2015 Palacios Remondo La Montesa Rioja Reserva Selección Especial

We could call Álvaro Palacios a wizard. Together with his cousin, he put Bierzo on the map and he makes beautiful wines in Priorat. However, his roots are in Rioja, where the Palacios Remondo family domain is located. The vines have an average age of 34 years. In addition to garnacha, there are some other grape varieties planted, about 5% is used in this wine. Álvaro Palacios has a penchant for wines that reflect the terroir. He makes such wines in Bierzo, in Priorat, and now also in Rioja. The fact that it is a crianza - two years of maturation of which one year in wood - is from After the picking, a strict selection takes place, only the best fruit goes to the fermentation vat. Fermentation takes place spontaneously in stainless steel tanks. The wine is then aged for 12 months in a mix of French and American oak. When his father died in 2000, he returned to take over the oenological management of the company. The Palacios Remondo vineyards are located in the eastern part of Rioja, where the garnacha grape generally thrives better. The result is a beautiful expression of garnacha with strawberries, forest fruits and sweet spices through the wood aging. La Montesa Selección Especial is the big brother of the La Montesa and is only made in the best years. minor. For Álvaro Palacios, the terroir is much more important and so it gets a place on the label: Monte Yerga. The vineyards are located on the foothills of the mountain, at an altitude of 550 meters above sea level.

The Reserva Selección Especial La Montesa has a beautiful ruby red color in the glass with the typical notes of aromatic Garnacha in the nose with lots of cherries and plums, somewhat floral and some sweet spices such as nutmeg, cedar, cinnamon due to the wood aging.
In the mouth the wine has good structure and concentration, with supple tannins and is clearly slightly fuller than its little brother de La Montesa. Dee Reserva has a nice balance between the ripe fruit and the sweet spices of the wood use. Delicious with manchego and jamon. Also delicious with albóndigas in tomato sauce.