Artadi - Rioja DOC - Viña El Pison - Rouge - 2019

Wine:

A prodigy of this mature, accomplished vintage, the 2019 Red Rioja DOC is once again at the top of its class. Black fruits, spices and dried herbs mingle in a framework of great stature, both creamy and firm, carried by tannins of great finesse. A great wine, long and complex, both pure and persistent, elegant and powerful. The quintessence! Rated 98/100 by Parker.

Vinification:

Hand harvested, aged for 9 months in French oak barrels.

Color:

Deep cherry red.

Nose:

Aromas of wild berries, fennel, spices, licorice and a touch of creaminess.

Palate:

Complex and dynamic, this wine is pure, precise and long-lasting, with delicate tannins supported by elegant, powerful and subtle juice.

Temperature:

Serve between 16 and 18°C.

Food and wine pairing:

Grilled meats, beautiful pieces of roasted red meat, just-seared Wagyu steak.

Cellar aging:

From now until 2049.

Robert Parker is adamant! For him, Artadi produces "one of the greatest wines in Spain and the world". The 80-hectare estate in the Basque part of Rioja Alevasa, known as Alava, is one of the very few bodegas to have been awarded the maximum score of 100/100 several times.

This veritable Spanish institution produces some of the most highly-rated wines in the world, with unrivalled breed and finesse. This legendary quality is the work of one of Spain's most brilliant and creative visionaries: Juan Carlos Lopez de Lacalle.

His cult wine, Vina El Pison, was born on the vineyard's most spectacular eponymous plot. It was here, in 1945, that grandfather Jenaro San Pedro Carrera planted 2.4 hectares of tempranillo vines. The old flax mill that once occupied the site has disappeared (pison refers to the hammer that crushes the flax), but in its memory remains this extraordinary wine, with tannins coated with the precision of just-ripe fruit, as Juan Carlos Lopez is so fond of.