95 points, Decanter

Made by the former winemaker of the famous Vega-Sicilia, Spain's most famous red, this is much in the mold of Vega and Alion, another wine that was made at Vega by Xavier Ausas, but with some of the changes he would have liked to have made there, using less oak, in particular. The 2019 has developed and is showing beautiful mature aromas and is smooth on the palate, yet it returns some youthfulness. It's lovely and rich yet so very drinkable. As Xavier says, 'Ribera del Duero can be strong and elegant. I don’t understand why it always has to be massive.' It has such finesse for a full wine.

#Tasting#

We wrote to the producers who were in Tim Atkin's 'top 8 Ribera del Duero producers to watch', thinking we'd choose a few to make a mixed case. By the end the tasting it was abundantly clear that this one, made by former winemaker of Spain's most revered and collected wine, Vega Sicilia (£400 for the current release), was a wine we had to jump on quick. The winemaker is Xavier Ausas who grew up in the area and was partly educated in France, where he now consults. I suppose it's a bit like when John Duval left Penfolds where he made Grange, Australia's most revered wine. He was only going to go on and make more amazing wines. Like John, Xavier knows the vineyards and grape growers intimately, and knows exactly where to turn to get the best. Also, like John, he answers his own emails. It was amazing to be in touch with the great man himself, who was handed the torch by another Vega Sicilia legend, Mariano Garcia, who was winemaker between 1968 and 1998.

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