Recent WSET Diploma graduate and Tanners Cellars Shop Manager Erica Littley, shares her love of the Ribera del Duero region.

Ribera del Duero DO is a somewhat undiscovered but captivating wine region, intertwining traditional practices, passionate people and an utterly unique growing environment which translates into world-class wines. If you haven’t yet discovered the gems on offer, then make no delay in seeking them out. Sleeping in the mountains of Castilla y León, about an hour and a half north of Madrid, acres of ancient bush vines spread over the high plateau forming a region in which more than a quarter of the vines are over fifty years old and with signi­ficant plantings even older than a century. Antiquity is palpable from vines of this age; broad, grey-black branches snarl around the freshest of leaves and bunches every summer, almost as though they are imparting their wisdom into the fruit. Don’t, however, be fooled into thinking this makes Ribera del Duero archaic and old-fashioned, the people who foster these vines understand their potential.

Jesús Madrazo, a world-famous, talented winemaker, who made his name in Rioja has latterly branched out, showing us how to really use the old vines of Ribera del Duero in his Selección wine. He sources the grapes for these fi­ne bottles from a vineyard called ‘el Abuelo’ translating as ‘the Grandfather’, including some 80-year-old Garnacha vines as well as Tempranillo. These vines have weathered many a severe mountain frost and have been baked almost to death in dozens of record-breaking summers; they have adapted to survive here in this challenging climate, high-up and inland. The vines’ best way to longevity is to save water by producing fewer grapes; deep root systems provide the berries with varied nutrients and the ability to produce concentrated flavour compounds. “Intense” just doesn’t cut it when describing wines like this! Jesús designs his flavour profi­les to make the most of the power afforded by the vines, fermenting the juice with wild yeasts and framing the fruit of the wine with large, old casks for 18 months. Aromas and flavours of red, black, blue and purple fruit, both fresh and preserved, provide the bass notes to graphite and rosemary’s woodwind and balsamic strings – conducted masterfully by satin tannins and mouthfeel – a work of art built to outlive the plants that created it.

Daughters Maria José and Carmen Basconcillos, inherited their particular love of wine and their surroundings from their father, farming their 50 ha of vines 1000m above sea level with great respect to their environment; fostering practices promoting biodiversity within the vines and showcasing a deep understanding of how this will create superior wines. Their Crianza is one of my personal favourite wines to drink; spending 12 months in new French oak barrels lends a clove and woodsmoke complexity to the dense core of ripe blackberry and Victoria plum. The family also produces an unoaked Tempranillo which almost tastes of bramble jelly and is a beautiful illustration of the effects of altitude on grapes. Light, not warmth, is the driver behind photosynthesis and excess heat can actually slow the process down and also lead to loss of acidity; cold nights paired with increased light intensity in the day at altitude, creates beautifully ripe grapes which have taken their time to gather complexity without losing their freshness. If you have ever tried Hebridean or Scandinavian strawberry, then you’ll understand the mind-blowing effect ripening time can have on flavour!

Another wine family we have fairly recently discovered is Abadía de Acón. This estate, too, is in the clouds, sitting 800m above sea level and boasting an impressive gravity-fed winery, lessening the environmental impact – they even go so far as to only spread manure from local sheep to avoid the introduction of foreign diseases and chemicals. José Antonio Carrasco Llorente, who is the firm head of the family, inherited vineyards planted by his father, Norberto, and looks after 48 ha of mostly Tempranillo, known as Tinto Fino in Ribera (whilst Cabernet Sauvignon is the interloper occupying 2.5 ha). The vines sit on complex layers of limestone, chalk and other calcium-based minerals mixed in with clay, which wouldn’t be able to sustain agriculture for any other crop but retain the perfect amount of water for grape vines, which in this arid, extreme climate is very important, especially when in most cases, watering the vines is forbidden. Their three wines, Roble Tempranillo, Crianza and Reserva showcase the different faces of Ribera del Duero. From the sweetly fruited, raspberry and strawberry delight that is the Roble, to the intense, broody showstopper in the Reserva. Cabernet Sauvignon supports the Tempranillo in this wine adding tannin and herbal lift, elevated by 18 months in new oak throwing liquorice, vanilla and toastiness into the mix. A superb wine fit to grace the finest of dinner tables!

I can’t help but draw parallels between Ribera del Duero and Mendoza, Argentina – with the altitude, the semidesert dryness and the rich, spicy, full-bodied wines the two produce. Given the massive success of Malbec from Mendoza in recent years, I also can’t help but expect the same from Ribera del Duero, as consumers grow tired of the same old thing and begin to look for pastures new. I wholeheartedly urge you to explore this region and begin to unearth some of these and other gems. Now is the time to Reach for Ribera…