The 2008 MT is a pure Mauraton, a grape variety that has not been planted in the region since around the 1940s and was only permitted in the last four years. This is only the second occasion that it has been released. It has a reserved, mineral-laden but austere bouquet veiled in “coolness.” It is beautifully defined: hints of black cherry, bay leaf and granite. The palate is medium-bodied with a superb opening of supple black fruits, hints of cassis and a little juniper. The bottle age has tempered those firm tannins but you can still tell that this wine has a firm backbone, while the finish has a satisfying symmetry. Excellent. Drink now-2019.
Occasionally you have to journey to remote areas in order to reach some of Spain’s finest producers, but the long drive to Dominio do Bibei to meet winemaker Javier Dominguez and his team was certainly worth it. Though winemaking in this part of Ribeira Sacra dates back centuries, the winery is unapologetically modern in design, as each disconnected building dedicated to one part of the vinification process cascades down the gorge. The vines occupy steep loam and clay terraces over granite and slate bedrock that are low in organic material, located between 300 and 670 meters in altitude. Javier came across as a deeply philosophical person with strong tenets about his wines, which exuded great purity and varietal expression, almost Burgundy-like in their tannin profile, but with a little more fruit intensity. What I enjoyed was their precision and symmetry – wines that demand concentration before sitting back and simply enjoying them.
Importer: De Maison Selections (USA); www.demaisonselections.com; and Carte Blanche (UK)
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