I also had two vintages of Alabaster to taste, starting with the cooler 2013 Alabaster, a cuvée of 11.5 hectares of centenary, ungrafted, head-pruned vines in the 'pagos' Valdemiano, La Jara and Marinacea in the village of Toro. The yields were minuscule, nine hectoliters per hectare and the hand-destemmed grapes fermented in open top vats with foot treading and very soft pumping over for some ten days at 28 degrees Celsius. They use yeasts that have been selected from their own vineyards for the fermentation. The wine matured in new French oak barrels for 18 months with rackings every four months. There is a plus of finesse and harmony here, of concentration and power too, but the price difference with the Victorino is hard to justify. There's some creaminess, even though the oak feels quite nicely integrated, especially considering the barrels are all new, but the juice is so intense and concentrated that can take that regime. The tannins are very fine, and feel a little more integrated with the glossy fruit. The extra length of the vegetative cycle that year surely brought that sensation of 'slow cooking' to achieve that perfect ripeness. Give it a little more time in bottle and this should improve and finish integrating all its components in an even way. 4,000 bottles produced.
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