Ribera del Duero, Finca El Otero, Áster 2019
Tim Atkin MW 97 (2023); James Suckling 94 (2022)
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Why this wine
The same family's Ribera estate, farming a single high-altitude parcel rather than blending across the appellation. Ribera's altitude and diurnal swing give Tempranillo a darker, firmer profile than Rioja, and this pushes that to its limit. A useful direct comparison if you already know the Rioja wines.
At a glance
- Grape
- Tinta del País (Tempranillo)
- Region
- Castilla y León, Spain
- Alcohol
- 15.00%
- Body
- Full
- Acidity
- Medium
- Tannins
- High
- Sweetness
- Dry
- Drink
- Exceptional Longevity (15-50+ Years)
- Pairs with
- Red Meat, Cheese
What our customers say
No one has reviewed this wine yet. If you have drunk it, we would like to hear what you thought.
How it tastes
Complex, intense black fruit with toasty oak, coffee, toffee, sweet spice and cedar. Creamy, ripe tannins carry a smooth, harmonious palate full of spicy nuance. Tinta del País (Tempranillo) 100%.
The producer
Áster is La Rioja Alta's Ribera del Duero estate at Anguix in Burgos, planted with Tinta del País in 1990 with a winery built in 2000 that holds up to 4,000 French and American barrels. Finca El Otero is made only in exceptional years from a single plot of vines over 60 years old at 850 metres, on poor, dry clay-loam slopes that force the roots deep and keep yields low; the estate limits treatments, reuses water and has installed insect shelters to build biodiversity. Winemaker Julio Sáenz picked in the cold of the morning, gave the fruit a natural seven-day cold soak, fermented spontaneously for 18 days, then finished malolactic in new French oak with weekly bâtonnage before selecting the best barrels for 16 months in new French oak with two traditional rackings. Low rainfall in 2019 gave fewer, smaller berries and a harvest officially rated Excellent.
Food and drinking
Good with roast lamb, suckling pig, rib of beef and aged sheep's cheese. Drinking now with a long decant and built to develop for 15 years or more. Serve at 17–18°C. Not suitable for vegetarians or vegans.