Palomero 2000 Ribera del Duero D.O.

Palomero 2000 Region: Ribera del Duero D.O.
Winery: UVAGUILERA (PALOMERO)

Grapes: 100% Tinto Fino
Vintage: 2000
Color: Red

Harvested 19-20 hectoliters/hectare only by hand in small boxes from the more than 70 year old La Nava vineyard on the outskirts of La Horra. The de-stemmed Tempranillo grapes from different plots were fermented separately in small stainless vats (13,000 liters) and aged separately until the final assemblage. Elevage of the wine was conducted using only gravity, not pumps. Long maceration of 24 days and aging in 70% New French Allier oak barrels and 30% American oak barrels for a total 27 months. Initial aging in second fill oak for 15 months followed by racking into new oak barrels for a further 12 months aging. No filtration or clarification before bottling.

Reviews
Wine Spectator, 87 points.
Nicely poised between youth and maturity, this red shows black cherry, tobacco and licorice flavors over tannins that are beginning to soften. Not showy, but balanced for food. Drink now through 2010.
Issue 313, May '06

The Wine Advocate, 93 points.
The 2000 Palomero is a sensational effort possessing an inky/purple color as well as a sweet nose of coffee, chocolate, new saddle leather, melted licorice, and plenty of black currant as well as blackberry fruit. It is a full-bodied, opulently-styled red to drink over the next 10-15 years.
Issue 152, April '04

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, 93 points.
Dark red. Highly aromatic, sexy scents of cherry cola, exotic spices, grilled meat, licorice and vanilla. Deep and very sweet, showing superb depth to its lush blackberry and boysenberry flavors. A range of baking spices and vanillin oak adds sex appeal to this rich, full-bodied beauty. Silky-smooth, sweet and pure on the long, suave finish, the dark fruit flavors clinging tenaciously.
Issue 128, Sept/Oct '06

Wine Review Online, 93 points.
This high-end producer from Ribera del Duero has at least two current releases, this 2000 and a 2004, both of which are impressive and tastefully wrought-which is an unusual combination. At nearly six years of age, this still shows primary fruit with lovely black cherry and blackberry flavors, but also some emerging secondary notes of saddle leather and mushrooms, along with some subtle mineral undertones. Oak notes are so well woven with the wine's aromatic and flavor components as to be almost indistinguishable on their own, and the overall package shows exceptional integration and symmetry.
Issue September 12, '06

International Wine Review, 92 points.
The 2000 Palomero is one of the finest wines being produced in Ribera del Duero today. It is sourced from 70 plus-year-old vines and harvested at a little over one ton per acre. It is produced with minimum handling, employs long periods of maceration, aging in new French and American oak, and avoids fining and filtering. Dark opaque ruby in color, this complex wine exhibits a lovely smoky blackberry character with notes of white ash. It has a lush attack with touches of smoked meat, leather and coffee comparable to the finest wines of the Rhône. Savor this wine if you can afford it.
Issue 8, September '07