Abadia Retuerta Le Domaine, Sardon de Duero, Spain

天使之堤莊園白葡萄酒

點擊次數(shù)：7016

The white 2021 Le Domaine is certified organic starting with this vintage, when it was produced with a blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Verdejo that was fermented in stainless steel and finished in barrel where it was kept with the lees for seven months. It has 13.5% alcohol and a pH of 3.22 and is a tad riper than the 2020 but keeps very good freshness and acidity. It's still very young and undeveloped, serious, with citrus notes of grapefruit; it's dry and supple, with very good length and should develop nicely in bottle. 35,624 bottles produced. It was bottled in June 2022.

The one white produced at the property is the 2020 Le Domaine, a blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Verdejo with a low pH denoting freshness and a cool year. It matured in French oak barrels, 20% of them new, for seven and a half months, during which time the lees were stirred every two days for the first three weeks. It has a beautiful and developed nose that is smoky, flinty and leesy, with notes of white flowers, developing more complexity. It's round and fleshy, serious, dry and very tasty, almost salty in the finish. 33,580 bottles were filled in June 2021. These whites are developing nicely in bottle.

The white 2019 Le Domaine is mostly Sauvignon Blanc, with 30% Verdejo, and comes from a warm year (not as warm as 2017) when Sauvignon Blanc achieved perfect ripeness. The wine has good ripeness, 13.5% alcohol, very good freshness, a subtle nose that is not that varietal (as it's often the case) and a soft palate with great balance and purity. It finishes with a faint bitter touch. The oak is neatly integrated. 32,095 bottles produced. It was bottled in May 2020 after six months in barrel.

The 2018 Le Domaine is no longer the only white in the portfolio, as it's now joined by a Godello-dominated cuvée that will carry the historical name of Cuvée Palomar. They have been making whites for 21 years, first in an experimental way and commercially since 2011. This is mostly Sauvignon Blanc, but from 2008, they started regrafting other white varieties like Verdejo or Godello that could add complexity to the blend, and there is a higher percentage of these other grapes in the blend, as the vines become more balanced. 2018 was unusually cold and wet, and they started harvesting the white grapes on September 20th and finished harvesting the last red grapes on October 25th. The grapes achieved very good ripeness, and the wines have good freshness and a gentle structure, as can be seen here, where the fermentation and aging in oak didn't mark the wine that much. There is almost 20% Verdejo here, and the varietal aromas and classical bitterness in the finish were more noticeable than in previous years. This has balance and freshness to develop nicely in bottle. 22,903 bottles and 785 magnums produced. It was bottled in May 2019.

The hidden treasure here is the almost unknown white, of which I tasted the 2017 Le Domaine, a barrel-fermented blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc with some 20% of Verdejo, Godello and other white varieties. It has Loire-like freshness; all the varieties fermented together, and the Verdejo adds some acidity, as it's pruned to be able to harvest it early. This has a smoky touch, with great elegance and restrain. They think of this as a white to lay down, one with potential to develop further complexity. It has subtle notes of white peach and flowers as well as good ripeness and fills your palate while keeping its poise. Very tasty. 17,500 bottles and 300 magnums were filled in May 2018, yet it feels harmonious. Remarkably fresh and balanced for a warm year.