Neal Martin, Mitarbeiter des renommierten Weinmagazins »
The Wine Advocate« verkostete für die Ausgabe 206/2013 auch
Pagos de Familias Weine. Den ›
Dominio de Valdepusa Eméritus 2008‹ aus der
D.O. Dominio de Valdepusa bewertet er mit hohen 92/100 Punkten. Nachfolgend schreibt der Verkoster im Original:
„The ›2008 Dominio de Valdepusa Emeritus‹ is a blend of 60 %
Cabernet Sauvignon, 30 %
Petit Verdot and 10 %
Syrah aged in Allier oak barrel for 25 months. It has a sophisticated bouquet of blackberry, cassis, boysenberry and raisin that unfolds appealingly in the glass and maintains impressive delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannins, fine acidity and a composed, focused, graphite-tinged black fruit with a saline/brine-tinged aftertaste that lingers in the mouth. This is a superb wine from Marques de Grinon that should age with style. Drink 2014-2020.
I was able to slot in a last minute visit to Dominio de Valdepusa in Montes de Toledo on my way back to Madrid, an essential visit given the history of this estate. The castle of Malpica has belonged to the Carlos Falco family since 1292, and it was granted the very first ‚Pago’ denomination in 2002. It is an enormous estate – from the entrance to the winery takes around ten minutes to drive past the beautiful Moorish landscape and olive groves. There are presently 52 hectares under vine, mainly international grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (both introduced in 1974), Syrah and Petit Verdot. Their wines have been overseen by such luminaries as Dr. Richard Smart, Emile Peynaud and Michel Rolland. It was a pleasure to meet proprietor Carlos Falco Fernandez de Cordoba and his daughter Xandra, along with their oenologist, Julio Mourelle. Carlos, who graduated from UC Davis, was one of the driving forces behind the establishment of the Vinos de Pago denomination and was instrumental in promoting international varieties in the region. It was also interesting to speak at length with Mourelle. ‚I am feeling less afraid of making mistakes,’ he explained. ‚We don’t like the wines to be over-oaked at all – only one-quarter to one-third are new barrels. We are learning more and more about irrigation and achieving fine pH levels just by working empirically with hydrometers.’ Overall, this was a very impressive set of wines, quite modern in style but beautifully crafted.”
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