Artadi
Pagos Viejos 2009
Grape
varieties: Tempranillo
Geographical
Origin: D.O. Rioja
Producer:
Bodegas y Viñedos Artadi
Okay,
so I know it’s infanticide, but just for investigative purposes I
opened my first bottle of Artadi Pagos Viejos 2009 last week.
The
wine is a dark, deep, impenetrable purple colour, indicating that
it’s a long way from being open for business. Its nose, meanwhile,
is also intense and tightly wound. There are hints of roasted coffee,
cedar wood and pure fruit on the nose, but it doesn’t open up fully
– this will evolve into something far more giving over the next few
years.
As
for the mouth feel, there are still inevitable rough edges to the
tannins on entry, but the mid-palate fills out silkily and the finish
goes on and on. This Pagos Viejos combines intense (never jammy or
acidic) fruits of the forest with liquorice, a spot of yoghurt and
then toffee on the aftertaste.
The
fruit and oak are already knitting together, but this wine will
continue to grow, flesh out and build its complexities. It’s too
well-balanced to be a flabby fruit bomb, but it’s certainly a
hedonistic expression of Rioja in a modern idiom. Enjoy now. Enjoy
more in the future!
