Atlántida 2014 13.5%, Compañía de Vinos del Atlántico

Appearance

Bright deep blacky ruby red, still with some pink at the rim.
Nose
Very attractive with lots of perfectly ripe - but not overripe - fruit. There is a distinct and very slightly yeasty, almost creamy, aroma of sappy black cherry with a hint of loganberry backed up by restrained hints of toasty French oak. There is a faint balsamic hint which is all that gives away the heat of the vineyard - even the alcohol is restrained.
Palate
The almost crisp sappy black fruits predominate while gentle notes of oak and a certain minerality add complexity and freshness. The structure is medium with unaggressive tannins and perfect acidity giving very good, almost zippy balance and long tangy fruity finish. This wine is delicious and would repay keeping for up to five years.
Comments

The Compañía de Vinos del Atlántico produces and distributes fine quality wines all over Spain and Portugal, and also exports them. This is one of their best, made by Alberto Orte from 100% old vine Tintilla grapes grown organically on albariza soil in a single 1 hectare vineyard in the pago Balbaina. The bunches of grapes are harvested at night, by hand, and only 10% are de-stemmed. During fermentation there are two daily pump-overs and afterwards the wine is pressed and put into used 500 litre French oak barrels where it remains for a year, going through the malo-lactic and depositing sediment before being racked into used 225 litre barriques where it ages for 16 months before bottling. The result is superb and shows what a great grape the Tintilla is.

Price

25 euros, Er Guerrita

Alhocen Chardonnay 2015 13.5%, Miguel Domecq

Appearance

Pale gold with bright golden glints.

Nose

Big, soft and nicely balanced between French oak and ripe Chardonnay. Lots of fruity notes like banana and paraguayo then vanilla custard, butter and slightly toasty spice notes from the oak, but there is a refreshing hint of zippiness as well.

Palate

Again, big and soft, plump, those banana and vanilla notes carry through, but while there is no shortage of that fat clean oaky Chardonnay flavour, acidity is low and the wine lacks bite. Perhaps the grapes could have been picked a little earlier. Still, it has good length and is very honestly made.

Comments

This is the more upmarket version of the Entrechuelos Chardonnay (QV). The grapes were grown at Domecq's own Cortijo de Torrecera vineyard next to the bodega and were night harvested at cooler temperatures. This reduces the risk of fermentation starting to soon, especially useful for white wines as it preserves delicate aromas. They were then carefully selected and pressed. Fermentation took place in new low-toast French oak barrels, and the wine was aged in them on its lees for four months. After bottling, it was aged a further three months before sale. That means it now has over a year in bottle, the perfect time to taste it.

Price
10.50 euros, Licores Corredera

Vinos de la Tierra de Cádiz

For millennia the province of Cádiz has produced wine of high quality, but only Sherry has ever received a Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP), the first in Spain. On the 29th April 2005 the Junta de Andalucía officially conceded the Indicación Geográfica Protegida (IGP) “Vinos de la Tierra de Cádiz” though it took till 2011 to be implemented because of all the EU bureaucracy. IGP is the European quality category just below DOP and it is hoped that Cádiz can soon be elevated to the top rung. The production zone includes the Sherry vineyards as well as Arcos, Setenil, Prado del Rey, Puerto Real, Rota, Trebujena, Olvera, Villamartín, Bornos and San José del Valle. Wines produced can be red, white and rosé, yet oddly sparkling wines are not covered. All wines must be bottled in the area. Cádiz is one of 16 IGPs in Andalucía with 18 affiliated bodegas.

Of the 22 authorised grape varieties, the whites include Palomino, Pedro Ximénez, Moscatel, Chardonnay, Macabeo, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Verdejo and thankfully some of those local varieties in danger of disappearing: Mantua, Garrido Fino and Perruno. The reds are Tempranillo, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha Tinta, Monastrell, Merlot, Tintilla de Rota, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Mollar Cano and Graciano.

In its little more than ten years of existence the VT Cádiz has produced some seriously good wines, and according to the Association of the IGP Tierra de Cádiz - which will become a Consejo Regulador if the VT is promoted to DOP - is now turning over more than 60,000 hectolitres and 15 million euros annually. It currently works to rules laid down by the Junta de Andalucía.

The Association, whose president, Veronica Perez, qhality control director at Barbadillo, is keen to preserve and revive grape varieties which were nearly lost because of Phylloxera. They would also like to add Algodonales to the production zone and Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir to the permitted varieties, but that means an application to Europe. Meanwhile they are working on an official website. If Sherry is included, the province of Cádiz is the largest producer of wine in the eight provinces of Andalucía with over 38% of production, and the largest exporter.

For details of the wines and producers see the post The Table Wines of Cádiz