2016 VALDUERO RESERVA TIERRA DE 2 GOTAS RESERVA, RIBERA DEL DUERO SPAIN

"Yolanda García Viadero and her family farm 495 acres of bush vines, which they planted in the late 1980s in the town of Gumiel del Mercado, at an elevation around 2,750 feet above sea level. They farm without chemicals and age their reserva-level wines in French oak barrels against the walls of a deep 15th-century limestone cellar in town. This is the García Viaderos' take on modern Ribera del Duero—rather than the radical-traditional style of Goyo, Yolanda’s brother, who split from the family to tend ancient vines and produce fresh field blends without sulfur. Much as I love the work Goyo does and the beauty of the results, I can’t deny the beauty of Yolanda’s 2014. It’s floral and elegant, evolving toward an idealized vision of what tempranillo can be. The wine’s tart red fruit has exciting freshness six years after harvest, offering notes of game and black plum skin, pear-like acidity and clarity. Lovely."