Arzuaga Crianza 2023

Arzuaga Crianza 2023 comes from Bodegas Arzuaga Navarro in Quintanilla de Onesimo, a Ribera del Duero estate the family built from the 1990s. The climate here is continental with an Atlantic influence, marked by dry summers, long hard winters and a pronounced day to night temperature swing on modest rainfall of around 350 to 500 mm. That wide diurnal range is central to Ribera del Duero: it ripens the Tempranillo to depth and colour while the cold nights lock in acidity and firm tannin. The wine blends Tempranillo with a portion of Cabernet Sauvignon and spends sixteen months in French and American oak. The barrel ageing supplies vanilla, sweet spice and toast, and the slow ingress of oxygen through the staves rounds the considerable tannin into a fuller frame. It is deep and full bodied, with ripe black plum and cherry, dark chocolate and a peppery, tobacco-edged spine over oak. The tannins are firm but ripe and the finish is long. Serve at 17 to 18 degrees, decanting ahead, with roast or grilled red meat.