Bodega Numanthia Termes Toro Numanthia 2004

Believe it or not, the 2004 Termanthia is even better than the Numanthia. From an 11 acre plot, 2600 feet above sea level, planted with 100+-year-old ungrafted vines, the yields were well under 1 ton of fruit per acre. The wine was barrel fermented a... Robert Parker. A Tempranillo wine from Toro in Spain. 2004 Bodega Numanthia Termes Termanthia 750ml

October 2009

One of the most highly sought after Spanish wines. Get it before the ratings hit (the 2003 vintage got 96 points from the Wine Advocate) Estate bottled. Unfiltered. The grapes come from 4 vineyards located on the south bank of the Duero River, totaling 46.8 acres of sandy/chalky textured soil, excellent for drainage, over a subsoil of clay and loam which helps to retain the moisture. The vines are 70 to 100 yrs. old and 2,300 ft. in elevation. The vineyards are planted on ungrafted pre-phylloxera rootstocks in the vaso system. Yields: 1 ton /acre. Aged for 19 months in new French oak barrels. Bottled read more...unfined and unfiltered. Production: 350 cases    (hide)

Made from 100% Tinta de Toro (the local name for Tempranillo) from pre-phylloxera ungrafted vines. Alcohol b.v. 14.5%.

Frustratingly, this celebrated wine didn't match my expectations. I've had every vintage since 1998 and still consider Numanthia to be one of Spain's emblematic "new"; wines. It's highly regarded by the critics: you're looking at a Robert Parker (well, Jay Miller) 98 here, which is a pretty serious Wine Advocate score, and Wine Spectator has rated previous vintages regularly in the 90s. But on this occasion I couldn't muster read more...a high-nineties experience. It's got the colour of youth: a dark, rich cherry of incredible intensity. The nose is smoky and expresses treacle and leather, with a discreet but unmistakeable background of vanilla and cinnamon. It's got tremendous volume and power on the palate. An expansive, assertive wine of unusual profundity, it exudes raw sensuality in the form of an earthy, rustic seductiveness, beautifully framed in a bold tannic structure that's surprisingly velvety and soft (compare, for example, with the 2003, which is tannic beyond belief). In the first hour the fruit was restrained and I wonder whether the acidity was also excessive - not a good combination! The wine was fighting to open up, so perhaps it needed decanting or breathing for a few hours. I admit it had improved by the end, and started to express more fruit, floral aromas, liquorice, toffee, cream and chocolate complexity. Remarkably, most of the fruit revealed itself on the finish rather than on the nose or palate - a sort of brambly, blackberry affair.

I think the best vintages are the 1998 and the 2000. The 2003 is an acquired taste, and the 2004, despite Jay Miller's fascination with it ("killer nose", "immense power", "sensational effort"), it probably needs cellaring for a decade or more before it starts to reveal its real virtues, which I regret to say, are at the moment mostly hidden from view. It's difficult to do the 2004 justice, it struck me as not immediately as good as its worldwide reputation, although it's unquestionably a wine of considerable pedigree. I still think the Mauro 2004, which is cheaper and less admired (Jay Miller 92, WS a completely indefensible 84, but they are often rather stingy), was a better wine. 93 points.    (hide)

• Tags:
• smoky
• treacle
• leather
• vanilla
• cinammon
• sensual
• seductive
• volume
• power
• expansive
• assertive
• profound
• earthy
• rustic
• liquorice
• toffee
• chocolate

July 2008

Rich and deep, but still holding back, this powerful red shows concentration and balance, offering cassis, blackberry and roasted plum fruit, with dark notes of mineral, smoke and earth and hints of licorice and spice, all wrapped in muscular but vel... Wine Spectator. A Tempranillo wine from Toro in Spain. 2004 Bodega Numanthia Termes Numanthia 750ml

January 2009

quite good, but somewhat pricey. there are more good Toro wines for less.

January 2008

VERY DARK. Chocolate, coffee, leather. HUGE TANNINS and massive structure. Very complex. Much to young to drink at this point. Can age 10+ yrs easily

June 2009