URBINA RIOJA WINE TASTING AT THE WHITE HART IN WESTON IN GORDANO
The White Hart is a very old village pub that has been through many incarnations over many, many years. In 2013 it closed for what many felt would be the last time. It remained derelict and neglected for two years during which time the village community of Weston in Gordano worked hard to save it. Ultimately the village achieved a successful outcome when the pub underwent a massive re-build and renovation over the summer months of 2015 It is now simultaneously a village pub and a destination venue the likes of which exists nowhere else in the area. Menus are good pub & restaurant food alongside a notable pizzeria menu. The garden has been described as 'jaw dropping'. With shop and private dining available too. Now The White Hart is looking to the future with great optimism.
- The White Hart: Clevedon Road, Weston-in-Gordano, BS20 8PU. Tel: 01275 818702.
- Restaurante and Rooms at Venga: 24 High St, Portishead, Bristol BS20 6EN. Tel: 01275 814 391
The White Hart in Weston-in-Gordano is a traditional village pub which has recently been refitted to encompass a tasteful modern dining area. The black leather high-backed chairs and dark wood of the floor and tables create a stylish look to the restaurant, complemented by candles and slate place mats. The modernity of the new dining area is juxtaposed with old photographs on the walls, which provide a fascinating insight into the history of this North Somerset village.
The menu offers many of the pub classics which you would expect from a British pub and an extensive list of well-priced beers and wines, including an interesting sparkling red wine. A twist on a favourite starter was stuffed potato boats, lavishly filled with melted brie, topped with bacon and finished with sour cream (£3.95). The toasted garlic and mozzarella ciabatta (£3.25) was generous and well presented.
A 10oz rib-eye steak was served on a breathtaking sizzling platter (£11.95) accompanied by onion rings and chips and served with a choice of vegetables or salad. Hunters' chicken (£8.25) was perfectly succulent, wrapped in bacon and topped with mozzarella and a light barbeque sauce. Many of the traditional British puddings were offered, from which we chose a light blackberry cheesecake and an indulgent chocolate fudge cake, both served with a choice of cream or ice cream (£3.25).
The pub is one of ten which make up a chain of thriving pubs in the South West. The White Hart provides a relaxed, friendly environment in which to savour reasonably priced classic pub food which is produced and presented to a high standard.
BODEGAS URBINA AT THE WHITE HART WINE TASTING
On Monday 17th October R S Wines and The White Hart was proud to host Bodegas Urbina from Rioja Alta in the garden Tepee (8 wines and cheese & meat platters). They were accompanied by Pedro Urbina Jnr who presented a range of wines from the family estate vineyards in the Cuzcaritta La Rioja Alta.
Wines were tasted including the exciting new venture Bodegas Salva, together with the much loved traditional Reservas & Gran Reserva; the "mahogany masterpieces" of the Urbina range.
GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE
Located south of the Cantabrian Mountains along the Ebro river, La Rioja benefits from a continental climate. The mountains help to isolate the region which has a moderating effect on the climate. They also protect the vineyards from the fierce winds that are typical of northern Spain. The region is also home to the Oja river (Rio Oja), believed to have given the region its name.
Most of the region is situated on a plateau, a little more than 1,500 feet (460 m) above sea level. The area is subdivided into three regions - Rioja Alavesa, Rioja Alta and Rioja Baja. La Rioja Alavesa and la Rioja Alta, located closer to the mountains, are at slightly higher elevations and have a cooler climate. La Rioja Baja to the southeast is drier and warmer. Annual rainfall in the region ranges from 12 inches (300 mm) in parts of Baja to more than 20 inches (510 mm) in La Rioja Alta and Alavesa. Many of Rioja's vineyards are found along the Ebro valley between the towns of Haro and Alfaro.
Bodegas Urbina is located in "Rioja Alta" on the western edge of the region and at higher elevations than the other areas, the Rioja Alta is known more for its "old world" style of wine. A higher elevation equates to a shorter growing season, which in turn produces brighter fruit flavors and a wine that is lighter on the palate.
INNOVATION IN TRADITION: WINES WITH THEIR OWN PERSONALITY
One of the traits that sets Rioja Wines apart is their excellent aptitude for ageing, a quality that is exclusive to great wines. Through appropriate ageing,. in which oak wood plays a decisive role, Rioja Wine evolves, its virtues becoming more prominent and acquiring new aromas and flavours.
