VARIETIES:
Tempranillo peludo (100 %)
ORIGIN OF THE GRAPES:
Vineyard: Finca la Canoca, San Vicente de la Sonsierra, La Rioja; 18 Has (44.5 acres). Soils of calcareous clay. High density plantation on trellis. Organic fertilization. Exhaustive manual harvesting of perfectly mature clusters with good sanitary conditions; further selection made in the winery using a sorting table.
FERMENTATION:
10 days with two daily pump-overs. Traditional elaboration, 100% de-stemmed. Temperature control between 28 and 30º C (82 and 86º F).
MACERATION:
On the skins for 16 days. The first ten days, two daily pump-overs; after that, the frequency was reduced, finishing with a light pump-over every two days.
Barrel:
20 months in new Bordelaise barrels of French oak (90%) and American oak (10%) beginning in December 2005. Racking every four months. - Winery
** SOLD OUT **
(100% tempranillo peludo; aged for 20 months in new French and American oak): Bright purple. Heady, smoke- and spice-accented aromas of dark berries, incense, potpourri and vanilla. Round and seamless in the mouth, offering sweet blackberry and cassis flavors enlivened by a bracing note of minerality. Supple tannins give shape to the strikingly persistent finish, which leaves a sexy floral pastille note behind. - Josh Raynolds - Vinous 93 Points
The 2009 San Vicente is produced from selected Tempranillo Peludo grapes (literally “hairy Tempranillo,” a specific Tempranillo strain whose leaf has a hairy underside) from a south-facing 18-hectare vineyard planted on argilo-calcareous soil in San Vicente de la Sonsierra in Rioja Alta in 1985. The destemmed grapes are fermented in inox vats with pumping-over, malolactic and 19-month aging in new oak barrels, 90% of which are French and the remaining 10% American. 2009 is a serious vintage for San Vicente, which is starting to develop tertiary complex aromas with touches of smoke, spices and leather under a bright ripe black and red fruit aromas and a mineral feeling. The medium-bodied palate is balanced, with grainy tannins and a well-composed finish. 60,000 bottles were filled in June 2011. Drink 2015-2026. - Robert Parker 92 Points
Supple and lively, this red delivers focused cherry, cocoa, tobacco and mineral flavors, with light, well-integrated tannins and vibrant acidity. Expressive. Drink now through 2016. 1,000 cases made. –TM - Wine Spectator Magazine 90 Points