| 91 |
Wine Review Online |
This is undoubtedly one of the strongest values I’ve tasted this year, and is quite possibly the single best red wine during 2021 I’ve tasted for fewer than $20. I base that not only on its sheer deliciousness for current enjoyment but also its capacity for further development, and above all on its combination of those two virtues — a combination of virtues usually found only in notably more expensive wines. This is meaty, muscular Tempranillo (with little dashes of 2 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and 1 percent Merlot), and though you will agree immediately with my descriptors when you taste the wine, it really isn’t heavy despite its muscularity and intensity of flavor. Dark cherry and blackberry fruit is in the driver’s seat, with spicy backnotes and some savory accents and plenty of fine-grained tannin that is outrun by the fruit in the wine’s finish. There’s almost no sensory sign of oak, except for the softening effect of oxygen exchange from used barrels — and skillful racking between them during the wine’s élevage to soften it and render it so expressive for current enjoyment only 19 months or so after the fruit was picked.
Michael Franz – May 18, 2021 |
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| 90+ |
View from the Cellar |
There is a very slight change in the cépages of the Arrocal Tinto in 2019, as for the first time in my knowledge, this bottling includes two percent cabernet sauvignon and one percent merlot to go along with its tempranillo. These are thirty year-old, organically-farmed vines and the wine is fermented with indigenous yeasts. Since the 2016 vintage, this wine has been raised entirely in used barrels, of which eighty percent are French and twenty percent American oak. The 2019 Arrocal comes in listed at 14.5 percent octane and offers up lovely precision in its bouquet of plums, black cherries, cigar wrapper, a good base of soil, a hint of violet and a nice framing of smoky oak scents. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and nicely transparent for a 2019, with a fine core of fruit, ripe, buried tannins and fine length and grip on the balanced and nascently complex finish. This is a lovely wine in the making and quite light on its feet for the vintage. It is an outstanding value! 2025-2055.
John Gilman - Issue #91 / February 2021 |
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| 90 |
Vinous Media |
Deep violet. Spice-accented cherry and blackberry aromas, along with hints of licorice and vanilla. Pliant and lively on the palate, offering juicy dark fruit and mocha flavors that spread out slowly with air. Closes
smooth and long, with a touch of smokiness and discreet tannins. 2023-2028.
Josh Raynolds – July 6, 2021 Central Spain Additions |
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| 89 |
Wine Enthusiast |
Deep ruby to the eye, this wine has aromas of fruits of the wood, clove and hillside brush. It is juicy at first sip with a burst of cranberry and then darker fruits like cassis and blackberry enter the scene. Licorice and menthol are also at play, set into soft tannins that fade into a floral finish.
M.D. - June/July 2022 |
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Arrocal Tinto Fino 