Rioja Wines are aged in 225 litre oak casks, where the wine experiences a slow evolutionary process of micro-oxygenation and stabilisation, and eventually acquires aromas and flavours released by the tannins in the wood. This is the traditional ageing method of great wines, a natural, more costly process than modern proposals of a more "industrial" oenology.
The ageing process is completed in the bottle, where the wine continues to evolve in a reducing atmosphere until it reaches its peak. Great wines from historic vintages sleep in bottles for decades in the "sacristies" of the bodegas until they are transformed into true oenological gems.
Depending on the ageing process, Rioja wine can be put into one of four categories, identified by different numbered back labels or seals, which the Control Board issues to those wines that meet quality and tipicity requirements:
- Young wines: This category guarantees the origin and vintage of the wine. They are usually wines in their first or second year which preserve their fresh, fruity, primary characteristics. This category may also include other wines which do not fit into the categories of Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reseva, even though they have undergone ageing processes, as a consequence of their not being certified by the Control Board.
- Crianza wines: Wines which are at least in their third year, having spent a minimum of one year in casks. For white wines, the minimum cask ageing period is 6 months.
- Reserva wines: Selected wines of the best vintages with an excellent potential that have been aged for a minimum of 3 years, with at least one year in casks. For white wines, the minimum ageing period is 2 years, with at least 6 months in casks.
- Gran Reserva wines: Selected wines from exceptional vintages which have spent at least 2 years in oak casks and 3 years in the bottle. For white wines, the minimum ageing period is 4 years, with at least one year in casks.
The four models of numbered back labels or seals that should accompany every bottle of Rioja wine that is sold constitute a document that guarantees the ageing category as well as the origin, vintage and quality of the wine. The characteristics of each vintage determine the amount of wine that winemakers will assign to each ageing category -Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva.
Rioja wines are elegant, original and have the unmistakable character of great wines, something which is only possible when grape varieties, vine-growing methods and winemaking procedures have been honed over time. Given the diversity in winegrowing offered by the Designation, it has been a traditional practice by the bodegas to blend different grape varieties and wines, from different vineyards and towns, seeking the complementary elements which will intensify their respective properties in the end product. This is undoubtedly the best-known kind of Rioja, although bodegas are increasingly offering a rich variety of styles with wines of high fruit concentration which aim to express the traits of specific vineyards.
With Tempranillo as the main element, Rioja reds are characterised by being very balanced in their alcohol content, colour and acidity, by having a body and structure offset perfectly by a gentle and elegant flavour and by being mainly fruity in nature when young and more velvety when aged. These characteristics make Rioja Wines highly versatile when combining with the most varied foods. This, together with the fact that it is a user-friendly, easy-to-drink wine, constitutes one of the keys to its success.
VINIFICATION AND AGEING
- White wines: The whole grape is passed to a draining tank. The stems are then removed and it is pressed to obtain the must which is transferred to the fermentation tanks.
- Rosé wines: The grape is destemmed and lightly crushed and sent to draining tanks. Here, it is left to macerate for a short period. It is then pressed and left for a day for the suspended particles to settle. It is then decanted and the almost crystalline must is transferred to the fermentation tanks.
- Red wines: There are two ways of making red wine in Rioja. The most widely used today involves the removal of the stalks in a destemmer before fermentation. This is more appropriate for wines which are to be aged in wood. In the traditional system, the whole grape bunches are fermented in large pools. This is known as "carbonic maceration". The resulting wines are smoother, with good body, intense colour and ideally suited for drinking during their first year.
In both cases the must is overpumped during fermentation, to ensure good colour extraction and maintain a constant temperature throughout the tank. Both systems aim to achieve uniform fermentation and to ensure the aromas from the must are not lost.
After fermentation, the wine is decanted. After separating the solid matter, the wine is transferred to storage tanks and subjected to quality controls.
Control Board carries out sensorial and laboratory tests to determine whether the wine deserves to be considered a "Rioja". The sensorial tests are carried out at the premises of the Control Board and in the Viticulture and Oenology Station in Haro, La Rioja. Lab tests are carried out in the House of Wine in Laguardia, Alava and the Oenological Station in Olite, Navarre and the Haro Station.
