From Ribera del Duero, a Big, Rich Red Wine

June 10, 2011

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Diner’s Journal

Notes on Eating, Drinking and Cooking

From Ribera del Duero, a Big, Rich Red Wine

“So round, so firm, so fully packed …” The words of the old Lucky Strike cigarette slogan, which became the title of a hit song in 1947 for Merle Travis, kept running through my mind as the wine panel was tasting Ribera del Dueros, the subject of my column.

Yes, folks, these are big, rich red wines. They pack the glass with ripe, round fruit flavors, often bolstered by significant tannins. It’s not a style that I personally find especially appealing, but nonetheless the bottles we tasted were generally very well done.

The wines seemingly require massive hunks of protein, dripping with juices, to match their power, although I must say my colleague Florence Fabricant came up with a tasty variation on a steak in her Pairings column. Indeed, one of our guest panelists, Sean Josephs, who was once a sommelier in a steakhouse, said he used to sell a lot of Ribera del Dueros as alternatives to Napa Valley cabernet sauvignons.

I can see that. Though some people might want to lump Ribera del Dueros and Napa cabs into a single, enormous category of homogenized, international-style red wines, they are in fact quite different. The dominant style among Napa cabs is to whack you over the head with voluptuous ripe fruit, but the Ribera del Dueros –- the ones we liked best, at least –- showed another element along with all the fruit, perhaps an herbal touch, or a spiciness, that made the powerful fruit a little less overwhelming.

For Spain, Ribera del Duero has been a big success story. Yet as far as red wines go I find myself more interested in the wines of other emerging regions, like Bierzo, Montsant and Ribeira Sacra. Perhaps I’m missing something. Or maybe I need to find a new song to hum.

Source: http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/from-ribera-del-duero-a-big-rich-red-wine/

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