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April 11, 2011

Benjamin Romeo – Rioja with a difference

The English voice of our sat-nav sounded very out of place as we wound our way through the steep, narrow streets of San Vicente de la Sonsierra, the tiny hilltop village which Benjamin Romeo – trailblazing Riojan winemaker – calls home.

We were racing against the setting early spring sun, so decided to abandon our hire car by the deserted village square rather than checking into our hotel. The Romeo winemaking team were there to meet us, with the notable exception of Benjamin himself, who had suffered an accident in the vineyard a couple of days previously and was convalescing in the local hospital.

With the briefest of stops for a palate-cleansing caña, Alison, Scott and I were bundled into a pick-up and given a whistle-stop tour of the principal Romeo vineyards. Benjamin’s flagship wine, Contador, is produced from four or five tiny sites, all planted with bush vines, some of which are a century old. The vineyards are meticulously tended to, but the overall appearance is fairly haphazard, with different varietals growing side by side on what looks like scrubland. Benjamin believes strongly in letting the vineyard evolve, saying that if he wanted linear wines, he would have linear vines.

Cult wine La Viña de Andres, named after Benjamin’s father, is made from a precarious riverside site called El Bosque. The poor soils make the vines work hard, producing highly concentrated berries, which are further intensified by removing a third of the grapes a few weeks before harvest.

We tasted the new vintages in Benjamin’s sleek winery, in which contemporary sculpture lines the walls and each room is separated from the next by James Bond-like electric sliding doors. The handrail leading into the barrel room doubles as a conduit for the free run grape juice on its passage from foot-treading to fermentation. The juxtaposition of fiercely old-fashioned winemaking practices and forward-thinking technology is classic Benjamin Romeo. This is a producer who was biodynamic before the term became fashionable, although true to form he has never sought official certification.

A quick word on the status of the wines – by choosing not to conform to the strictures of the Consejo Regulador (the regional regulatory body), Benjamin’s wines fall outside the Rioja D.O. classification hierarchy. But you can take it from me that they will give any Rioja Gran Reserva more than a run for its money!

…Cut to the following week and the tapas bar Barrica in London’s West End. Benjamin’s winemaker Allende Perez and business partners Patxi Fernandez and Reg Ward were in town to host a dinner with a menu designed around three of Benjamin’s whites and four of the reds. The evening was a great success, in convivial, relaxed surroundings. Benjamin was with us in spirit and we wish him a speedy recovery. Tasting notes for the wines we drank are below.

  

Whites

Macizo 2009
The only wine Benjamin makes from outside his beloved Rioja. Made from old vine grapes grown in Cataluña and matured for 8 months in oak. A pale yellow-gold in colour, it has ripe stone fruit layered and a lovely viscous, almost cookie dough-like finish, offset beautifully by an overall refined mineral character.

Predicador Blanco 2009
Possibly the best white Rioja at this price level I have ever tasted (yes, that is quite a claim). A pretty pale gold in colour, with delicate floral notes and a citrus core, filled out by vanilla cream and lemongrass. Perfectly poised.

Que Bonita Cacareaba 2009
A more lustrous wine, pale gold in colour, with a generous warm pastry yet mineral nose. Opulent and seductive on the palate, with hints of tangerine, lemon shortcake and vanilla cream. Wafts of wild herbs enhance the nose and palate. An excellent white Rioja to serve with food.

Reds

  

Predicador 2007
With an eye-catching label designed around the Clint Eastwood film Pale Rider, one of Benjamin’s favourites, this is in many ways the benchmark wine of the range. Deep jet-plum in colour, with a firm, dark cherry rim. The aromatics are very attractive, rich and sweet, combining blueberry, cherry and cassis, all lifted by a citrus tang. Hints of fennel and wild herbs.

 La Cueva del Contador 2007
The second wine of Contador, this is a very fine wine in its own right, blended from multiple sites. 18 months in new French oak and just 1.5kg of fruit per vine give an opaque plum-cherry colour, which clings to the glass. The nose is rich, with almost caramelised cherries. The palate is luxurious in texture, full and ripe with beautiful fruit supported by rounded tannins, all complemented by hints of wild herbs, minerals and bitter chocolate.

La Viña de Andres 2002
Almost opaque, the nose has lovely purity, complex but pure red and black fruit, with darker, brooding savoury elements, all punctuated by minerals and herbs. Powerful and harmonious, with fine, elegant tannins, a luxurious and uplifting wine.

Contador 2008
A Tempranillo/Garnacha blend which comes from 12 different parcels in 2008, balancing rounded, structured components with lighter, fresher styles. Plum-cherry in colour, a relatively subtle nose but with underlying power and complexity. Hints of red and black fruit and mocha are revealed on the palate, refreshed by minerals and wild herbs, plus a floral and citrus dimension, all set within an opulent, seductively-textured structure. A beautifully focused wine.

Question –Have you had the chance to try any of Benjamin’s stunning wines? If so, what did you think?

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