The 25 best NEW wine producers according to Jancis
The 25 best NEW wine producers according to Jancis
Ver mensaje de Juan SuchPublished in the Financial Times, Jancis describes what she considers as ";The 25 Best New Wine Producers";. Four are from Spain:
Abadia Retuerta, Spain
The Novartis group poured money into this old abbey just outside the official Ribera del Duero region, to great effect.
Alvaro Palacios, Spain
Cherubic in looks, Alvaro Palacios is demonic in ambition. His L’Ermita from the slopes of Priorat is now legendary.
Artadi, Rioja
This unglamorous bodega, founded in 1985, now has an impressive track record for top-quality modern red wine.
Alain Brumont, South-west France
The king of Madiran first made wine in 1982; these days he makes both Chateau Montus and Domaine Bouscasse.
Willi Brundlmayer, Austria
Since 1980 this talented winemaker has transformed 125 acres of terraces, set above the Danube at Langenlois, into a beacon for Austrian wine.
Ca’ Marcanda, Tuscany
Italian wine magician Angelo Gaja may have inherited his growing base in Piedmont, but this is his all-new, architecturally stunning investment in Tuscany.
Sylvain Cathiard, Burgundy
It’s hard to find a truly ";new"; domaine in Burgundy, where land is zealously guarded, but here at least is a candidate with a new name.
Didier Dagueneau, Loire
The wild man of Pouilly-Fume, who has gone his own way - and in every direction - since 1982.
Gangloff, North Rhone
Yves and Mathilde Gangloff make super-subtle Cote Rotie and massive Condrieu.
Gantenbein, Switzerland
Daniel and Martha Gantenbein of Flasch in German-speaking Switzerland have been pushing everything to the limit.
Gerard Gauby, Roussillon
As gifted a maker of full-bodied whites as of Pyrenees reds.
Vincent Girardin, Burgundy
An admirably consistent merchant-bottler who has created his reputation in less than a generation.
Domaine de l’Hortus, Languedoc
Jean Orliac is a couple of departements to the east of Gauby and, like him, has 20 years of great whites and reds behind him.
Kracher, Austria
Alois Kracher follows in his vine-growing father’s footsteps, bounding on to the world stage with amazingly opulent sweet whites.
Josef Leitz, Germany
Much improvement since Johannes Leitz took over his family’s Rheingau over-achiever.
Loosen, Germany
Ernie Loosen of Bernkastel (now also of Pfalz and Washington State), has also completely re-invigorated a family estate - and a country’s wine reputation.
Joao Portugal Ramos, Portugal
Consultant winemaker who has worked hard to establish his own brands such as Marques de Borba.
Luis Pato, Portugal
Obsessive finessing of the unique red and white wines of Bairrada.
Le Pin, Pomerol
Since Jacques Thienpont’s first vintage in 1979, prices have elevated even above those of neighbouring Chateau Petrus.
Dominio de Pingus, Spain
Dane Peter Sisseck makes by far the most expensive wine in Ribera del Duero, Spain’s most fashionable fine-wine region.
Planeta, Sicily
Showed the world that Sicily can make world-class wines, now with indigenous grape varieties.
Tenuta di Trinoro, Tuscany
Andrea Franchetti pursues his evolving goals in splendid isolation, well west of Montalcino.
Chateau Tertre Roteboeuf, St-Emilion
Francois Mitjavile’s first vintage was 1978; back then he couldn’t afford to buy new barrels. Now the wines are stellar.
Chateau Tirecul La Graviere, south-west France
Stunningly successful sweet white Monbazillac from a slope overlooking Bergerac and the Dordogne valley.
Roberto Voerzio, Piedmont
Great, cultish Barolos from the second Voerzio son, who inherited his smallholdings from his father, then went off and did his own delicious thing.
Re: The 25 best NEW wine producers according to Jancis
Ver mensaje de Juan SuchLists like this are invariable so subjective and problematic that it is hard to take them seriously. This list seems to include at least some producers that started in the late 1970’s, perhaps before. So much has happened in the Spanish wine industry since that time that I’m sure it would be hard enough to identify the 25 ";best"; ";new"; producers in Spain.
Your four new Spanish wine producers?
Ver mensaje de WaltZalenskiYes, a very subjective list. Anyway I have been quite amazed with the Spanish selection made by Jancis: Abadia Retuerta, Alvaro Palacios, Artadi and Pingus.
