe, dusty red berry fruit, vanilla-tinged, turning to blueberry and revealing dried…

O neof my very favourite times to be at Borough Market, on the south side of London Bridge, is first thing on a Saturday morning. That’s when the locals come to do their food shopping, armed with empty shopping bags that will be full to bursting when they finally leave the Market gates. It’s a scene replicated at food markets across the country and around the world: shoppers making the choice to swap the relentless beeps of a supermarket checkout for a trader’s big smile and perhaps a bit of banter, too. At a (Borough) Market stall you can pick up and squeeze or smell the fruits and vegetables; ask the fishmonger what is best that day; seek the butcher’s advice on the different cuts of meat you can see…

Meaning ‘late harvests’ (and often written in plural as several passes through the vineyard are required), vendanges tardives (VT) is a style of wine found throughout France, although Alsace is its spiritual home. Alsace is sheltered by the Vosges mountains, enjoying sunny summers and dry autumns. This allows grapes to ripen for longer, so they can be picked later, having dried on the vine, with increased sugar levels and often infected with botrytis. In Alsace, VT is a legally recognised category and the wines must fit specific criteria, such as having to be made from one of the region’s four ‘noble’ grapes – Riesling, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer or Muscat – each variety having its own minimum sugar level and potential alcohol. Additional restrictions include a minimum 18 months’ ageing, and…

Thiswas a successful tasting, perhaps surprisingly, with plenty of consistency and reliability on show, as well as clear vintage and stylistic signatures. ‘The quality is there and you can really see the importance of the vintage,’ said Vincenzo Arnese, who commented on the ‘solid average performance’ with ‘not too many high-scoring wines but also not too many low-scoring’. ‘It’s reassuring to see what is considered a low-price category performing well and offering such drinkability,’ he added. For Daphne Teremetz it was a ‘much better tasting than expected’ with ‘wines that have lots of approachability and are offering such pleasure now’. SEDUCTIVE CHARACTER Despite initially very challenging weather – a wet winter and spring with critical mildew pressure – the 2018 vintage in Bordeaux was highly successful thanks to the right…

Balfour, Hush Heath Estate Blanc de Blancs, Kent, England 2018 £45 Balfour Winery Only made in exceptional vintages, this is the third blanc de blancs release in the winery’s 21 years. Elegant, richly honeyed palate with small persistent bubbles, fresh acidity, lemon and lime, ripe pear and green apple, long and crisp finish. Lovely. JS Alc 12% Château Beauregard, Les Murgers, Pouilly-Fuissé, Burgundy, France 2020 £24 The Wine Society Suggesting there is still value to be found in Burgundy, delivering fleshy minerality, poised complexity and youthful freshness without breaking the bank. Lemon, pear and russet apple, hints of sweet spice and flint add nuance, with a refreshing, zesty lift. IS Alc 13% Ben Marx, Gertie Cabernet Franc, Clare Valley, South Australia 2021 £24.99 Nicholson’s Wines By day he makes…

LATOUR 2015 & YQUEM 2020 Two Bordeaux heavyweights are set to release new vintages. Château Latour 2015 is due on 14 March, said the Pauillacbased first growth estate. It will be the youngest Latour grand vin on the market. Château d’Yquem 2020 will also be released in March, said a spokesperson for the vaunted Sauternes property. HOSPICES DE NUITS-ST-GEORGES Burgundy’s ‘other’ Hospices wine auction is garnering plenty of attention at the moment. The 62nd Hospices de Nuits sale will focus on 2022-vintage wines and take place on Sunday 12 March at Château du Clos de Vougeot. The auction is open to all and will be live-streamed via interencheres.com, organisers said. ORNELLAIA 2020 & BIONDI-SANTI 2017 Ornellaia 2020, the latest vintage of this leading SuperTuscan wine, will be released on 1…

Fine wine & spirits specialist Bordeaux Index kindly sponsors this section of Decanter, and provides its view on the market here every issue. It can be found at bordeauxindex.com Bordeaux had a reasonably quiet year in 2022. While prices rose by a healthy 6%, clearly performance from other regions – including Burgundy, Champagne and Tuscany – was significantly better. Trading volumes on Bordeaux Index’s online trading platform LiveTrade were up more than 25%, so there was no lack of market activity. But there was perhaps no obvious catalyst for price momentum, with a somewhat muted en primeur campaign and then slow Asian trading at the end of the year due to strict China lockdowns.  This year we see more positive potential, with two key factors likely to drive prices: i)…

ALFARO Rioja Oriental Palacios Remondo is the winery of Alvaro Palacios’ family. Returning to Rioja, his aim was to recognise the quality of the Garnacha from the area, and to invest in grafting over the formerly fashionable Tempranillo of his father. The results are impressive. He is by no means the only producer in the area but has proved a beacon for international recognition of the long-ignored Rioja Oriental. BRIONES Rioja Alta The remarkable Vivanco Museum of Wine Culture is reason enough to stop off in Briones. But there is more: the wineries of Miguel Angel de Gregorio and the Merino family, as well as Vivanco’s own set-up. De Gregorio’s Finca Allende focuses on the pure expressions of Tempranillo and of Viura, reflecting the area’s gravelly, red clay soils. Miguel…

