Bodegas Montecillo Crianza Tinto 2017
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Wilfred
Wong
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Bright garnet red, with a noticeable purple rim. Nose with a very clear presence of ripe red fruit and stone fruits, such as cherry. After light aeration, traces of fruit jam appear, followed by sweet notes of coconut and patisserie. Silky on the palate, with sublime tannins from start to finish, and a richness of texture from the high glycerol content. Long and persistent, with clean and enjoyable fruit notes appearing again, followed by palate enveloping tannins.
Blend: 85% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacha
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2017 Montecillo Crianza is lively and enticing. TASTING NOTES: This wine exhibits aromas and flavors of black fruit and soft spices. Pair it with an old-fashioned, slow-cooked beef stew. (Tasted: March 7, 2022, San Francisco, CA)
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Established in 1870, Bodegas Montecillo is one of the oldest wineries in the D.O. Rioja. The name, Montecillo—or little mountain—speaks to the irregular topography of the Rioja vineyards. Surrounded by vines and close to the waters of the majestic Ebro river, the city of Fuenmayor is set amongst flat topped hills, and in the distance, the distinctive rocky mass of the Cantabrian Mountains.
Montecillo’s ancient underground ‘bodega’ houses hand stacked bottles that remain undisturbed until reaching optimal roundness, including vintages that date back to 1926, the year that the Rioja Designation of Origin was created. The wines are crafted to enjoy a long bottle life; they continue bottle ageing longer than those from other wineries in the region.
Montecillo is also renowned for its female winemakers; led by oenologist Mercedes Garcia.
Hailed as the star red variety in Spain’s most celebrated wine region, Tempranillo from Rioja, or simply labeled, “Rioja,” produces elegant wines with complex notes of red and black fruit, crushed rock, leather, toast and tobacco, whose best examples are fully capable of decades of improvement in the cellar.
Rioja wines are typically a blend of fruit from its three sub-regions: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental, although specific sub-region (zonas), village (municipios) and vineyard (viñedo singular) wines can now be labeled. Rioja Alta and Alavesa, at the highest elevations, are considered to be the source of the brightest, most elegant fruit, while grapes from the warmer and drier, Rioja Oriental, produce wines with deep color, great body and richness.