Pagos Seleccionados, Ribera del Duero
Aalto

Pagos Seleccionados, Ribera del Duero, 2021


Destination

vintage


portfolio

Portfolio
These wines are in stock and are available for delivery at your convenience.


2021

75cl

DP

£94.04


2021

6x75cl

DP

£564.28


2021

1x1.5L

DP

£224.89



Aalto, Pagos Seleccionados, Ribera del Duero, 2021

2021

Justerini & Brooks Tasting note

Aalto, Pagos Seleccionados, Ribera del Duero, 2021

Pagos Seleccionados is always a more powerful, classical Ribera del Duero. A “selection within a selection” focusing on the prime villages of La Horra and La Aguilera, the vines average 60-90 years old. Qualitatively it sits with the likes of Vega and Pingus, but at a snip of the price. Dark fruited with flowers dusted in coffee and chocolate, a certain stony minerality and spice. Best broached after a minimum of five years in bottle. Raised in new French oak for 21 months.

ABV:
15%
95/100
Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous

The 2021 PS is 100% Tempranillo, primarily sourced from clay soils in La Horra and Aguilera, and was aged for up to 20 months in French barrels. Garnet-red in hue. Cherry and cola notes complement pine and dried flowers against a vanilla and cedar backdrop. It's broad and creamy in the mouth, with a chalky core and a lasting oaky flavor. This tasting occurred just after bottling, but it promises to develop a more nuanced character in the medium term.
Date Reviewed:
11/2023

specifications

country:
Spain


Appellation:

Producer:
Aalto

style:

Grape Variety:

Allergen Information:
This product may contain sulphites. Full allergen information is available upon request, please call our Customer Relations Team on +44 (0)20 7484 6430.


Aalto

Aalto

Now with twenty vintages under their belts and a highly detailed understanding of the scores of parcels of old vines they own, Aalto has well and truly established itself as one of the great wines of both Ribera del Duero and Spain in general. It is hardly surprising given that it was established in 1999 as a collaboration between Javier Zaccagnini and Mariano Garcia, the former an ex-director of Ribera’s Consejo Regulador, the latter winemaker at Vega Sicilia for 30 years. In their state-of-the-art, gravity fed winery the team receive the multiple plots in refrigerated rooms for sorting and de-stemming before parcel by parcel vinification down below. Ageing takes place in barriques with a selection of the finest plots, generally with a “heart” of wine from the great village of La Horra, being selected to make Aalto PS (Pagos Seleccionados). The straight cuvee of Aalto tends to drink very well on release, the PS often requiring more like six to ten years to show its full potential. Aalto now hails from seven different villages across the region with vineyards averaging 40-80 years of age. Over the years, the proportion of new oak and time in barrel has reduced to around 50%, purely French, and just 16-18 months before bottling. Tender tannins, vibrant acidities, and deep black fruit and coffee notes typify this beautifully sleek, glossy Ribera del Duero. In 2018 Javier Zaccagnini left Aalto for pastures new, handing over to Eduardo Ferrin who becomes Managing Director, while Mariano Garcia remains in place as head of the winemaking team.

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