Tempranillo

This is an excellent value in a mostly traditional Spanish wine from Rioja.  It is a blend of 70% Tempranillo and and 30% a combination of balance Garnacha, Mazuelo, and Graciano.  Deep ruby in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, blueberries, slight tobacco, cloves and slight dill.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this has an "old world" feel to it, but with plenty of ripe fruit too.  The blueberries and black cherries come thru over a bed of dusty dry leaves with a slight bit of savory spices.  Nice finish.  This drinks well on its own but really worked well with

This is a blend of 70% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacha, 10% Graciano, and 5% Manuelo from Spain.  It is a modern, delicious take on Rioja.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose has black raspberries, black cherries, espresso, and baking spices.  Full bodied.  Very nice texture. It has lots of black raspberries, some black cherries with underlying spice.  There is some warmth to it.  Drinking great now, it should drink well for another decade.  This drinks great on its own and will work great with heavier meat dishes.  Think steak or brisket.  

There are not a lot of Tempranillo's grown outside Spain and few in California, so it's always a pleasure to get to try one.  I suspect they have a small plot for this to experiment with and bottle it as a winery only release (just a guess).  It is 90% Tempranillo, 6% Malbec, and 1% Petit Verdot.  Ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cherries and baking spices with a bit of tea leaves and slight smoke.  On the palate, this is full bodied.  Bold cherry fruit with light tannins and underlying roasted herbs.  There is little acidity or depth making me wonder how this might age

This is one of the great wines of the world.  It is 100% Tempranillo (locally called Tinto Fino).  This particular bottle was a magnum!  Wow.  It is still quite young and probably could have used a 24 hour decant.  That said, it was gorgeous.  Purple in color.

This is a Tempranillo wine.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries,black cherries and baking spice.  Also some dustiness.  On the palate, this has a nice texture.  It is warm and dusty with black cherry fruit.  Some complexity.  Nice finish.  This will still get better but it is drinking well right now.  Another few years and it should be close to peak.  It will go well with roasts and grilled meats.  

This was quite popular at our Intowine.com tasting.  It is a young wine from Spain made from Tempranillo.  Ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose has black cherries, sea air and just a bit of woodiness.  On the palate, this has a nice balance.  Light with silky tannins.  The wine flutters on the palate.  Soft with black cherries and just a bit of anise. It is very tasty with some depth and complexity.  It won't get better than this and should be consumed in the next few years.  

This is a Spanish wine made from Tinto Fino which is the local name from Tempranillo.  It was good to try another bottle as the first was badly corked.  This was very nice if a bit young.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, black cherries, dust and cedar.  On the palate, this has medium tannins.  Bold cherry flavor with underlying char.  Good balance.  Nice finish.  It should continue to evolve for the next five years or so and be good for at least a decade after that.  It will go well with foods on the grill.  

This is one of three wines available in an aluminum bottle.  375ml.  It is also screw capped.  This is a very portable way to carry wine to picnics and other events.  It would be great by the pool or at the beach as well with no worries about broken glass or having an opener.  This is mostly Syrah and Tempranillo from the Edna Valley in California with some Zinfandel.  Salmon pink/orange in color.  The nose has very pretty strawberries.  Clean.  On the palate, the strawberries come thru along with some cherries and a bit of citrus.  There is also a pleasant tea like bitterness.  This is ver

Usually, I like to let Saxum's age more, but this one is 45% Zinfandel, so we popped the cork.  Good move.  Also it has 36% Mourvedre, 12% Tempranillo and 7% Petite Sirah.  Weighs in at just under 16% ABV.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is big with black cherries, plums, black raspberries, some earthiness and spice.  On the palate, there is no heat.  Juicy black cherries, and black raspberries.  Some underlying char.  Long finish.  This is delicious but will be a tough food match.  Maybe some BBQ with spicy sauce?  It will be interesting to see how this ages.  I suspect the Zin fades and

Moro is one of the top producers in Ribera del Duero.  This is their entry level red and is made from Tinto de Toro (a clone of Tempranillo).  It spends four months in oak before being bottled.  Purple/ruby in color.  Mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has cherries, dust and slight dill notes.  On the palate, this is very ripe fruit.  Very light tannins.  Mostly cherries, some sour cherries with some black licorice notes and spice especially on the finish.  This is made for immediate drinking and it is fine for that.  It will works with stews and foods without strong flavors.