2013 Remelluri Blanco

Incredible depth to this white with cooked apple, mineral, hints of vanilla and pear. Full body, very open and exciting with a finish that goes for so long. Sexy and opulent. Drink now.

2013 was a challenging vintage in Rioja for reds and that's what got stuck in the collective memory, but it somehow seems to be much better for whites. The 2013 Blanco from Remelluri is one of the best vintages ever produced. This has always been a blend of nine different grape varieties with the idea that the blend would erase the imprint from each variety and would show the character of the place. The white varieties are always planted in the poorer, whiter soils, and in this case also the higher altitude places, where the soils are shallow and rich in marls and sandstone. It fermented in small stainless steel and oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in oak barrel for one year. The nose is slightly oaky with a core of flowers, pollen, orange peel, spices and wet chalk. The palate shows good freshness and it's very tasty, with salty, chalky minerality. This is fine and elegant. There is some creaminess, perhaps not as crisp as I expected for the vintage. From 2013 onward, all of the Remelluri vineyards are organically certified. Some 6,000 bottles were filled in May 2015.