Sandra Bravo was born in Rioja, and her winemaking style was shaped by her initially peripatetic wine career, which took her to Bordeaux, California, Tuscany and, ultimately, back to Spain, where she put in a long stint working in Priorat. It was the Catalan region, with its radically terroir-driven approach based on small plots of old vines, often at high altitude and often in steep slopes that are difficult to farm, which seems to have played the biggest role in influencing her decision to set up shop high up on the foothills of the Sierra de Toloño on her return to Rioja in 2012. Since then, her ascent to the forefront of winemaking has been rapid, and entirely deserved. Her collection of Rioja Alavesa vineyards includes Terreseño, with its Garnacha…

Abel Mendoza and his partner in life and wine, Maite Fernández, have always stood somewhat apart from the Rioja mainstream. In part, it seems to be a matter of temperament: there’s little of the limelight-chasing that preoccupies some of their more ostensibly glamorous peers. Geography also has its say. From their base in San Vicente de la Sonsierra, the pair work organically with some 37 plots spread across 18ha on the left bank of the Ebro around San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Abalos and Labastida. These high-altitude plots are recognised as prime sites today; rather less so when the winery began in 1988. There is also the fact that white wine has always been a significant focus here. This is the place to come if you want to know what…

Serves 4 Preparation time 5 minutes Cooking time 10 minutes INGREDIENTS 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 225g small chestnut or button mushrooms, wiped, trimmed and thinly sliced 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped 20g butter 2 heaped tbsp finely chopped parsley salt, black pepper and a good pinch of sweet paprika 12 thin slices of baguette (about 1.5cm thick) METHOD 1. Heat a medium-sized frying pan, add the oil then tip in the mushrooms. Cook without stirring for 2-3 minutes then flip the mushrooms and continue cooking for a couple of minutes. 2. Add the chopped garlic and continue to cook for another 4-5 minutes, until any liquid is absorbed. Add the butter and parsley, heat through and season with salt, pepper and a good pinch of sweet paprika. 3.…

Wehad high expectations of this tasting. It is well known that great Rioja shows its full potential after extended ageing in the bottle, and 2004 and 2005 are both excellent vintages. The 2004 vintage is the more irregular of the two. It was the last late vintage (from the following year onwards all good vintages have been quite early, likely due to climate change), and some areas performed much better than others. Fruit selection and good vineyard siting were crucial factors, but those who worked well got top wines. The 2005 vintage was easier – practically perfect in terms of ripeness and grape health, with no botrytis. Yields and total quantities were similar for both vintages. You would therefore expect to see a higher number of 2005s at the top…

R iojacontinues to be one to watch on the fine wine market, even if opinions are mixed on its investment credentials. It is certainly no fine wine newcomer, but has been garnering more attention from collectors and drinkers, according to Georgina Crawley, business development associate director at merchant Goedhuis & Co. ‘I do think with the continuation of Burgundy and Bordeaux outpricing so many customers it’s a region that has started to shine and be noticed far, far more,’ she said. There is a particular opportunity for collectors and drinkers at the gran reserva level, she believes. Producers are helping to improve consumers’ understanding of terroir and vineyard sites, while merchants’ access to ex-cellar stock has increased in the past decade, she added. ‘It’s time to start looking more seriously…

It’s early days for Telmo Rodríguez’s Yjar, produced from a 3.8ha vineyard in Rioja Alavesa. In September 2021, its critically acclaimed debut 2017 vintage helped spearhead a new wave of Spanish wine releases via the Place de Bordeaux, with wines from the likes of CVNE and Marqués de Riscal debuting in 2022. Liv-ex data in December 2022 showed the price of Yjar 2017 up 18.7% since its UK release, at £924 (12x75cl in bond). Yjar 2018 was released in September 2022 at £1,140 (12x75cl in bond, Liv-ex). The wine ‘instantly sold out’, according to Goedhuis & Co, although it’s understood allocations were relatively small. …

Foundationalto the notion of terroir is the story of Burgundy. It is a relationship between Pinot Noir and the monks’ investment in defining place, identifying growing conditions in a complex tapestry of climat and cru that has inspired winemakers worldwide. Countless vintners have sought to replicate its magic elsewhere, planting Pinot around the globe. With it has developed an assertion almost unquestioned – Pinot Noir is the grape most expressive of terroir. But in wines grown outside the Côte d’Or, we rarely find the magic of eastern France. If we can learn a lesson from Burgundy, it’s that the world’s great wines cannot be replicated by relocating their vines. The newer region must build its own defining relationship between the grapes best suited to its conditions and those who invest…

