Post Your Ercavio Notes Here!!!

2005 Mas Que Vinos "Ercavio"

Young Spanish Wine - Results

Cris's Notes

• 2006 St. Innocent Chardonnay Anden - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
  Tight with slight butter, soft florals and lemon custard on the nose. Soft lemon and nice minerals on the palate. Notes of oak and some tartness, some heat. Served blind and I was way off. Nicely styled Chard.

• 2004 Descendientes de José Palacios Bierzo Petalos - Spain, Castilla y León, Bierzo
  Deep dark primary, notes of earth and smoke, pepper and violets. Light palate feel with some grip, medium concentration and nice minerality. Nice wine for the money and has some years ahead of it.
• 2002 Bodegas y Viñedos Castro Ventosa Bierzo El Castro de Valtuille - Spain, Castilla y León, Bierzo
  Old world styled nose with secondary characteristics ahead of the fruit including caramel, florals and dark sweetness. Concentrated palate with a bit of a bite and solid tannins. Nose more expressive than the palate. Has plenty of time ahead of it but drinking well now.

• 2004 Condado de Haza Ribera del Duero - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  Tight yet concentrated nose. Showing some ripeness, depth, funk and notes of of American oak. Tight on the palate but very balanced feeling, lovely body, very even and pretty. This tightened up with air so recommend a decant if served now but leave alone for a few more years. A terrific wine that will reward some patience.
• 2003 Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  Earthy nose with some Old World style funky old oak notes and some tobacco. Light and lean on the palate and not as expressive as I expected. Maybe a bit closed.
• 2004 Pago de los Capellanes Ribera del Duero Crianza - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  Big young and chunky, deep and concentrated, pretty with chocolate notes and slight bret. Deep with long concentration on the palate. Sweet with bright violets. Similar to my last experience with this one. Very nice wine in there but very young. Another that will reward patience or at least plenty of air.

• 2005 Melis Priorat Elix - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
  Funky barnyard on a tight nose to start with a dark character and depth, smoke, herbs and slight greenness. Concentrated yet a bit tight still, nice mouthfeel. Good grip with plenty of violets. Another one that needs some time but plenty of potential here.
• 2004 Heron Terra Alta Sexto - Spain, Catalunya, Tarragona, Terra Alta
  Bright, tart, juicy and light nose with pruney candied fruits. Bright juicy palate that is light bodied, acidic and sweet of raisins. Some heat. Nice daily drinker for the weeknights that will work with dinner.

Jason's Notes

Thanks for the notes Cris. I was really happy with this tasting. For me there wasn't even a questionable wine. I would gladly serve any of them. The Bierzos were both very nice and very different. I don't think I have yet found a Bierzo that blew me away ... but I haven't been disappointed either.

• 2006 St. Innocent Chardonnay Anden - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
  Very nice. This needs a little time for the oak to integrate. Displays nice richness but miles away from buttery. Not fatiguing to the palate like many American chards.

• 2003 Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez Ribera del Duero Tinto Pesquera - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  Very structured. I really liked this. A pretty serious Crianza. I took the remaining bit home but it had really closed up. Wait!
• 2004 Condado de Haza Ribera del Duero - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  This started off smooth and with nice qualities from fruit to flowers. Coming back to it at the end of the lunch the tannins had really stepped up. This wine needs time. Less funky than some of the other Condados I have had. I think I just finished my last 96 that was just getting started.
• 2004 Pago de los Capellanes Ribera del Duero Crianza - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
  This plain rocked. Lots of sweet red fruit. Balanced acid. Earth and mineral elements. For me this was showing the most complexity. This had been splashed decanted and then left open for a few hours. But I was still surprised how well this was drinking. May be a slightly younger drinker than I originally thought. I took a bit home and it was still drinking beautifully.

• 2004 Heron Terra Alta Sexto - Spain, Catalunya, Tarragona, Terra Alta
  A nice surprise here. Not something I had ever seen. As Cris said it was slightly candied but the wine really worked well with the food. Not cloying and not overly oaked.
• 2005 Melis Priorat Elix - Spain, Catalunya, Priorat
  This seemed to be the darkest wine of the day. Slightly brooding. Lots of oak showing and a bit of a green streak. Where the other wines all worked well with the food this one was a bit out of place. A very nice wine that may improve with some time.

One of my favorite tastings as here we were eating Pastrami sandwiches, fries and chili ... and all the wines worked.

Here is how they finished. It should be noted that the SI Chardonnay got at least 2 First Place votes, but we decided to exclude it from the voting.

1st Place - 2004 Pago de los Capellanes - 17 Points
2nd Place (tie) - 2003 Tinto Pesquera & 2005 Melis Priorat Elix - 12 Points
3rd Place - 2002 Bodegas y Viñedos Castro Ventosa - 10 Points

FOR MORE INFO ... CLICK HERE

Cheers,

Jason

VIVA ESPAÑA! Next Tasting Monday March 3

Theme: 2003 - 2005 Spanish Reds - Any Region

Wines:

2002 Bodegas Castro Ventoso El Castro de Valtuille (Bierzo) - Ger

2003 Tinto Pesquera Crianza (RdD) - Dr. Dietz

2004 Pago de los Capellanes Crianza (RdD) - The Hage
2004 Condado de Haza Crianza (RdD) - DJ
2004 Descendientes de Jose Palacios Petalos (Bierzo) - C-Rock
2004 Heron Terra Alta Sexto (Catalunya, Terra Alta) - Mel-K

2005 Melis Estate Elix (Priorat) - Karnopolis

Start Time: 12:00 Sharp

Food: The Hat

Mystery White: Jason and/or anyone else

Location: The Command Center