Tag Archives: Garnacha

Mourvedre Monday #8: Castaño Monastrell 2007 Rosado

A recent post over at Benito’s Wine Reviews got me thinking about rosé. I need a reminder every once in a while. Almost every time I drink one, I think, “Why don’t I drink this more often?” Then I go back to my reds and whites. So, as I was contemplating what to pull from the cellar for this week’s Mourvedre Monday post, I thought of this rosé (or, more properly, rosado – though they use the term rosé on the back label). I’ve been on the hunt for the red Monastrell from Castaño, which has been recommended to me by several folks following Mourvedre Mondays. I haven’t found it yet in my local shops, but I did come across their rosé, which is how this ended up in my cellar to begin with. I haven’t done a rosé yet in this series, so it seemed like good timing. Let’s check it out.

Producer: Bodegas Castaño – a major producer in Yecla, owning about 10% of the vineyard land in the DO

Grapes: 90% Monastrell, 10% Garnacha

Appellation: Yecla (DO, Spain)

Vineyards: Limestone soils. 25-30 year old vines.

Vintage: 2007

Winemaking: Stainless steel aging (based on 08 info; no info on website about 07)

Alcohol: 13%

Price: Around $10

My tasting notes: The color is quite red for a nominally pink wine. Kinda like the color of red wine in TV sitcoms. (You ever notice that?) It smells like it’s going to be a sweet wine — kind of a burnt sugary thing — but with some good juicy strawberry and raspberry aromas. Also some Slim Jim on the nose (Oh Yeeeeah!). Good weight in the mouth and some strawberry and apple skin notes, but some slightly oxidized flavors as well. Pretty awkward overall.

Overall impression: Not an especially pleasurable beverage. You can do way better than this. C-

Free association: The kind of rosé an undiscerning Stormtrooper might order.

Photo credit: Greg Easton Photography (via Flickr). Be sure to check out the whole Adventures in Stormtrooping series and his other toy collections (prepare to lose an hour or two of your life!).

More info:

Imported by Eric Solomon.

Reviews at CellarTracker (avg: 81) and another at Chicago Vines Society, who liked it more than me.

Can Blau 2007 Montsant

CanBlau07_snapshotOkay, maybe you’re getting tired of me posting about Montsant, but I’m going to keep trying them as long as they keep impressing me. Let’s check this one out.

Producer: Cellers Can Blau.  (This wine also bears the label of Jorge Ordoñez Selection, though Tempranillo Inc. is listed as the importer.)

Grapes: 40% Mazuela, 40% Syrah, 20% Garnacha. (Mazuela is a synonym for Carignan, which I was unaware of until researching this post.)

Appellation: D. O. Montsant (Spain)

Vineyards: The Mazuelo was planted in sandy clay, the Syrah in chalky soils and the Garnacha on slate, known as llicorella [from the label]

Winemaking/aging: no info

Alcohol: 14%

Packaging: Beautiful diamond pattern on the label. Looks like an inlaid marble floor you’d see in a palace or something. Real cork closure.

Price: $14

My tasting notes: Nice dark color. Cedar, beef jerky and blueberry on the nose, with some of the alcohol showing through. On the palate, this wine has an inky, dry, slightly stemmy core laced with ripe mixed berry fruit that disappears quickly. Finishes very dry and tannic. This wine throws quite a bit of sediment as well. (It got a bit rounder and more balanced on day two, so I’d recommend decanting this one for a few hours.)

Overall assessment: Interesting how this blend comes together, you get the tannic backbone of the Mazuelo/Carignan, the cedar and meatiness from the Syrah and the Garnacha delivers some fleshy fruit (though not enough, I think). At least that how I imagine the components working together. In the end though, I didn’t find this as satisfying as I’d like. The hollowness of the mid-palette left me hanging, wanting more depth. B-/C+

Free association: The name Can Blau makes me think of this song from Bob Schneider called Blauu.

More info:

Apparently most people liked this wine more than I did, so maybe you will too. It makes me question myself when I see so many gushing reviews of a wine I think is good but not special. But, hey, I gotta call ’em like I see ’em.

Stephen Tanzer gave it 91 pts and Robert Parker gave it 90 pts.

Other blogger reviews at Serge the Concierge, The Rhone Report, and BlogRoom.

More tasting notes at Corkd and Snooth. More people on CellarTracker shared my thoughts on the hollowness of the wine.

Montsant: My New Favorite Spanish Appellation

After really enjoying the last Montsant wine I tried, I have been on the lookout for more. I saw this one for about $11 and had to give it a try.

Falset 2006 Montsant

Falset06_snapshot2Producer: Falset Marçà

Grapes: 50% Garnacha, 30% Cariñena, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon

Appellation: Montsant (D.O., Spain)

MontsantDO

Vineyards: Vineyards are at 1240 feet with soils of slate, granite, sand, limestone and clay.

Winemaking/aging: Aged in stainless steel.

Alcohol: 13.5%

Package: A rather plain label, but I like that they use the D.O. Montsant logo on the front (appellation pride – woot!)

Price: $10.95

My tasting notes: Not the deepest color. Nose is very mineral-driven: iron and rock dust. Blackberries, too. Cherries, plums and more blackberries on the palate, which manages to feel rich while maintaining a strong core of minerality and acid.

Overall assessment: A very nice, complex, balanced wine. Like the last Montsant wine I reviewed, I love the minerality and complexity you get for a very reasonable price. B

Free association:

ironman_no1

More info: The importer’s winery profile.

Montsant = Poor Man’s Priorat

Capcanes Mas Donis Barrica 2005 Montsant

MasDonis2005_bottleEven though I try not to be a score-shopper (“90+ only, please!”), it’s hard to pass up a 91-pointer for under $12 from an up-and-coming appellation: Montsant. It’s a relatively new Spanish D.O., formerly a sub-region within the Tarragona D.O. It essentially surrounds the Priorat D.O., which is home to many high-dollar cult wines. Like Priorat, Montsant is planted mostly to Garnacha (Grenache) and Cariñena (Carignane). Let’s check it out.

Producer: Celler de Capçanes

Grapes: 85% Garnacha, 15% Syrah

Appellation: Montsant (D.O., Spain)

MontsantDO

Vintage: 2005

Vineyards: 80+ year old Garnacha vines and  30+ year old Syrah vines

Aging: 8-9 months in new and old French and American oak “barricas”

Alcohol: 14%

Price: I paid $11.60 at Spec’s in Austin

My tasting notes: This wine brings a lot to the table aromatically.  There are berries at the core, but draped with layers of violets, clove, cedar, tar, Swiss Miss hot chocolate powder. I even caught a kind of a swampy smell. In the mouth, it’s pretty rich with jammy berries and spices, and a pleasant minerality. It gets a little hot & prickly at the end, but not too bad.

Assessment/score:  Very interesting wine for the price. It could easily pass for a $20-25 bottle, I think. Worth seeking out. B

Free association:

SM_Curved-v2

Robert Parker has given this wine 90+ points in several of the last 5 or 6 vintages. Here are his notes on this 2005:

“It offers up an expressive nose of slate, mineral, licorice, violets, black cherry, and blueberry. Layered, long, and complex, this spicy, hedonistic effort has 2-3 years of aging potential but can be enjoyed now without guilt. It is a great value.”

Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate
91 Points