A greatwine is like a great love,’ says DWWA joint Regional Chair for Spain, Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW, of the feeling he gets when discovering a Gold-medalworthy wine at the Decanter World Wine Awards. Ballesteros Torres explains the DWWA judges are looking for typical wine quality markers such as balance, concentration and finish, but there’s a heightened reaction to the standout wines in a blind-tasted flight: surprise, joy and curiosity. Spain saw a record number of wines evaluated at the 2022 competition, with an unprecedented number of Gold medals awarded. And it wasn’t just well-known regions such as Rioja, Priorat or Ribera del Duero receiving these top scores. From Txakoli de Bizkaia to Lanzarote, 26 wine-growing regions are represented in Spain’s Gold medal chart, with top-quality red wines at the…

There’sno denying it. Tequila is absolutely on fire right now. In fact, the spirit, which probably gave a great deal of us all our first proper hangover (it certainly caused mine), has well and truly become the super-premium drink of choice. That’s if the numbers coming out of the US – where at least 75% of all tequila sales occur – are to be believed. The NABCA (National Alcohol Beverage Control Association) provides a detailed analysis of the spirits market in the US – and is seen as the bellwether for the rest of the global industry. It reported a hugely positive set of results for the whole tequila category last year, which grew 10.5% in volume. Furthermore, sales by value were up 15.5%, demonstrating an even better state of…

The quality of the Loire valley’s Cabernet Francs has rocketed over recent decades, and this perpetual progress shows no sign of abating as producers continue to focus on creating terroir wines. Chinon, St-Nicolas de Bourgueil and Saumur-Champigny are standout appellations, capable of producing silkily textured wines that combine black and red fruits, framed by supple tannins and graced by that telltale leafy character. Native to Alto Aldige in northern Italy and possibly taking its name from the town of Val Lagarina in Trentino, Lagrein, like Cabernet Franc, can also often be enjoyed after a brief chill in the fridge. While rich, full-bodied offerings are available, the grape is arguably at its most appealing when turned into lighter, freshly fruited wines (think plum, cherry and raspberry), which often display a slightly bitter…

Celebrating 1252-2022 GEORGINA HINDLE Last year, Château Pape Clément, Grand Cru Classé de Graves, celebrated its 770th anniversary, now heading towards eight centuries of continuous wine production (the vineyard was planted in the 13th century by Bertrand de Got, who went on to become Pope Clement V). A special tasting was held in Paris last November to showcase the estate’s wines: 2009 and 2014-2020 inclusive in red, and 2015 and 2017 of the white. The jewel in Bernard Magrez’s ever-growing empire, purchased in 1980, has seen an incredible renaissance since the 2000s, but particularly following a refurbished vat room in 2007 and more recently the implementation of a new R&D team focusing on eliminating chemical inputs during vinification, anticipating the impacts of climate change, improving ploughing techniques and integrating robotics…

In a busy period for releases, Ribera del Duero winery Vega Sicilia has recently launched the 2013 vintage of its famous Unico red, while two highprofile Piedmont producers are to join La Place de Bordeaux in March. Priced at about £789 for three bottles in bond (Berry Bros & Rudd, Bordeaux Index), Unico 2013 was slightly more expensive than the 2012 vintage on Bordeaux Index’s LiveTrade platform, but cheaper than the 2010, 2009 and 2008 vintages. In other launch news, top Piedmont producers Giacomo Borgogno & Figli and Ceretto announced some of their wines will join La Place de Bordeaux in March. Borgogno said La Place will globally distribute (excluding Italy) its Barolo crus Cannubi Riserva (2009, 2011 and 2012 vintages) and Liste Riserva (2009, 2012 and 2014). Ceretto will release…

PEDRO BALLESTEROS TORRES MW is a widely published wine journalist, educator and judge. He is a member of the Gran Orden de Caballeros del Vino, and is on the governing board of the Spanish Tasters’ Union FIONA BECKETT is a contributing editor to Decanter. Publishing at matchingfoodandwine. com, she is a leading expert on food and drink matching. She writes a column for The Guardian and a Substack newsletter Eat This, Drink That AMAYA CERVERA is a freelance wine writer and journalist based in Madrid. Founder of the bilingual Spanish Wine Lover website, she writes mainly about Spanish wine, also contributing to other international and Spanish publications SARAH JANE EVANS MW is an awarded journalist, author and broadcaster, a DWWA Co-Chair, and chair of Spain’s Gran Orden de Caballeros del…

PHOTOGRAPH GEFOTOSTOCK/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO, DANIEL DEL CASTILLO (2) 1 Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 1946 100 The best white Rioja I have ever tasted. Still bright and not very intense, amber colour. Restrained nose, with notes of tea leaves, a hint of orange blossom, lemon peel, cedar, cloves and white pepper, floral and slightly pungent. It doesn’t show any sign of decadence. In the mouth it is pure elegance, with fresh acidity and a gentle expression that develops very slowly. I cannot imagine a better wine than this one. It would have been aged in barrel for many years, I assume about 10. Drink 2023-2046 Alcohol 12.8% Marqués de Riscal , RM (Reserva Médoc) 1895 100 If this wine were any younger it would still be perfect,…