Joan d'Anguera Altaroses 2014
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Fresh wild strawberries, garrigue and warm spices on the nose. Very expressive. Medium weight, with mouth-watering acidity and soft warm fruit. Soft tannins and well-balanced structure between acidity, tannin, fruit and alcohol make this extremely gulp-able.
Other Vintages
2013-
Wilfred
Wong
The vineyards lie at an altitude of 200 to 300 meters on clay and calcareous soils. The majority of the Shiraz and Cabernet plantings are now more than 20 years old, and the Grenache and Carignan are more than 50 years old. Joan D'Anguera uses barrels of American oak sourced in Spain from Martin de la Rioja as well as French oak sourced in France from Demptos.
The two sons of the late patriarch, Josep D'Anguera, run this domain under the the vigilant eye of their mother. Their intention is to produce the best Shiraz-based wines of Spain. Known as "Mister Shiraz" in Spain, Josep (the father) was a man with an extensive knowledge of the international wine scene. Introduced to Shiraz by a Spanish enologist who had traveled to California in the 1970s, Josep started planting the grape in 1977 anywhere he could find vineyard space.
Fifteen years ago he began estate bottling a wine called Vino Joven. Vino Joven recently has sold out every year. In 1997, he released two additional wines -- La Planella and Finca L'Argata. La Planella is a blend exclusively for the U.S. market. It receives extended maceration time in addition to a lengthy fermentation. Finca L'Argata is made from a selection of the best parcels and is aged in oak for one year. The first vintage for this wine was the 1996 vintage, and one new wine is scheduled for release in 2000. El Bugader, which is made primarily from the best parcels of Shiraz, is aged in oak for 20 months. Joan D'Anguera also produces very limited quantities of a Vi Dolç. This wine is very stylistically similar to Banuyls from France and is destined to age well.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
