I also tasted a selection of older vintages to ascertain their aging potential and I was impressed. The 2003 Lalama is an equal blend of Mauraton and Garnacha. It still has a vital, stony bouquet with ample freshness and notes of wild hedgerow and black tea. The palate is austere on the entry with blackberry, marmalade, soy and licorice. It is rustic and a little frayed at the edges, with a light, simple finish, but it still offers pleasure. Drink now.
Occasionally you have to journey to remote areas in order to reach some of Spain’s finest producers, but the long drive to Dominio do Bibei to meet winemaker Javier Dominguez and his team was certainly worth it. Though winemaking in this part of Ribeira Sacra dates back centuries, the winery is unapologetically modern in design, as each disconnected building dedicated to one part of the vinification process cascades down the gorge. The vines occupy steep loam and clay terraces over granite and slate bedrock that are low in organic material, located between 300 and 670 meters in altitude. Javier came across as a deeply philosophical person with strong tenets about his wines, which exuded great purity and varietal expression, almost Burgundy-like in their tannin profile, but with a little more fruit intensity. What I enjoyed was their precision and symmetry – wines that demand concentration before sitting back and simply enjoying them.
Importer: De Maison Selections (USA); www.demaisonselections.com; and Carte Blanche (UK)
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