"Among the oldest of many wine cliché’s is that Rosés don’t age well . . . " Josh Raynolds, Vinous Media, June 2017.

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I have some incredible rosados, though, except for the wonderful Viña Catajarros Elite Cigales Rosado 2014 and Viña Aliaga Lágrima de Luna Rosado 2015, most of our rosados with bottle age have been sold to hip places such as Jockey Hollow Kitchen & Bar (Morristown, NJ), Barcelona Wine Bars in Connecticut and Ortzi (NYC). 

Please inquire at gerrydawes@spanishartisanwine.com.

Wine Legend Brooklyn
September 18 at 4:20pm ·

Article sent from Jeffrey Davis, Wine Legend Brooklyn GM, who is doing very well selling
Viña Catajarros Elite Cigales Rosado 2014.

 Photo by Raizel T. on Yelp.

Though these comments by Josh Raynolds of Vinous Media are from this past June; he comments are spot on!  The Spanish Artisan Wine & Spirits Group - Gerry Dawes Selections has some incredible Roses, including Viña Catajarros Elite Cigales Rosado 2014, which we are selling in the store and at the bar!

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BY JOSH RAYNOLDS Vinous Media | JUNE 27, 2017

"Among the oldest of many wine cliché’s is that Rosés don’t age well and, like seersucker suits, are out of style after the Labor Day following the vintage. While wearing summer suits out of season might not be in good taste, drinking the best pink wines year-round is highly recommended.

The types of food that call for a bottle, or more, of Rosé are hardly limited to hot weather dining. Grilling has become a year-round practice for an increasing number of people and strongly seasoned, spicy dishes are now the everyday rule rather than the exception on many wine and food lovers’ tables and such food practically begs for pink wine. Why should consumers limit their pink wine enjoyment to a three month window when the types of food that match perfectly with them are enjoyed regardless of season.

The northern hemisphere has just officially entered summer but Rosé sales and consumption began to take off a good three months ago and appear to just be hitting their stride. By all reports the pace is, once again, rapid and not slowing down. It’s good to bear in mind that the vast majority of Rosés in the market right now are from the 2016 vintage, so barely half a year old, and with rare exception the wines have only just had time to open up since bottling and shipping. Most overseas markets have seen hardly a trickle of 2016 European or American white wines so far but, interestingly, we’ve already had the chance to taste through and reviewed hundreds of currently available pink wines (see part one of the Rosé roundup as well as Ian d’Agata’s extensive coverage of Italy’s often intriguing rosatos), with even more to follow.

As I’ve mentioned before, top-notch pink wines not only reward some patience, many of them quite frankly demand it. For most of the Rosés reviewed here, a year (or usually more) of bottle age brings more aromatic complexity, texture and depth but rarely compromises the wines’ freshness and energy. While there’s absolutely no harm in drinking even the most serious recently released Rosés over the coming months, I strongly encourage those with open minds and available storage space to stash away some of the best wines covered here for at least a year, or even more."

Adegas Triay Monterrei - Producers of Exceptional Godello Whites and Lovely Mencía Reds from Galicia

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Monterrei

Bodegas Triay (Oimbra, Ourense, Galicia) 

Triay Godello, one of Gerry Dawes's relatively recent discoveries, is one of his favorite wines in the entire portfolio.  Its delicious white peach, stone fruit and mineral nuances put it on a par with many white Burgundies, at a far more accessible price. Triay is made by Antonio Triay, who with his wife Puri García, farms the excellent vineyards of his father-in-law Isaac García.  Their Godello is one of the best white wines in Spain and the Mencía is reminiscent of great Burgundy.

**Adegas Triay is located in the small village of Oimbra, right on the Portuguese border in southern- most Galicia, with the nearest small city being Verín, just to the east of Oimbra. This small family winery is now run by Antonio Triay and his wife Puri, whose family owned the parcels of vines that now form the backbone of the estate’s vineyard holdings. Antonio’s father-in-law, Isaac García is still quite active helping out in the vines and cellars, and as he likes to say, “I always took good care of the vineyards and was careful making the wines in the past, when no one really cared about the wines of Monterrei, but now, it has served my daughter and son-in-law quite well to have good vineyards to work with.” Antonio blends a small amount of Albariño and Treixadura into his Godello bottling (five percent each), and includes ten percent Tempranillo in his Mencía bottling. Production here is very small, but the wines are riveting, with great purity and complexity, and Adegas Triay is destined to be one of the stars of Galicia in the years to come. – John Gilman, View From The Cellar


Adegas Triay Godello 2015* Monterrei 13%       $24.00
Note:  The 2014s from Triay were just as good, if not better, than the 2013s and the 2015 is a great vintage.  The Triay Godello 2014 was being poured by the glass at Chef Dan Barber’s Blue Hill at Stone Barns for six months and at Bobby Flay’s Gato in Manhattan. On June 2, 2016, Triay Godello 2014 was rated one of the top ten Godellos by The New York Times.

