Editors notes
Alejandro Fernandez's Dehesa La Granja is a striking 100% ungrafted, 'old-clone' Tempranillo.
Highly aromatic, there are plenty of dark cherry, cola, and anise notes and hints of blood and earth as well.
Although gorgeous right now, this has the depth and structure to age effortlessly for another five-ten years or so. It is a wine brimming with energy, rich fruit, spice and complexity.
Details
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Light (Light)Full (Full)
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Low Tannin (Low Tannin)Tannic (Tannic)
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Aroma
- Cherry
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Palate
- Cedar
- Cherry
- Fig
Food Pairings
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Red Meat
Critic Scores & reviews
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Mike Bennie
91"Low and slow winemaking here. Tempranillo spends two years in oak then five years in bottle before release. Do the maths and we’ve lost a few years, but that’s cool. Serious feeling tempranillo. Has that curious and kind of appealing scent of an old campfire then fig and date dried fruits, a splash of ripe currants. Flavours are tilting right into the savoury, secondary developed zone but there’s fresh acidity underlying and the wine has a brightness amongst the dusty spice and chewy oak character. Indeed, the soft finish and licks of dark berry fruit are very appealing, and a Chinese five spice note hits a high. It’s savoury as all get out, rippling with fine ribbons of tannin. Quite lovely in its zone."
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Locations
Spain
Spain is definitely one of the new-world players to keep an eye on. It is the land of old-vines, american oak and sherry! The main varieties grown in Spain are Tempranillo and Garnacha (Grenache) in the reds, and Airén, Viura/Macabeo, Verdejo and Albarino for the whites. Lesser grown whites include Palomino. Other reds successfully cultivated include Carignan, Mourvedre and Mencia.
Although Spain can be quite a warm country, the vast majority of vineyards are 600m or so above sea level, so the cooler nights allow the grapes to develop full colour and acidity.
Rioja is undoubtedly the long-standing king of all the Spanish wine regions, where Tempranillo and Garnacha are commonly blended. However more recently many more regions have come to the forefront of interest. Ribera Del Duero is producing excellent Tempranillo blends rivalling those coming out of Rioja. Jerez in the South is the home of the fortified wine Sherry.
Spanish wine laws created the Denominación de Origen (DO) system in 1932 and were later revised in 1970. These include:
- Denominación de Origen Calificada (formerly called DOCa) Priorat calls itself DOQ for Denominació d'Origen Qualificada in Catalan and has a track record of consistent quality and is meant to be a step above DO level.
- Denominación de Origen (DO)- Used for mainstream-quality wine regions. Nearly two thirds of the total vineyard area in Spain is within the boundaries of a DO region.
- Vino de Calidad Producido en Región Determinada (VCPRD) - This is somewhat of a stepping stone to DO status.
- Vinos de la Tierra (VdIT) - A level similar to France's vin de pays system, where the regions are much larger.
- Vino de Mesa (VdM)- The equivalent of 'table wines' from France or Italy
Castile and Leon
If you're looking for a window on the Spanish soul, head to Castilla y León. This autonomous community is located in north-western Spain. From the scenic Sierra de Francia in the southwest to Covarrubias, Calatañazor and Medinaceli in the east, this is the hidden Spain most travellers never imagined still existed.
The Red wines from the DO Ribera del Duero have achieved international prestige. The region is especially known for its superb Tempranillo wines.
Tierra del Vino de Zamora
About the brand Bodegas Alejandro Fernández
Alejandro Fernandez and his wife Esperanza Rivera, having created Tinto Pesquera and Condado de Haza in their native Ribera del Duero, looked farther afield in the Spring of 1998. Offered the opportunity to acquire one of Spain's grandest agricultural estates, they purchased the rundown estate bordering the Guarena River in the province of Zamora, in the heart of one of Spain's earliest-recognized wine regions. Known during the entire 20th-century as "La Granja Valdeguarena de los Moleros" the 1800-acre ranch had been devoted to the breeding of highly regarded fighting bulls, still in operation at the time of purchase. From the 18th through 19th centuries the estate had been a regionally-dominant producer of wine, evidenced by 40,000 square feet of cellars hand-carved by 125 laborers over 17 years. During that time the local wine producing area was known throughout Spain and Europe as Tierra del Vino (Land of Wine). House and ranch compound were renovated and a modern winemaking facility installed, directly over the 17th-century cellars. Alejandro rapidly set to work reconverting the estate to wine production, with 325 acres of old-clone Tempranillo from his vineyards in Ribera del Duero planted by late 2000. As with Fernandez wines in Ribera del Duero, the fully-extracted must undergoes malolactic fermentation in new oak, and a meticulous racking and aging program achieves natural clarification. The wines are bottled after two years in the barrel.You May Also Like
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