SPAIN – RIBERA DEL DUERO
As Jorge Monzon and Isabel Rodero summarize : “Dominio del Aguila is the result of the love to the wine and the fight for a dream“.
Jorge Monzon comes from a family of many generations of vignerons. His studies were based in ‘Soil, viticulture and oenology’ at the Universities of Bordeaux and Burgundy. After having worked at Domaine de la Romanée Conti and Vega Sicilia, among others, Jorge Monzón – in couple with Isabel Rodero, architect – decided to devote themselfs entirely to their vineyard about ten years ago.
Indeed, the domain’s greatest asset is clearly the vineyard. It counts with 30 hectares of very old vines (some prephylloxeric), mostly in organic farming, apart from 5 additional hectares relatively young (under 50 years).
The estate’s vines are mainly made up of Tempranillo. There are also Bobal, Carinena and Garnacha. The estate’s white is vinified primarily from the local Albillo grape. All vines are located at an altitude of over 800 meters which keeps the entire range exceptionally fresh.
The philosophy of Dominio del Aguila is to produce eternal wines and immediate wines at the same time, which are able to age for a long time.
The range is made up of 4 cuvées in red, 1 in white and 1 “Clarete” blend of red wine and white wine.
The entry-level, Picaro del Aguila, and as Luis Gutierrez of the Wine Advocate notes, has the depth, concentration and nuance of the best wines from many producers. The 2018 (WA 94) was aged for 11 months in barrels.
The Reserva comes from vines planted before 1930 and uses all the varieties present to give complexity to the majority Tempranillo. Aging 29 months in barrels for 2016 (WA 97).
The Gran Reserva, called Penas Eladas according to a specific area of the village of La Aguilera, is produced from vines over 85 years old and underwent a 45-month aging for the 2014 (WA 96). According to Jorge, the idea was not to produce a Gran Reserva because it was expected but rather because the terroir demanded it. Guia Penin has published its 2021 guide in which we discover that the 2014 GR Penas Aladas is one of the 6 “Giants” that enters the winemaking history of the country.
Canta La Perdiz is an isolated plot of vines between 100 and 150 years old. With a smoother structure than Penas Aladas, it spends less time in barrels and presents an aromatic palette unlike other wines from the estate.
The Picaro del Aguila Clarete, “rosé” produced from a blend of Tempranillo and Albillo is, according to Jorge Monzon, “a wine which is not a rosé but which has the aromas of a white and the spirit of a red”. It spends over a year fermenting and aging in barrels. Aging in bottle guaranteed !
The white Blanco, made almost exclusively from Albillo, is vinified “à la bourguignonne” and is one of the best white wines in Spain. The 2016 has been rated 97 by the WA.
In conclusion, one tasting of the different cuvées of Dominio del Aguila is enough to affirm without pretension that this is one of the main names from Ribera del Duero (and from the whole Spain) with Vega sicilia and Pingus as well.
Others informations about Dominio del Aguila here (PDF)