The 2013 Godello from Adegas Triay is outstanding, as it delivers a superb bouquet of white peach, a touch of menthol, stony minerality, tart banana, a touch of green olive and a top-note of wild fennel. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, crisp and absolutely rock solid at the core, with great acids and mineral drive on the backend, fine focus and a very long and vibrant finish. Great juice. 2014-2020+. 93. J. Gilman

Adegas Triay Mencía 2015*** Monterrei 12.5%  $23.00
The 2013 vintage was a bit riper than the norm in Monterrei, with Antonio Triay’s Mencía coming in at 13.5 percent alcohol in this year. The wine is young, but going to be absolutely lovely, as it offers up a nascently complex nose of pomegranate, dark berries, graphite, a touch of wood smoke and a top-note of espresso. On the palate the wine is fullish, long and beautifully balanced, with a fine core of fruit, a bit of tannin to resolve and a long, focused and classy finish. This is high class Mencía! 2014-2025. 90.

Adegas Eladio Santalla Hacienda Ucediños, A Rising Family Winery Star Producing World-Class Artisan Godello and Mencía in Valdeorras

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Text & All Photos by Gerry Dawes©2017 
 

Gerry Dawes at Chef Paco Roncero's Estado Puro in Madrid with a glass of Godello. 

Photo by Harold Heckle©2009, Associated Press, Madrid.

The Santalla family bodega, run by brothers Eladio and Marco, produce top-notch Godello whites and Mencía from several family-owned or controlled vineyards, some of which are 50 years old or more. Their mother, Ana, cooks excellent Galician food at the family bar, El Dorado, in the city of the region's main town, O Barco de Valdeorras.  AT El Dorado, Ana’s prized pulpo a la gallega (braised octopus with goes especially well with the Hacienda Ucediños Godello and Mencía. The consulting enologist here is also the “guru of Godello,” the great José Luís Murcía. -- Gerry Dawes

 

Adegas Eladio Santalla Hacienda Ucediños (Valdeorras)

 

Godello grapes, Valdeorras.
Photo by Gerry Dawes©2011 / gerrydawes@aol.com.

Hacienda Ucediños Godello 2014** 13.0% alcohol SRP $22.99  

Valdeorras is Godello country and Hacienda Ucediños makes a terrific example.  Their 2014 is a classic bottle, jumping from the glass in a blend of pear, apple, a touch of acacia blossom, white soil tones and a gently spicy top-note redolent of coriander seed. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, crisp and rock solid at the core, with fine focus and cut, zesty acids and a long, poised and vibrant finish. A superb example of this underrated grape. 2016-2020. 91+ -- John Gilman, View From The Cellar.

Consulting enologist at Hacienda Ucediños, D. Berna and a number of other wineries in Valdeorras is José Luís Murcía, who, somehow manages to capture the essence of their grapes and vineyard siteand transmit that in the bottle like few others. 
Photo: Gerry Dawes©2011 / gerrydawes@aol.com.

Hacienda Ucediños Mencía 2016***  13.0%  $20.99   

José Luís Murcía is equally adept at properly vinifying Mencía and extracting its true character as a reflector of a vineyard’s terruño (terroir).

The 2014 Mencía from Hacienda Ucediños is another very fine example of this great varietal, offering up a bright and youthfully complex nose of dark berries, cassis, graphite, sandy soil tones, tree bark and a smoky top-note. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, pure and impressively light on its feet, with a fine core, very fine focus and grip and a suave, modestly tannic and impeccably balanced finish. Fine, fine juice and another bargain! 2016-2025. 90. -- John Gilman, View From The Cellar.

 

Mencía grapes, Valdeorras, Galicia.

AT Roca - (Clàssic Penedès) Exceptional Methode Champenoise Sparkling Wines

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Catalunya

AT Roca - (Clàssic Penedès

Agustí Torelló Sibill in his Conca de Foix Plana de l'Urpi vineyard (Foix basin, l'Urpi plain), near Sant Sadurni D'Anoia in Catalunya, southwest of Barcelona.  Photo by Gerry Dawes.

AT Roca, an artisan, family owned, viticulturally oriented winery, produces superb quality Clàssic Penedès Brut and Brut Reserve Rosat sparkling wines.  Agustí Torelló Sibill and his sister Lali were shut out of their father’s winery Agustí Torelló because of a family dispute.  Agustí, who was the face of the family’s wines, decided to begin anew.  Agustí, Lali and his son and winemaker Agustí Torelló Roca, set up shop on the outskirts of the Cava capital of Sant Sadurni D’Anoia, and named their wines AT Roca. 

