Sommelier’s Recommendation

2011 Bodegas Portia Ebeia Roble, Ribera Del Duero DO, Ribera del Duero
PHP 1,900
Made from lower yielding plots of vines that produce juice of intense flavors, the resulting wine is firm and poised for long-term ageing. Assertive aromas of dark berry, cherry cola, anise and dried rose lead into a wine of richness, clarity of flavors and a persistent finish. One is tempted to enjoy fabulous wines like this on its own but the wine is equally enjoyable with food, even with a touch of heat or spice.

2006 Rioja Reserva, Muga, Rioja
PHP 3,300
The blend of 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garanacha, 7% Mazuelo and 3% Graciano was fermented in oak triggered by indigenous years. The Reserva spent 24 months in oak casks to turn out a smooth wine with soft and round tannins, a texture with hardly any edges and a nice and long finish. This is a maturing classic ready to please and still have years of evolution ahead for those who want to stash away a few bottles to enjoy a few years down the road.

1998 Ribera Priorat, Porrera, Mas d’en Compte, Priorat, Porrera, Mas d’en Compte
PHP 3,200
An interesting blend of 60% Grenache (from 60-year-old vines) and 40% Carignan (even older vines), this wine is obviously made to impress all, connoisseurs included. Floral aromas lead into a savory wine on the palate filled with pure flavors, good concentration and a full body. A generous wine that is now fully matured and ready to be enjoyed with food or sipped on its own.

1997 Mas d’en Compte, Negra Porrera DB, Priorat
PHP 3,200
One of the oldest grape-growing families in the Priorat, the Sangenis family had historically sold the entirety of their production to the local coop until 1995 when they formed a new company, Mas d’en Compte, to bottle wine under their own name. The Sangenis family’s entire vineyard is quite old, with several small parcels of 100+ year old vines of Grenache and Carignan. This old vine material means that yields are extremely low and concentration quite high.

1997 Ribera Del Duero, Reserva, Tinto Pesquera, Ribera del Duero
PHP 5,500
Pesquera is one of the legendary Estates of Spain. It was under this label that Alejandro Fernández made the 100% Tempranillo wines that first launched the Ribera del Duero region on to the world stage. Tinto Pesquera is made with a hybrid traditional/modern methodology and is aged a minimum of 18 months in oak, with selected Reservas and Grand Reservas remaining in barrel for at least 24 months or longer. The wines of Pesquera are limited and typically sell out quickly each year.

1996 Ribera del Duero, Crianza, Bodegas Felix Callejo, Ribera del Duero
PHP 2,900
This is the main wine of the estate, made from 100% tempranillo, fermentation in native yeasts which usually result in slightly higher level of residual sugars. 12 months in French oak gives the wine the fragrance and oak-spiced bouquet of dark berry, mocha, coffee and floral notes. Broad, ripe and penetrating flavors with dusty tannins add complexity to a wine with good grip and tenacity for long-term ageing. This is a lovely wine to enjoy on its own or with a really good piece of red meat.

1996 Rioja, Roda I Reserva, Bodegas Roda, Rioja
(M) PHP 27,000
Unlike RODA II, this super luxurious Rioja was made from 100% Tempranillo from equally old and low-yielding vines. The 1996 growing season was blessed with very good conditions or rainfall and temperatures resulting in healthy clean grapes at the harvest. RODA I is the blend from those plots which in that year have produced grapes of black, ripe fruit characters. The deep, dark, black fruit is almost always dominated by plum aromas together with mineral and chocolate notes, balsamic flavors’, all of which form a whole which flows slowly from the very bottom of the glass, developing hugely with aeration. On the palate, the fullness of the wine comes through clearly, the fruit complexity gently coating the mouth with masses of sweet tannins. The wine shows great length with a finish of fruit and freshness that lingers on well after swallowing, inciting the taster to sip again. These are wines to accompany gastronomic food and to appreciate in the company of fellow enthusiasts.

1996 Roda II Reserva, Bodegas Roda, Rioja
PHP 9,500
This luxurious wine was made with a blend of 71% Tempranillo and 29% Grenacha from 30-year-old vines yielding a mere 1.5kg per vine, fermented in temperature-controlled French oak vats, aged in 33% new French oak barrels for 24 months. The 1996 growing season was blessed with very good conditions or rainfall and temperatures resulting in healthy clean grapes at the harvest. In the blending of RODA, the wines are from plots of red berry fruit characters, with aromas that are to the fore, ready for immediate enjoyment, with sweet spice notes and delicious freshness. On the palate, the red berry fruit should come through, with a refreshing mouth feel, length, silky texture and continuous volume.

1995 Roda I Reserva, Bodegas Roda, Rioja
PHP 15,000
Unlike RODA II, this super luxurious Rioja was made from 100% Tempranillo from equally old and low-yielding vines. The weather was clement during the 1995 harvest, very dry October, after a year of ideal rain distribution resulting in really high quality grapes for the vintage. RODA I is the blend from those plots which in that year have produced grapes of black, ripe fruit characters. The deep, dark, black fruit is almost always dominated by plum aromas together with mineral and chocolate notes, balsamic flavors’, all of which form a whole which flows slowly from the very bottom of the glass, developing hugely with aeration. On the palate, the fullness of the wine comes through clearly, the fruit complexity gently coating the mouth with masses of sweet tannins. The wine shows great length with a finish of fruit and freshness that lingers on well after swallowing, inciting the taster to sip again. These are wines to accompany gastronomic food and to appreciate in the company of fellow enthusiasts.

