96 Decanter

Hay, linden, lemon curd and dried apple peel, with an edge of zest and flint, mingle on the beautiful nose. Vibrant, linear acidity supports the palate which is at once nutty and saline. Poised, with weighty lemon curd and quince with a lining – at once vegetal and savoury – of wild flower, dry hay, apple peel and dry sage. Long finish, with a vibrant tail of white pepper, cinnamon, aniseed, tarragon, curry leaf and toasted almonds.Drinking Window: 2025 - 2032

95 Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com

The 2022 Alejandra is named for Juan Carlos Vizcarra’s wife and the mother of Celia and Inez, who have their own namesake wines. It was made the first time in 2018 for her 50th birthday to coincide with when the appellation allowed Albillo Mayor whites to be officially produced. This Albillo has 10% other local white varieties from some of the oldest otherwise Tempranillo plots the family farms. They have since planted a new plot of Albillo and will begin making this wine from that. Fermented in concrete eggs, it then spent 12 months aging in larger-format oak, 30% new. Like many of the whites made from this grape, it’s more about texture than fruitiness, with minerality in the form of wet stone and gravel, or what the winemakers would call “phosphorus.” It gets one year in bottle before release and should age another 10-15 years.

93+ Luis Gutierrez - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The one white they have produced in the last few years, the 2022 Alejandra is a very primary expression of Albillo Mayor, produced with grapes from vines intermixed in the red vineyards. It has contained ripeness, 13.5% alcohol and very good freshness and acidity—remarkable for the very warm year. It fermented in concrete eggs and barrels and matured for 12 months in barrels of different sizes, 30% of them new. The oak is neatly integrated, and the wine has an elegant and fine profile.