I think everybody can agree on Alvaro Palacios. Pingus and Artadi are a little bit more controversial (I don’t know their wines well so I can’t judge). Abadia Retuerta is definitely a surprise...
If you had to choose only four new Spanish wine producers, what could be your choice? Mine: Alvaro Palacios, Roda, Mauro and Clos Mogador. Yes, it’s hard, very hard and subjective to choose...
The Old World’s New World
Ver mensaje de Juan SuchIf I had to limit the list to four: Garcia (post Vega Sicilia projects, particularly Mauro), Palacios, Sisseck. I would like add a Rioja producer as my last pick. Perhaps Romeo (giving him credit for past Artadi glories and the future of Contador). I have no particular objection to your suggestions of Mogador and Roda, it’s just that it is difficult to limit the list to four.
There are two reasons why I refer to Spain as the Old World’s New World. One is the issue raised here: there is a plethora of notable new producers. The other reason is that many Spanish wines offer the type of characteristics one finds in popular New World wines, but with a far greater sense of authenticity.
Re: The Old World’s New World
Ver mensaje de WaltZalenskiHello Walt,
I was pleased for your comment: ";The other reason is that many Spanish wines offer the type of characteristics one finds in popular New World wines, but with a far greater sense of authenticity.";
Being Catalan I am proud and pleased of the Priorat’s success worldwide (even so painful for my pocket), and as far I rememeber, 20 years ago, my parents and parents-in-law were aware that ’Priorat was different’ to the rest of the wines, even the quality was in many cases barely acceptable. This sense of personality was there, despite of the global quality.
I would like to ask you about the meaning of the ’authenticity’ you mention. Can you compare two concrete wines? for instance, one from ’New World’ and one from ";The Old World’s New World";.
Many thanks!
Regards!
Salut
Joan
Re: The Old World’s New World
Ver mensaje de JoanFIn a sense, the phrase, ";the Old World’s New World"; could summarize everything I know about Spanish wine. What do I mean by authenticity? I don’t have a lot of time now, so I will have to be very brief. Certainly part - but only part - of what I mean is that Spain offers many big fruit-forward wines that generally can be placed in the same category of many California and Australian wines. In comparison to most of those wines, however, Spanish wine offers more of a sense of place and tradition, it is more likely to be produced in smaller quantities, it is more likely to have artisanal qualities, and is less likely to give the impression that it is ";manufactured.";
The terriorists generally would not say that the wines of Priorat, which you mentioned, meet their ideal. But what wine should naturally be produced from the low yielding old vines and difficult soil of Priorat? It seems to me that these wines are the authentic expression of this terroir.
Oddly enough, Joan, your comments about your pride of the ";Catalan"; nature of Priorat wines is an element of authenticity and ";Old World"; view, at least in part of the sense that I mean it. Let’s take an even clearer example. When I drink a bottle of Grans Muralles, I can appreciate the strong sense of Catalan history and pride associated with this wine, particularly given the location of its vineyards and its varietal mix. I derive similar sentiments from a Vega Sicilia or a classic Rioja. The wines to not have to be old. Similar to Grans Muralles, new bodegas from the regions of in Old Castile, for example, can and do give me a sense of place and history. Of course, I am from none of these regions and I cannot begin to have the same associations or pride as the people that are from there. But I can appreciate that such pride exists in others, and for some reason this seems important to me. Certainly this sense appears absent from California or OZ.
Re: The Old World’s New World
Ver mensaje de WaltZalenskiThank you very much Walt, very clear explanation. I enjoyed reading it.
Yes, Grans Muralles is a great wine made in vineyards next to ’Poblet’, a monastery where the catalan kings have their tomb... so, history is there :-D
Cheers.
Joan
Re: The Old World’s New World
Ver mensaje de JoanFUnfortuantley for him, I don’t suppose that Jaume I was drinking anything nearly as good Grans Muralles in Catalonia (or as good as Anima Negra during his years in Mallorca). But I guess there is at least a good possibility he was drinking wines from garro, samso and callet grapes.
Speaking of garro and samso, I learned that Abadal (in D.O. Pla del Bages, not far from Montserrat) may be in the process of re-discovering other ancient and almost extinct Catalan varietals. In addition, they are making some terrific wines in their recent vintages.