Rioja wines are aged in 225-litre oak casks, with periodic rackings, followed by a further period of bottle ageing. There are over 368 ageing bodegas in Rioja which have a total of 1,266,154 casks. The different Rioja wine categories are based on minimum ageing periods, which can vary between 1 and 3 years in casks and between 6 months and 6 years in the bottle, depending on whether the wine is to be a Crianza, a Reserva or a Gran Reserva.
Urbina Viura White Wine DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Macabeo (Viura)
- Alcohol: 12%
- Viticulture: Wine made from grapes Macabeo (locally known as Viura), grown in clay-limestone soils, excellent for the preparation of complex white wines with an elegant finesse.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 30.000 bottles
- Elaboration: After collection, the wine remains in contact with the skin for 48 hours maceration at 10 ° C, then the free-run juice slowly ferments at 18°C, working fine lees, to bring you structure and smoothness.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Straw yellow edging sidewalks with slightly greenish tones. Bright and shiny. Little tear, thick dense slow fall.
- Nose: Medium intensity nose dominated by stone fruit, melon and ripe citrus with notes of jasmine, fennel and notes c sweetness background. Hints of aniseed and herbs, around some subtle notes of white fruit and hints of citrus and some pastries.
- Palate: Good volume on the palate with certain stickiness, while fresh and light, with good acidity. Great length with hints of aniseed. In attack is sweet, fruity and good maturity, with hints of apricot, melon and grapefruit with honey- notes on a background of fennel bulb, hay and white flowers.
Urbina Rosado Wine DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo, Garnacha
- Alcohol: 13%
- Viticulture: Urbina Family Vinegrowers, Urbina Rosado, are made from different plots, to provide the desired fineness and complexity, about 80% Tempranilio 20% Gamacha.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 26.000 botles
- Elaboration: This delicate Rosado, is made from the must tear with a slight maceration, fermented slowly, softly and gently at low temperature 16-17°, and stabilized by cold, to keep their varietal characteristics in a balanced and elegant way.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Salmon pink dress with pink trim-stick, very bright and good clarity. Thin tear.
- Nose: Fresh nose evokes strawberries and raspberries with ripe citrus and herbal notes field. Memories of strawberry-cream treats and aniseed. Medium intensity.
- Palate: Fresh attack initially evokes ripe citrus (grapefruit) followed by some wild strawberries and raspberries and smith apple. Good acidity, fruity with good balance, not cloying with varietal character. Clear and defined smooth aftertaste.
Urbina Tempranillo Wine DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 13%
- Viticulture: This wine is made from a selection of grapes from Bodegas Urbina vineyards. Less than 20 years old. The cold harvest tempranillo grapes, ready in October-November, after a thoughtful and gentle maturation, which brings complexity and finesse of the terroir that seduced and saved the French negociants in the first stages of the phylloxera crisis.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 25.000 bottles
- Elaboration: 100% Tempranito from a cool vintage from October to November, the grapes arrive at the winery at 12-16 ° C naturally, is fermented slowly, controlling the temperature not exceeding 25°C, macerating with the skins for 15 days cold stabilized with a very soft filtering, to keep intact the delicate and complex varietal aromas of a cold tempranito grape harvest
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Intense red cherry, with very bright ruby trim, upper middle layer. Tear fine and homogeneous.
- Nose: Intense primary aromas, elegant, red fruits, strawberries and raspberries leaving light aromas of licorice and flowers.
- Palate: Fresh and tasty, full bodied and fruity, strong feel and balanced flavors of red fruits and flowers. Round silky and velvety tannins, long distance, easy to drink, discovering its delicate complexity.
Urbina Crianza 2009 DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 13,5%
- Viticulture: Urbina Family Vine Growers Team, this wine is made from a selection of grapes from vineyards of Bodegas Urbina. From vines over 20 years old.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 150.000 bottles
- Elaboration: Fermented at 28 ° C and macerated for 28 days in stainless steel, the wine remains in oak barrels during 12 months, then it is bottled and'll Stay a minimum of 6 months in bottle before commercial release.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Ruby-Cherry Red
- Nose: Good intensity. Dominated by tertiary notes, with a predominance of memories of American oak. Coconuts, vanilla and spices reminiscent of white pepper. The fruit appears elegant and clearly shaped red fruit, cherry, ripe accompanied by lactic memories, complexity and balance with notes of musk, incense, and scrubland, thyme, dill and a caracteristic and refreshing orange peel.
