2018 Valenciso Cemento, Rioja
A$49.99
Availability:
In stock
Only 3 left
SKU
B20096V18
A distinctive feature of Valenciso’s approach in the cellar has been the widespread use of concrete tanks for fermentation. This practice allows for a gentler extraction of fruit and colour. Concrete vats were once a mainstay in Rioja but by the 1980s, the tradition of fermenting and aging in cement vessels had largely been replaced by stainless steel and oak maturation. Today, thanks to its numerous advantages and a group of specialist manufacturers, concrete is back at the forefront of fashion.
While all Valenciso’s wines see the inside of some concrete during maturation, this new bottling has—as the name suggests—been fermented and raised entirely in concrete vats. It’s 100% Tempranillo drawn from a group of old-vine sites nestled in the limestone-rich hillsides of Haro and Ollauri. All up, this was aged for 30 months before bottling, resulting in a wonderfully bright and complex wine with wild blackberry and red plum characters, laced with hints of black pepper in an elegant, rounded palate with fine, lingering tannins. Terrific.
“This enticingly packaged new red does what is says on the label and was fermented and aged in concrete. Spicy and understated with plenty of sappy intensity, lovely purity and layers of crunchy plum and black cherry fruit. A promising début.”
While all Valenciso’s wines see the inside of some concrete during maturation, this new bottling has—as the name suggests—been fermented and raised entirely in concrete vats. It’s 100% Tempranillo drawn from a group of old-vine sites nestled in the limestone-rich hillsides of Haro and Ollauri. All up, this was aged for 30 months before bottling, resulting in a wonderfully bright and complex wine with wild blackberry and red plum characters, laced with hints of black pepper in an elegant, rounded palate with fine, lingering tannins. Terrific.
“This enticingly packaged new red does what is says on the label and was fermented and aged in concrete. Spicy and understated with plenty of sappy intensity, lovely purity and layers of crunchy plum and black cherry fruit. A promising début.”
93 points, Tim Atkin MW, Rioja Special Report 2022
“One of the particularities from Valenciso is that they started using concrete (cemento) for the fermentation of their wines right from the beginning in 1998. Now they release a 2018 Cemento, the first vintage of a young, juicy and fruit-driven wine with soft extraction, keeping the fruit and liveliness through aging the wine exclusively in concrete for two and a half years. It’s juicy and ripe without excess at 14% alcohol, and it has a medium to full body, a gentle texture with fine tannins and very good freshness.”
“One of the particularities from Valenciso is that they started using concrete (cemento) for the fermentation of their wines right from the beginning in 1998. Now they release a 2018 Cemento, the first vintage of a young, juicy and fruit-driven wine with soft extraction, keeping the fruit and liveliness through aging the wine exclusively in concrete for two and a half years. It’s juicy and ripe without excess at 14% alcohol, and it has a medium to full body, a gentle texture with fine tannins and very good freshness.”
93 points, Luis Gutiérrez, The Wine Advocate.
Organic
From humble beginnings, Valenciso has risen to become a leading light among Rioja’s small yet growing band of terroir-focused producers. The vineyards and cellar are located in the far north of Rioja Alta in Ollauri, a small village four kilometres from Haro. In part of what has been proposed as the Western Sonsierra zone (by Alberto Gil and Antonio Remesal Villar in their compelling new volume—Rioja: Vinos Silenciosos), Ollauri’s vineyards are noted for their excellent calcário soils, altitudes of up to 600 meters and Atlantic-influenced climate. These factors are responsible for imparting depth and finesse into the Rioja Alta’s northern Tempranillo.
A distinctive feature of Valenciso’s approach in the cellar has been the widespread use of concrete tanks for fermentation, a practise which allows for a gentler extraction of fruit and colour. Concrete vats were once a mainstay in Rioja, yet by the by the 1980s the tradition of fermenting and aging in cement vessels had largely been replaced by stainless steel and oak maturation. Today, thanks to its numerous advantages and a group of specialist manufacturers, concrete has found itself right back at the forefront of fashion.
While all Valenciso’s wines see the inside of some concrete during their élevage, this new bottling, as the name suggests, has been fermented and raised entirely in concrete vats. It’s 100% Tempranillo drawn from a group of old-vine vineyards nestled in the limestone-rich hillsides of Haro and Ollauri. All up, this was aged for 30 months before bottling, resulting in a wonderfully bright and complex wine with wild blackberry and plum characters, laced with hints of black pepper in an elegant and rounded palate with fine, lingering tannins.
| Product/Service Sold Out | No |
|---|---|
| En Primeur | No |
| New Arrivals | No |
| Wine Type | Red Wine |
| Wine Style | Certified Organic |
| Country | Spain |
| Region | Rioja |
| Varietals | Tempranillo |
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Wine Points | 93 |
Write Your Own Review