What makes this wine unique?

This is a “triple selection” wine. The grapes are from pre-phylloxera vines. The 80+-year-old vines are dry farmed (no irrigation) in sandy/clay/gravel soils. All grapes are organically grown. Mibal Seleccion communicates the power and flavor of their robust vines and terroir.

Rating history:

Grape:

100% Tempranillo

Pairing Suggestions:

Mibal Seleccion is a great choice for steak, veal and, best of all, baby lamb chops. The local dish, lechazo, is milk-fed suckling lamb that is slow roasted for hours in an earthen oven using only water and salt. This is a perfect dish for Ribera del Duero wines and must be experienced. To pair with postres, or desserts, dark chocolate and hard cheeses are good options.

Vinification and ageing:

After selecting the best bunches from the best vines of the estate’s 20 hectares (49 acres) of vineyards, the end product is a selection of the best 5% of the grapes that Miguel and Javier own. After these pristine berries are selected and gently crushed, they go into a 15,000-liter stainless steel tank where they undergo fermentation and maceration for 25 days with delestage, a process also called “rack and return,” every morning and evening. This process is meant to aerate the must and optimize the contact between the must and solids so that optimal tannins and pigments are extracted. Many winemakers feel that delestage is a very effective method and is less aggressive than either remontage (“pumping over”) or pigeage (“punching down”). After fermentation, the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in 3-year-old French oak barrels. The wine is aged for 14 months in French oak barrels.

Production:

750 cases are made; 300 for the U.S.

Location, Soil, Climate:

The vineyards are in the adjacent villages of Anguix and Roa, at 806 meters (2,644 ft.) elevation, in the Burgos subregion of the Ribera del Duero DO (Zone 2). The “garagiste style” small winery is in Roa. For soils, the grapes selected to make Mibal Seleccion come from the sandy portions of the Anguix vineyard owned by Javier. Most of these vines are over eighty years old and have pre-phylloxera rootstocks. The soil is poor in nutrients and impedes excessive vigor and vegetation in the vines, resulting in smaller berries. Yields of only 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs.) of fruit per vine produce grapes with high skin-to-juice ratios, dark pigmentation and well-balanced, ripe tannins. The wine made from this fruit has rich and intense colors, aromas and flavors. For climate, the area has an average temperature from April-October of 61ºF. The Ribera del Duero’s Burgos subregion is situated at a higher altitude and, as a result, this area is cooler than either Rueda or Toro to the west. The wines produced in the Burgos area of Ribera are darker, more concentrated and more aromatic than wines from the western part of Ribera. Annual rainfall is low (18.6 inches) and the Continental climate has dry cool nights and hot days with relatively low rainfall. These conditions provide a longer ripening period, which results in wines of intense concentration, complexity and expression.

Tasting notes:

Mibal Seleccion exhibits intense, mineral aromas of dark cherry, cassis, iron, graphite and baking spices. In the mouth, the wine is deep and chewy, with primary dark fruit flavors and smoky Asian spice notes. This wine really stains the palate and there's no excess fat. Becomes livelier with air and finishes with persistent sweetness and spiciness. Very nicely balanced and built to age.

Alcohol Content:

14.5%

UPC Code:

810411011133