Olivier Rivière, a native of Cognac, and trained at various French domaines came to Spain, first to work with Telmo Rodríguez. At the same time he was buying vineyards, and he now owns land in Rioja, Navarra – and here in Arlanza (Castilla y León). True to the lands and the traditions, this is the kind of guy that Spain can’t get enough of. I think he can help to get Rioja on the right track, and Arlanza needs all forces put together to bring the area into the lime-light for the first time. Anyway, here is a 95% tempranillo, 5% garnacha that in fact reminds me a little of the garnachas of Gredos, at least in terms of mouthfeel (the rich, in one way alcoholic, but in another not alcoholic after all, if you know what I mean…). Here it is!
Viñas del Cadastro 2009 (Olivier Rivière)
Deep young red. Dark fruits, plums, morelloes. Full-bodied and long and with a warming, but not pungent, alcohol, and lots of rounded tannins.
Price: Medium
Food: Red meat and roasts, but surprisingly good without too.