It’s interesting to compare the 2010 with the 2011 Finca La Montesa, which has a slightly different blend – 70% Garnacha, 25% Tempranillo and 5% Mazuelo – also sourced from the family vineyard La Montesa del Monte Yerga in Alfaro. It displays notes of ripe red fruit and spices in an elegant but in a slightly rustic way. The palate is round, with some tannins and ripe flavors. This is very good value. Drink 2014-2017.
Palacios Remondo is the original winery in Rioja created by Don Jose Palacios Remondo in Alfaro in 1945. Owned by the Palacios family, it is one of the most important on the Spanish wine scene. Don Jose had nine children of whom four remain in the wine world. Antonio, Chelo and Alvaro started working for the family winery but Alvaro left in 1989 to start his own project in Priorat. Rafael, the youngest, joined the family business and he developed the white Placet, but he eventually left to focus on white wine, and created his own project in Valdeorras with the Godello grape (As Sortes and now O Soro) from the 2004 vintage. One of Chelo's sons, Ricardo Perez Palacios, was interested in wine and he teamed up with his uncle Alvaro to create the Descendientes de J. Palacios, in Bierzo, a region Alvaro had in mind right from the time he started in Priorat, named after Alvaro's father and Ricardo's grandfather, who passed away in 2000. Antonio left Palacios Remondo and Alvaro returned to apply his wide experience with Garnacha in the Rioja wines. As a result, the red wines have more and more Garnacha, the grape they reckon does best in their area. The wines are in the process of being updated, or maybe I should say that they are going back to their roots to the character of Rioja Baja where they are located.
Imported by Folio Fine Wine Partners, Napa, CA; tel. (707) 256-2700; www.foliowine.com
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