Alegre Valganon 2020 Clarete Rioja DOCa

Item Number: 16153

UPC: 8-437016438084

Country: Spain
Region: Rioja
Sub Region: Rioja Alta
Appellation/AVA: Rioja DOCa
Estate Grown Wine: Yes
Vintage: 2020
Grape(s): 50% Tempranillo / 50% Viura
Type: Wine - Rose
Bottle Size: 750 ml
Pack: 12
Closure: Cork
Alc by Vol(%): 12.5
Soil Type: Limetone-rich clay with sand

Wine Notes: We finally got an allocation of Oscar & Eva’s lip-smacking Clarete! There is not a lot to go around, but it sure is delicious! If you’re not familiar with Clarete, it’s an old style of pink wine that is made (and tastes) more like a light red wine. Here’s a quick Vinepair guide to the style: https://vinepair.com/articles/clarete-spanish-wine-guide/ .

Vineyard Notes: Oscar and Eva are blessed with superb sites—all lying just west of Haro, in the shadow of the Obarenes Mountains. These high elevation sites are key to the quality of their fruit. The couple’s investment in serious, labor-intensive viticulture is what make their wines so special. Traditional and sustainable viticulture is employed, with only organic fertilizers and without herbicides.

91+pts (2021 Vintage) Wine Advocate 7/14/2022
"The rosé 2021 Clarete was produced with a mixture of red and white grapes, approximately 50/50 Garnacha and Viura, mostly from Cordovín and Alesanco. The Viura went destemmed and then the Garnacha with full clusters on top, and they let it start fermenting and then pressed it. So, it's not a super-pale rosé, it has a little more color. It had just been bottled and felt a little dizzy on the nose when I tasted it; so I looked more carefully into the palate and the texture, as the nose should come back with a little more time in bottle, and the wine showed very good freshness and balance. It's 13% alcohol and has a pH of 3.22, wanting to be a gastronomical wine rather than a quaffable one. It matured in a 3,000-liter concrete vat and 1,000-liter oak foudres until it was bottled, in June 2022. 5,200 bottles produced."

91pts (2021 Vintage) Vinous 6/14/2022
"Smoky, mineral-tinged redcurrant, nectarine and blood orange aromas show fine definition and a floral note emerges as the wine opens up. Chewy, weighty and dry on the palate, offering intense pit fruit and red berry flavors and subtle herb and spice accents. The smoke and peach notes repeat on a long, penetrating finish that shows firm tension and final cut."