The Torellós also found three prime ecologically farmed vineyards, owned by eight dedicated viticulturists with mature vines in three different areas of Penedès at three different altitude levels, from which they source their grapes:  Their Macabeu (Viura) grapes come from L'Ordal (coastal Massís del Garraf), Finca Canta Llops (Howling Wolf) vineyard, 420 meters (nearly 1400 feet above sea level); Xarel.lo from the slate-laced vineyards of Conca del Foix, Plana de l'Urpí, 220 meters (more than 700 feet); Parellada from La Llacuna, La Ginestera, 725 meters (2400 feet). 

 Agustí Torelló Roca shows the locations of three prime ecologically farmed vineyards, owned by eight dedicated viticulturists with mature vines in three different areas of Penedès at three different altitude levels, from which they source the grapes for their wines. 

AT Roca Vi de Terrer (Wine of Terroir) Brut Reserva 2014  $28.99    12%                      

“AT Roca is a new winery that was started by the brother and sister team of Agustí and Lali Torelló Sibill, as well as Agustí’s son, Agustí Torelló Roca, who handles all the viticulture and winemaking for the new sparkling wine house. These are the same family members who ran the famed Agustí Torelló Mata Cava house, who were one of the driving forces in the formation of the category in past generations and continue to make one of Spain’s greatest sparklers, which they call Kripta. An internecine family argument led to the ouster of Agustí and Lali Torelló and they promptly set up on their own, contracting with eight small farmers to purchase grapes from 97 cooler, high altitude vineyards farmed in the proper, Six Percent Club manner.

The 2013s are the first releases from AT Roca and not surprisingly, they are exceptional in quality. The 2013 Brut Reserva is a blend of the Big Three grapes of Xarel.lo, Macabeu and Parellada and offers up a superb bouquet of tart apple, bread dough, wild fennel, lovely minerality and a top-note of ocean breeze. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and rock solid at the core, with frothy mousse, lovely focus and complexity and a long, perfectly balanced finish. 2016-2025+. 92+.” – John Gilman, View From The Cellar

 

*AT Roca Vi de Terrer (Wine of Terroir) Brut Reserva Rosat 2014   $29.99    12%

The 2013 AT Roca Brut Rosat Reserva is comprised of a unique blend of sixty percent Macabeu and forty percent Monastrell. The wine is aged for fifteen months sur latte prior to disgorgement and is a lovely, pale salmon color. The bouquet is bright and classy, wafting from the glass in a mélange of blood orange, white cherries, salty soil tones, dried rose petals and a smoky top-note. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, crisp and complex, with outstanding mid-palate amplitude, elegant mousse and excellent cut and grip on the long and racy finish. This is terrific Rosat! 2016-2025. 92+. John Gilman, VFTC

          

*Comes in 6 bt. Packs.

AT Roca Brut Rosat.  Photo by Docsconz, John Sconzo.

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 Gerry Dawes at AT Roca, Sant Sadurni D’Anoia. 

Visit to AT Roca Sant Sadurni d'Anoia 

 

We arrived at the Hotel Domo in the wine capital of Vilafranca del Penedès Barcelona province), an hour southeast of Barcelona sometime after one a.m., but Hotel Domo was relatively quiet--no jackhammer machine like we experienced in Barcelona--and I could open my windows for fresh air, so I got a reasonably good night's sleep.

Agustì Torellò Roca, winemaker at AT Roca and son of Agustí Torellò Sibill, shows us one of AT Roca´s free-standing old vines vineyards from which their exceptional Clàssic Penedès methode champenoise sparkling wines are made.

Agustí Torelló Roca came by to pick us up at 9:00 the next morning to show us some of the AT Roca vineyards, their fine vinification facility at Can Bonastre, which is also a wine resort hotel and restaurant, and then on to their production and facility where the Torellós age and bottle their exquisite Champagne-quality methode champenoise sparking wines, including their native varieties Brut Rosat in a complex at the edge of Sant Sadurni d'Anoia. Sant Sadurni is the sparkling wine capital of Catalunya, Spain and, in volume, the World. The largest producers, Freixenet and Codorníu make enormous amounts of bubbly, more than any other single producer of methode champenoise wines in the world. 

Agustí Torelló Sibill at AT Roca's fine vinification facility at Can Bonastre, which is also a wine resort hotel and restaurant, 10 kilometers from Sant Sadurni D'Anoia in Catalunya, southwest of Barcelona.  Photo by Gerry Dawes.

 

Xarel.lo grapes, AT Roca, July 2015. Conca de Foix Plana de l'Urpi vineyard (Foix basin, l'Urpi plain), near Sant Sadurni D'Anoia in Catalunya, southwest of Barcelona. 

Photo by Gerry Dawes.

 Agustí Torelló Sibill explaining the topography of his vineyards in Penedès at his finishing winery in San Sadurni d'Anoia, July 2015.

Old vines from which AT Roca sparkling wines are made with Monserrart, the Holy Mountain of Catalunya, in the background.  (Photo courtesy of AT Roca.)