1995 Rioja, Reserva, Bodegas Marques de Vitoria, Rioja
PHP 4,500
Marqués de Vitoria is part of the Faustino group situated near Vitoria located in D.O.Rioja. Made from 100% Tempranillothe wine has fairly dark cherry-garnet red, clean and bright. On the nose, it has toasty notes from new wood against a background of very refreshing fruity hints. The wine is tasty and pleasant in the mouth, has great balance between wood and fruit, a smooth attack with a very pleasant medium ripeness, although it will continue to improve in the bottle. Popular choice of food pairing includes fish with sauces, white meat, roasts, and meat and small game casseroles. Very nice with medium-cured cheeses.

1992 Duas Quintas Douro Reserva, Ramos Pinto, Portugal
PHP 4,600
Made with an even mix of Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional and Tinta Roriz, aged for 12 months in French Oak, the wine is made jointly by Ramos Pinto, a famous Port house and Louis Roederer, famous Champagne producer. The resulting Duas Quintas is a unique, fruity, strong and complex wine.

1989 Rioja Reserva, Prado Enea Muga, Rioja
PHP 9,000
The grapes used for making Prado Enea are always the last ones to be brought into the winery. This late picking ensures ideal ripening. The maceration time can vary and may go on for up to twenty days. This wine is aged in 16,000-litre capacity oak vats for 12 months and then at least 36 months in oak casks. On the palate, the attack is powerful and unctuous, and in just a few seconds we have an intense, lasting feeling of plenitude. There is a presence of acidity, but a pleasant one, with sweet, smooth tannins and an infinite mineral quality.

1989 Castello Ygay Reserva, Marques de Murrieta, Rioja
PHP 8,500
Marqués de Murrieta is named after Luciano de Murrieta, one of the founding fathers of modern Rioja winemaking, who established the estate in 1852 in the world renowned Rioja region of Spain. The Castillo Ygay is the flagship wine of this great Rioja estate. Crafted almost entirely from Tempranillo, this elegant and supple wine has a delightful bouquet with scents of leather, mocha, freshly ground coffee beans and red berry fruit. It has a perfume that encapsulates everything there is to love about classic Rioja.

1985 Rioja, Reserva, Bodegas Marques de Caceres, Rioja
PHP 5,500
Emile Peynaud, former professor and chief wine researcher at the University of Bordeaux, was initial consultant to the winery. Today, Michel Rolland is wine consultant at Marqués de Cáceres and Henri and his daughter, Christine, are at the helm. It is no surprise that the vinification methods at Bodegas Marqués de Cáceres are similar to those used in Bordeaux. Thus, French winemaking techniques and expertise have been applied to native Spanish grapes to produce one of the finest modern Riojas.

1971 Rioja, Gran Reserva, Bodegas Campillo, Rioja
PHP 7,900
A carefully made wine, down to the last detail. Its secret lies in the origin of its grapes from hundred-year-old, low-yield Tempranillo vines that are harvested into small picking boxes and selected on arrival at the winery. The wine is aged 24 months in Allier oak casks that have been dried for 3 years, and stands out for its power and freshness. Cherry-red with purple tones in the rim, it opens up its aroma after gentle oxygenation in the form of generous notes of red fruit combined with nuances of oak. Good attack with moderate acidity. Full-bodied with a good tannic structure moving towards a long, pleasant aftertaste.

1970 Bodegas Vega Sicilia, Unico, Ribera del Duero
PHP 175,000
Vega Sicilia is indisputably one of the great estates of Spain. Vines were first planted in 1864 near the town of Valbuena in the Duero valley by Don Eloy Lecanda Chaves, who arrived from Bordeaux with Bordelais grape varieties and wine making techniques, thereby laying the foundations for what was to become one of the best wines of Spain.

1970 Rioja, Campo Burgo, Reserva, Rioja
PHP 5,900
Made from 90% Tempranillo and 10% Garnacha, hand-selected grapes from low-yielding 15-year-old-vines, undergoing 4 days of pre-fermentation maceration then aged for 18 months in French oak barrel after fermentation. The resulting wine is clean, attractive and elegant with French oak characteristics shining through brilliantly. Excellent balance enabled this wine to improve slowly inside the bottle for several decades smoothing out all remaining rough edges.

1959 Ch. Ygay Gran Reserva Especial, Marques de Murrieta, Rioja
PHP 29,000
Marqués de Murrieta is named after Luciano de Murrieta, one of the founding fathers of modern Rioja winemaking, who established the estate in 1852 in the world renowned Rioja region of Spain. The Castillo Ygay is the flagship wine of this great Rioja estate. Crafted almost entirely from Tempranillo, this elegant and supple wine has a delightful bouquet with scents of leather, mocha, freshly ground coffee beans and red berry fruit. It has a perfume that encapsulates everything there is to love about classic Rioja.

1 4 月, 2014 in Sommelier Selection 2013, Wine List