- Palate: Balanced and complex nuances detected In the nose, warm shades of black currant on the palate, spicy notes of incense and musk, combined with black fruit are confirmed. Touch of herbs, fennel, thyme and dill, good structure and persistence, refreshing acidity. Very nice and easy to enjoy, Very Smooth.
Urbina Reserva Especial 2001 DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 14%
- Viticulture: Urbina Family Vine Growers Team, this wine is made from a selection of grapes from vineyards of Bodegas Urbina. From vines over 20 years old.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 66.000 bottles
- Elaboration: Fermented at 28 ° C and macerated for 28 days in stainless steel. Stay at least two years in cask of French and American oak and approximately two years in the bottle.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Dark ruby color, middle layer.
- Nose: Medium intensity nose, very fine where black fruit (Black cherry) assembled perfectly with the oak, complex aroma with mineral notes, truffle and spices appears. Very round with no edge, the ultimate expression of harmony and balance.
- Palate: The palate confirms the notes perceived on the nose, complex and balanced, with good volume and silky palate passing through with refreshing acidity, elegant and very long aftertaste.
Urbina Gran Reserva Especial 1994 DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 13%
- Viticulture: Urbina Family Vine Growers Team, this wine is made from a selection of grapes from vineyards of Bodegas Urbina. From vines over 20 years old.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 66.000 bottles
- Elaboration: Fermented at 28°C and macerated final 28 days, followed by at least 36 months in oak and 48 months ageing in bottle.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Dark ruby color, middle layer with a thin mahogany trim.
- Nose: Complex nose, splendid maturity, mineral aromas, ripe fruit, figs, cherries and plums, tomato jam and dried apricots, cigar box, cherry blossom, harmonious and well defined spicy hints of cinnamon, vanilla and clove. Some leather, snuff leaves and nutmeg. Musk, incense and kola nut. Base of toffee candy, and balsamic notes, fresh and elegant. Very Complex and Amazing.
- Palate: On the palate harmonious and balanced oak and fruit tannins, great elegance and velvety softness, with a wonderful length that is appreciated.
Salva Crianza 2011 DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 14%
- Viticulture: This wine is made from a selection of several clones of Tempranillo, grown in the main three soil types of La Rioja Alta; Ferrous day (Red Clay), Calcareous clayey (White Clay), and Stony Alluvial (Cascajos). All to seek greater complexity and elegance in the wine.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 20.000 Bottles
- Elaboration: Fermented at 28°C and macerated for 28 days in stainless steel, the wine remains in oak 80% American and 20% French during 12 months, and stabilizes naturally in stainless steel tanks for a year.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Cherry red with garnet trim, with abundant tears slowly and sharp fall.
- Nose: Intense and complex. Ripe red and black fruit, blackberry, raspberry and cherry ripe cherry, with balsamic and spicy traces. Roasted cocoa, much minerality and hints of rain forest,
- Palate: Powerful and elegant, balanced runs through the mouth, very tasty, stand black berries flavored with cocoa and spices. Refreshing acidity and minerality, with a long, lingering aftertaste tasty.
Salva Reserva 2010 DOC Rioja
Technical Sheet:
- Winery: Bodegas Urbina
- Origin: DOC Rioja
- Grape Variety: Tempranillo
- Alcohol: 14%
- Viticulture: This wine is made from a selection of several clones of Tempranillo, grown in the main three soil types of La Rioja Alta; Ferrous clay (Red Clay), Calcareous clayey (White Clay), and Stony Alluvial (Cascajos). All to seek greater complexity and elegance in the wine.
- Oenology: Urbina Family Winemakers
- Production: 4.000 Bottles
- Elaboration: Fermented at 28°C and macerated for 28 days in stainless steel, the wine remains in oak 80%
American and 20% French during 36 months, and stabilizes naturally in stainless steel tanks for a year.
Tasting Notes:
- Visual: Black cherry color, with upper middle layer. Clean and bright.
- Nose: Intense and complex aromas, that appear as the wine opens. Ripe black fruit, cedar, balsamic notes, mint, leaf snuff fresh, toasted oak, coffe and cocoa and earthy notes.
- Palate: Intense start that fills the mouth, noticeable acidity. Wood notes perfectly assembled with red and black berries, currants, blackberries, menthol, nutmeg, chocolate, smoke and quite minerality appears. Velvety, round and soft tannins.
