TN: Not alotta tannat

M

MarkS

Mark Svereika
Nope, not alotta at all, but one (if it's a good one) is all you need.
Bodegas Castillo Viejo, 'Catamayor', 2005 from San Jose-Uruguay is damn tasty stuff, with darkish black cherry red color, beef aromas and black chernozyom soils and a slight floral lift. Beautiful, serious nose. This is a tensely drawn wine between power and a nicely acidic finish which provides delineation. Austere and brooding at the same time, with black fruits and an iron-nickel-copper finish. Old-World in style, I wish I had another one or two of these to set aside and try in 5-10 years. A-
 
originally posted by Zachary Ross:
Nice note. Where'd you get this?
Click to expand...

Local close out, of all places. Sometimes you find a pearl. I think I paid about $12 for this, normally around 20(?).
 
Tried the 05 Catamayor last night and it was quite good. Meat & berries, good balance, medium tannins, streak of iodine. Attractively European, suggesting that Uruguay is worth exploring for its lack of mountains.
 
If Mark doesn't mind, I'll concentrate notes on any Uruguayans here.

2005 Bodegas Castillo Viejo Catamayor Reserva de la Familia Cabernet Franc 13.0%
Soy, leather and blackberries, with good balance and an appealing umami chalkiness. Not oaky, not hot, blessedly not yer typical modern South American. While still far from the bees' knees, this is tasty, and adds fuel to the Uruguayan fire. Oh, little country, ask not what the Andes can do for you, but what you can do for the Andes.
 
These TNs are for record keeping. Over the last few weeks, I tried a bunch of Uruguayans, a biased sample because all had 13.0% or less alcohol. The good news: in the new world, Uruguay definitely presents an alternative to the modern Andean stereotype of high alcohol, low acidity, and lots of oak. Maybe because it has no mountains, many of its wines are cut in the older European style, anterior to the surgence of points. The bad news: none of them really gave me much pleasure. But if the AVN (or their Italian counterpart) sent a delegation of colonizing vignerons there, the little country could be a contender.

2009 Montes Toscanini Tannat Reserva Familiar 12.5% R$24
Muted nose, showing some dark berry. Tastes of cherry and rather obtrusive tar, with a bitter finish that subsides with food. Correct balance, mild tannins, no oak or heat. Tangy acidity works well with food, and flavor improves as air tames the tar.

2004 Bodegas Castillo Viejo Catamayor Cabernet Sauvignon 13.0% R$19.50
Appealing sour cherry aromas turn to blackberries and olives, with good balance, medium tannins and fully absorbed oak. Appropriate alcohol, acidity up to the task of food. Tastes like a rustic, but satisfying, table wine, with an old world profile. Excellent QPR.

2006 Bodegas Castillo Viejo Catamayor Tannat 12.5% R$22.50
Plastic cork, boo, but contents surprisingly pristine. Muted but attractive blackberry, herbs and iodine. Correct acid/sweet balance and good mouth weight, light tannins, any wood fully absorbed. Correct for a low cost entry level wine at this age, but the iodine trail becomes too much on day two.

2006 Dominio Cassis Oceánico Tannat Reserva 13.0% R$39
Berries and leather. Lively acidity, balanced, spicy and slightly sweet. Alcohol, wood and tannins all unobtrusive. Structurally quite decent, but lacks the whatever extra that makes for pleasure.

2007 Bodegas Carrau Ysern Tannat Roble 12.5% R$19.50 375ml
Berry and tar, with some mustiness. Good balance and weight, but simple and boring. Has its heart in the right place, there’s just not much in it.

2005 Bodegas Carrau Ysern Tannat Roble Gran Reserva 13.0% R$45.00
Oak vanilla, cherry and meat. Strong acidity, but feels unintegrated. Compromised by wood, but fruit is not entirely without interest.
 
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