Rippa Dorii Roble, Ribera del Duero, Spain 2024
Rippa Dorii Roble, Ribera del Duero, Spain 2024
“Pretty darned good” says my tasting note and that’s probably the most enthusiastic review I have ever given a Roble from Rioja. Roble is the name given to a Rioja that has been lightly oaked, typically around 6 months, so it sits between a Joven and a Crianza. I usually find they are neither one thing nor another, a bit like brunch or drizzle, but this one has tons of flare and panache, as well as good looks. It spent 7 months in new oak - 40% American, and 60% French, with varying levels of toast - and is dark and sweet-fruited and spicy, displaying black cherries, red plums, baking spices and gentle floral notes. The fruit is so ripe and concentrated that any oak flavours are drowned within it. I think I prefer this to their Crianza, which spent 18 months in oak, as the balance here allows the succulence of the fruit to shine. Perfect with lamb chops or indeed anything with a bit of charred fat on the outside (and I’m not referring to me on a sun-lounger). Outstanding value! 14% alc. Drink now-2029.
Press review:
JancisRobinson.com (previous vintage): "Smoky definition framing the deep dark fruit. The oak is present, but not overwhelming, and showcases the fruit. Approachable and layered nose. Deep, ripe, sweet-fruited on entry but plenty of chalky tannins as it heads to the finish – vanilla, spice and black-fruit finish. Bold and rich, but with fresh, balancing acidity. Plenty of complexity at this price. GV (OC). Drink now-2028." 16 points
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An absolutely stonking-value Crianza from Spain’s boujie region, Ribera del Duero. It’s a gorgeous mouthful of juicy blackcurrant pastilles, cassis liqueur and blueberries interwoven with vanilla and cedar. The wine, made from Tempranillo, matured in both French and American oak, with different levels of toasting, which has added gloss and pliancy in equal measure. Bargains from Ribera del Duero are very rare birds indeed, so snap this up if you are a keen wine twitcher, otherwise known as an oenothologist! I’ll see myself out. 14% alc. Drink now-2030.
Press review:
Vinous (previous vintage): “The 2021 Crianza Rippa Dorii hails from Fuentecén in Ribera del Duero and was aged for 12 months in American and French oak barrels. Garnet in colour, it opens with notes of candied plum, balsamic and a twist of herbs. The palate is intense and indulgent, structured with firm, gripping tannins and notable concentration for the vintage. A powerful, well-made red - perhaps paired with a hearty ribeye. Drink now-2033.“ 92 points
JancisRobinson.com (previous vintage): "Mid crimson. Much more of the cedar and spice about this one, compared with the Roble, but the bold, ripe dark-red and black fruit remains at the core. Almost incense-like. Plush, silky, succulent on the palate. Serious framing tannins and nice length. Likely to improve with another couple of years. Drink now-2030." 16+ points
Customer Comments:
“Very tasty that Rippa Dorri!” - Mr. R. M.
“We enjoyed a bottle of the Rippa Dorii last weekend with a roast pheasant. Was very good!” - Mr P.M.
"Just to say that this wine was superb! For its price the best value I have tasted!” - Mr L.D.
A seriously indulgent, luxurious Rioja sporting the new classification, 'Vino de Pueblo', which denotes a wine that must be produced from family-owned vineyards within a named village, in this case, the village of Quel. Its charms begin before you have even pulled the cork, as the packaging is a treat for the senses too. Once inside, you are welcomed by soaring notes of cassis, black cherry, violets, vanilla and cedar. It’s a full-bodied, exuberant Rioja, blended from four small plots at 1,800 feet above sea level, where poor soils allow the roots to delve deep. 14.5% alc. 90% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha. 18 months in 80% French and 20% American new oak and a final 6 months in large French oak foudres. 14% alc. Drink now-2032.
Press reviews:
JancisRobinson.com (previous vintage): “Tasted blind. Scrubland, Provençal herbs and a mineral feel. Tremendous delicacy, depth, and fully integrated sweet tannins. Very intense in flavours but also long and fluid. It is quite exciting, even tasted blind… and getting excited by tasting blind is difficult! It is a Mediterranean profile, but gently done. Fabulous! (FC). Drink now-2040.” 18 points
Decanter (previous vintage): “Cherry, vanilla, raspberry and plum nose. Purity, definition and savoury twist on the palate all adds to the interest. Incredible spicy-floral length; a very lovely wine indeed.” 95 points
“You can’t go wrong with this one, son.” - My Dad, 96 points
In case you didn’t clock the vintage, this is a wine with 12 years under its belt, but it hasn’t been sitting in our cellar gathering dust. We’ve only just shipped it from the bodega, because they don’t release it until it’s in its perfect ‘sweet spot’ for drinking and boy is it just that! I took a bottle to my parents’ house for Sunday dinner and my dad took one sip and ‘cornered’ the bottle in a politely proprietorial way. “You can’t go wrong with this one, son” he said, pouring himself another glass and setting the bottle down beside him. For those of you who haven’t met my dad, that equates to a score of 96 points.
Never mind my dad, what I love about this wine is its sense of calm composure. Having spent 2 years maturing in oak barrels and a further 7 years in bottle, time has smoothed its wrinkled front, and now, instead of something rough around the edges, it pours soft and mellow, a hint of brick to its colour, with the texture of an unassuming gentleman’s claret, yet with the depth conferred by a warmer climate, as this comes from Central Spain. The flavours say damson and cassis, but smudged a little into indistinctness, by time. A hint of forest floor, the mulch of autumn, tobacco and orange peel. You will find your own. Drink it with roast beef, but be prepared to share. 13.5% alc. Drink now-2025.
NB Some of the corks can be a little dry and crumbly. Age isn’t kind to corks or people. Ideally, use a 'butler's thief' corkscrew or, if you are using a regular corkscrew, insert it as far as possible and pull it out gently.
Press review:
JancisRobinson.com: “The tractable intensity and sepia-edged sweetness of this 10-year-old wine draws you in with a slow, silk lasso. Tempranillo to its toes, it's strawberries and leather, tobacco and preserved cherry, black tea lightly steeped, dried flowers, a coffee bean, a touch of mace. Beautiful tissue-fine flavours layered leaf by leaf and then pressed into time and transparent tannins so that they infuse, one into the other. What a rare treat to be able to enjoy a quiet little beauty like this at the peak of its maturity. It seems to be crazy underpriced to me. I'd snap this up in a heartbeat. VGV (TC). Drink now-2026.” 17 points
Customer comments:
“Had the Tempranillo last night – lovely.” - Mr N.B.
“The 'La Pintora’ was so good that I thought I should add a case to my cellar without delay. No trouble with corks either although it’s always fun to have an excuse to bring out the butler’s thief.” - Mr. C. M.