Ribera del Duero and the fight for differentiation

This week we publish the tastings of two great Denominaciones de Origen, two producing regions with a renowned name inside and outside our borders. Rioja and Ribera, sometimes rivals for those consumers who declare themselves followers of one over the other. At other times complementary, for those blessed followers who turn to their wines cyclically without taking sides in favour of one or the other. Wineries in both areas were pioneers in Spain in such relevant aspects as the search for and representation of terroir, the marketing of high-end wines at high prices, or in the conception of wines capable not only of enduring, but finding in time the best ally to improve and show the effect of a vintage many years after its making. 

Both producing areas have great virtues in their ranks that are evident through the best rated wines. However, everything can be improved and as such there are new challenges that are interesting for the progress in each of them. If last week we talked about the wines of the Ebro in this post, today it is the turn of the wines of the Duero, specifically of the Ribera del Duero.

Ribera del Duero wine has been able to create a solid and trustworthy image in a very short time, despite the fact that the actual history of red wine in this region is relatively young. This image and the path taken towards this projected solidity is due in part to the figure of a pioneer who has recently passed away. We are talking about Alejandro Fernández, whose oenological and commercial work served to project Ribera and its wines both inside and outside Spain, a revolutionary who changed the course of Ribera del Duero. There are essential figures in the history of wine and Alejandro Fernández is one of them.

Nobody doubts the power of Ribera del Duero wines. We ourselves have been able to confirm their excellent moment in our recent Recata exercise, where we decided the best wines of the year. Well, this year two Ribera del Duero wines have managed to reach 99 points, the maximum score given by the Peñín Guide. Peter Sisseck's Pingus 2019, a well-rounded wine in every aspect, with a finesse and a very lively and unusual fruit, together with Jorge Monzón's Canta la Perdiz 2016, a wine rich in local nuances and with an extraordinary tension on the palate.

Canta la Perdiz 2016

Today, average sales prices in Ribera del Duero are much higher than those of its Rioja neighbours, although it is also worth noting that the production in litres of one varies greatly from the other. Ribera wines have always been characterised by having greater muscle than Rioja, even though we are talking about the same variety, or at least in theory, because in practice Tempranillo from Ribera has a thicker skin and therefore more tannin than Rioja. This is the result of its adaptation to the always harsh, extreme continental climate of Castile. 

This greater structure and tannin motivated its producers to seek in wood the way to soften or tame all the strength of the wine, an illusion, because along the way other tannins began to emerge, those from wood, which doubled the brawny power of their wines. It is also impossible to deny the influence that the wine critic Robert Parker had on this style of wine at the time, as his evaluations, as well as those of other international critics, led many producers to modulate their winemaking towards this model based on over-extraction and the use of intensely toasted oak.

Every year we see new wines in Ribera del Duero that seek to soften the presence of oak with work that highlights other things, such as fruit or soil. However, and this is where we see the biggest challenge for the area, Ribera del Duero has to be able to show a greater diversity of styles if it is to be much more than a full-bodied, tannic, ripe and fruity wine. The best producers in the area know how to stamp a unique and differentiating style. Peter Sisseck (Dominio de Pingus), Jorge Monzón (Dominio del Águila) and, of course, Vega Sicilia and Dominio de Atauta, among others, are showing with each passing year a new Ribera that is much more exportable and more drinkable.

Some of the styles of Ribera already exist, they do not need to be invented. However, it is necessary to know how to transmit them to the consumer, to verbalise them so that their existence becomes evident and they are associated with an additional Ribera style. The general Ribera del Duero style is a line that can coexist with freshness and elegance, but we must understand that we are in an area with an extreme continental climate and as such is prone to naturally generate wines with a certain weight. It would be possible for an experienced winemaker to show us an "infusion" style Ribera, but it would also be hardly representative of the environment where it is born, something that already happens in some other parts of Spain, where this subtle style, typical of other producing regions of the world, is so popular that they forget the origin where they want to create it and its natural identity, a basic principle in the world of quality wine. If some of Ribera's styles are already created, there is also an obstacle to a greater representation of styles in the region. This is none other than the requirement that the wines have a minimum percentage of 75% of tinta fina grapes (tempranillo). This is a very high percentage compared to other areas which prevents producers from opening up the stylistic range of their wines by generously incorporating other grapes with different characteristics and traits.

Since Ribera del Duero accepted the production of white wines with the albillo mayor grape under the D.O. label, many wineries have opted to expand their range of wines with a white wine. Although the vast majority of wineries have opted for the production of wines for immediate consumption, we have been able to see how the best results are obtained with wines aged for a long time in the bottle, as was the case with the Arzuaga Navarro 2007 white, a revelation wine in the Peñín Guide 2020. Furthermore, we have confirmed the longevity of albillo mayor through a vertical tasting of Jorge Monzón's personal wine Dominio del Águila Albillo Viñas Viejas.

From today you can consult the 680 new tastings published in Peñín, a tasting that has left us a select group of Podium wines that are very representative of the area. If you want to get to know Ribera del Duero in detail, you might want to start by tasting the best of the best. But if you prefer, you can always go for the best value for money wines in the area.