Olivares Altos de la Hoya Monastrell Jumilla - 2005
Posted by Gabe on January 28, 2008
First up this week is a release from the Jumilla area of Spain. The 2005 Olivares Altos de 
la Hoya is composed of Monastrell.This grape is also known as Graciano which is what it’s generally referred to when grown in the Rioja region of Spain.
The nose of this wine is full of cloves and black cherries. The first few sips out of the bottle are tart. The wine opens up fairly quickly, but a 30 minute decant is recommended with this one to get the most out of it. The mid-palate features subtle dark chocolate notes and copious dark berry and spice flavors that dart along the tongue. This wine is well balanced with good acidity. The finish offers white pepper. For the price (between $8-$10) the finish is above average. It pairs terrifically with grilled meats and medium-strength cheeses.
There are a lot of value priced wines coming out of Spain these days, of course quality varies greatly. For it’s price-point the Olivares Altos de la Hoya offers a significant amount of complexity. This is a good wine to pick up a few bottles of to have on hand when you don’t want to crack anything pricier. That said it’s clearly not meant for long term aging. I’ll bet it drinks well until the end of 2009.
Imported by Polaner Selections.
Stay tuned for coverage of several other Spanish Wines this week.
May 6, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Just picked up a bottle of the ‘06, and looking forward to giving it a try. Tanzer’s IWC gave it a 91, apparently.
Here’s a question: in the past people thought that Monastrell was simply the Spanish word for the grape that the French call Mourvedre. However, as you may know, the Wikipedia entry for “Monastrell” claims that recent DNA testing has shown that Monastrell is actually the Spanish blending grape Graciano — but it doesn’t cite any sources. A search for “monastrell graciano” on Google turns up a few blogs (which also don’t cite their sources) and the Wikipedia article.
Where did you learn that Monastrell and Graciano are the same thing? I’m just trying to find some kind of academic source or something. Any help?
May 6, 2008 at 10:17 pm
I don’t recall for certain, where I found that out. May have been Oz Clarke’s Encycolpedia of Grapes but i’m not 100% sure.