Tempranillo, 2016. Condado de Haza

Lovely aromas of crushed berries, cola and chocolate follow through to a medium body, integrated and refined tannins and a flavorful finish. Complex and beautiful. Consistently outstanding red.

Condado de Haza Crianza is a red wine from the Ribera del Duero region prepared by Condado de Haza, a winery belonging to Familia Fernndez Rivera. Alejandro Fernndez began planting these vineyards in 1987, along the Douro river.

The climate in this area is Mediterranean with a continental influence. It is characterized by a moderate to low anual rainfall of 400-600 mm, dry summers and harsh winters with long temperature fluctuations throughout the seasons.

This wine is a varietal Tempranillo from 200 hectares of land that harbour fine strains of this variety. The vineyards are located between 750 and 850 meters above sea level. As for maturing, Haza Crianza County remains in American oak barrels for 15 months. It eventually spends 6 months in the bottle before marketing.

After a dry winter, spring came loaded with rain. Thankfully, this water was stored, since it was much needed during the extremely dry summer. The low temperatures during spring delayed the sprouting of the vines, which led the growth cycle to start with delay. However, this delay was offset thanks to the high temperatures recorded in July and August, to the point of delaying ripening in those younger vineyards. The 2016 vintage beat the production record of the 2014 vintage. And not only in production, but also in quality due to the excellent weather conditions and the excellent health of the vineyards. The wines from this vintage offer a lot of volume, with a good capacity to face the passing of time, with roundness and spectacular tannins. A harvest reminiscent of those of the late 80s and early 90s.

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