Pingus 2011 / 750 ml.

As with all the 2011s, the 2011 Pingus is riper, with never-seen-before alcohol levels (15.5%), but the wine feels extremely balanced. As usual, the highly-selected grapes were fermented in 2,000-liter oak vats with indigenous yeasts and aged for 22 months in second-and third-fill barrels. It is ripe and exuberant, with notes of violets, spices (curry!), smoky peat and umami-like meat-broth aromas. The palate is full-bodied, glyceric with sophisticated tannins, but plenty of them, so they need to calm down a little. I believe there will be a lot of people who will really love this 2011, it’s showy and exuberant. 6,000 bottles produced. Drink 2016–2020.

The 2011 Pingus has a gorgeous, pure black cherry, cassis and blueberry scented bouquet interlaced by orange blossom and apricot. The oak is beautifully assimilated into the aromatic profile. The palate is full-bodied with a decadent entry. The tannins are ripe and rounded, imparting great tension and focus. There is both dimension and grace to this formidable Pingus that should blossom once it finishes its gestation. This is an outstanding Ribera del Duero wine. Drink 2020–2035+.

Inky purple. An exotic, expressive bouquet displays scents of blueberry, black cherry, violet, licorice and Asian spices, with a subtle smoky nuance in the background. Offers an array of densely packed black and blue fruit and floral flavors that are enlivened by bright minerality. Shows outstanding clarity and energy on the intense, lingering finish.